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Together We Can End Child Sex Trafficking
Empower your family or community with simple but essential information to help us end the trafficking crisis. Get started with our free Internet Safety Guide For Parents.
The truth about child sex trafficking
It’s Worse Than You Think
Child sex trafficking isn’t just a third-world problem. Trafficking occurs closer to home than you think, affecting people of all ages, genders, races, and backgrounds. The United States is the number one consumer of sex worldwide, driving demand as a society.
MILLION
Estimated number of children trafficked around the world each year.
1%
Less than 1% of victims are ever found.
90%
of victims are women and children.
90%
of sexual advances to children occur online.
91%
of victims know their abuser.
$300K+
Avg annual revenue produced by one victim.
$100B
Size of sex trafficking industry.
92%
of sex trafficking survivors were abused as children, beginning at 3 or 4 years old.
20X
Victims can be sold up to 20 times or more every 24 hours.
15K%
reports of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has increased in recent years.
75%
of sex trafficked victims comtemplate suicide.
Sources: National Center for Mission and Exploited Children, The Foundation United, Shared Hope International, Save the Children, United States Institute Against Human Trafficking.
"Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them."
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Education for Teens
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How to Involve Your Organization in the Fight Against Child Sex Trafficking
Educate your community on what child sex trafficking is and how to recognize the signs of exploitation of another person.
Support for Communities: Top 5 Myths About Child Sex Trafficking
Many widely accepted and popularized myths about sex trafficking, particularly child sex trafficking, circulate in the media.
Know the Signs of Potential Sex Trafficking Situation
91% of childhood sexual abuse victims report knowing their abusers! Educate your community on child sex trafficking warning signs.
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Internet Safety Guide For Parents
Empower your family or community with simple but essential information to help us end the trafficking crisis. Get started with our free Internet Safety Guide For Parents.
Trafficking FAQ
Get Up to Speed On Trafficking
What is Human Trafficking?
Human trafficking is the act of compelling a person to engage in sexual acts or forced labor. Sexual predators can target your children even when your child is in the room down the hall.
How is human trafficking different from migrant smuggling?
While trafficking in persons is a crime that aims to exploit a person who may or may not be a migrant, smuggling of migrants does not, by definition, involve the exploitation of the migrant. Migrant smuggling always crosses national borders.
What is sex trafficking?
Sex trafficking is when a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud and/or coercion, or when the person induced to perform the act is under 18 years old. A commercial sex act means any item of value is traded for any sexual service (prostitution, pornography, or sexual performance).
Is child sex trafficking happening in the United States?
YES. Domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST), which is the commercial sexual exploitation of children through buying, selling, or trading their sexual services, is happening in the United States. Forms of DMST include prostitution, pornography, stripping and other sexual acts.
What is the difference between a pimp and a trafficker?
There is no difference. A pimp is a trafficker, and vice versa. They are interchangeable names. A trafficker/pimp is typically an adult (male/female) who uses force, fraud, or coercion to engage a minor in commercial sex in order to profit from the exploitation of that child.
Who are the traffickers?
While many traffickers have criminal backgrounds and use trafficking as a direct source of income, there are also business owners, intimate partners and other family members involved in human trafficking.
Who is vulnerable?
Human trafficking can happen to anyone, but some people are more vulnerable than others. Significant risk factors include recent migration or relocation, substance use, mental health concerns, involvement with the child welfare system and being a runaway or homeless youth.
Age is a primary factor of vulnerability as well. Pre-teen or adolescent girls are more susceptible to the calculated advances, deception, and manipulation tactics used by traffickers – no youth is exempt from falling prey to these tactics.
Traffickers target locations youths frequent such as social media sites, schools, malls, parks, bus stops, shelters, and group homes. As noted above, runaway or homeless youths, as well as those with a history of physical and sexual abuse have increased risks of being trafficked.
What about girls who choose prostitution? Are they victims?
Under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) any minor used in a commercial sex act (the exchange of any item of value for a sex act) IS a victim of trafficking, regardless of their willingness.
Why don’t victims try to escape?
Traffickers often use the threat of violence against victims or victim’s loved ones to secure their submission.
What is the role of technology in human trafficking?
Traffickers have integrated technology into their business model at every stage of the process, from recruiting to exploiting victims. Many children are approached by traffickers on social media.
Is the Internet really dangerous?
Traffickers are continually trolling the internet posing as a teen girl or boy interested in friendship. The relationship is then developed without threat until the unsuspecting child agrees to meet them, send compromising photos, or shares their deepest secretes with them. That is when the trafficker takes decisive action in the form of extortion, sextortion, threats, force, and coercion.
How do traffickers/pimps find their victims?
Many pimps often use a romantic relationship technique to recruit girls from elementary, middle, and high schools. Typically, an older boy pretends to be the boyfriend in love with the girl(s) and woos them with flattery, time, gifts, and promises of protection, provision, adventure, and a dream life – whatever she perceives she is lacking. Traffickers use social media sites to find their victims and after securing her love, loyalty, and isolation from her family and friends, will force her into prostitution.
Who are the buyers who pay to rape a child?
The buyers of child sex can be anyone – professionals, students, tourists, military personnel, a family member. Buyers often pay cash for this act and may only interact with the victim for a few minutes. With the Internet providing easy and discreet access to many trafficking sites, buyers are increasingly difficult to identify. For more information, please go to: www.demandingjustice.org
How does pornography affect the trafficking industry?
The production of the material and the social and relational consequences of the behavior extends far past the individual. Children and adults endure brutal rape and abuse at the hands of pornographers and may require years of specialized therapy to heal from the intense trauma inflicted on them.
What types of industries are affected by human trafficking?
No industry or economic sector is immune to human trafficking. There are high-risk sectors, in which victims are most frequently found, such as agriculture or horticulture, construction, the garment and textile industries, catering and restaurants, domestic work, entertainment and the sex industry.
What are the most commonly identified forms of human trafficking?
Human trafficking has many forms. These include exploitation in the sex, entertainment and hospitality industries, and as domestic workers or in forced marriages.
What are some of the warning signs?
Physical abuse such as burn marks, bruises or cuts, unexplained absences from class, newly sexualized clothing or behavior, overly tired in class, acting withdrawn, depressed, distracted or checked out, older boyfriend or new friends with a different lifestyle, signs of gang affiliation or tattoos (often used by pimps as a way to brand victims), bragging about making or having lots of money, talks about wild parties or invites other students to attend parties (inadvertent or intentional grooming), etc.
For more information, please go to: https://sharedhope.org/takeaction/report-trafficking/
As an Ambassador of Hope for Shared Hope International, the above information is graciously shared by them from their website sharedhope.org.
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