As most Lost Voices supporters probably know by now, many of the young people we work with are survivors of human trafficking. What you may not know is that many of those kids did not understand that what happened to them would be considered trafficking. One reason for this is the large body of misunderstanding about this serious problem.
The phrase “Human Trafficking” often conjures up images of children kidnapped off the street, snatched from the mall, or smuggled across borders in windowless trucks. These circumstances are not completely unknown, but they are rare. The realities of trafficking are no less disturbing, but they are very different from what you might expect. Here are a few of the common myths we encounter and the actual facts:
Myth
Human trafficking involves transporting a person across state or national borders. Michigan has a major trafficking problem because of its borders with Canada.
Fact
Human trafficking is often confused with human smuggling, which involves illegal border crossings. In fact, the crime of human trafficking does not require any movement whatsoever. Survivors can be recruited and trafficked in their own home towns, even their own homes. Of the hundreds of young people Lost Voices has worked with over the years, we know of three who were born outside of the United States. In writing about their experiences, none of them mentioned being coerced or smuggled into the country.
Myth
Parents and other adults should be on the lookout for strangers who are hunting for children to exploit.
Fact
Children are far more likely to be trafficked by people they know – including members of their own family.
Myth
Child sex traffickers usually kidnap their victims or otherwise take them by force.
Fact
Most child sex traffickers operate by building trust with victims, and manipulating them into sexual exploitation. In the eighteen years Lost Voices has been around, not one of the kids has talked or written about being abducted. On the other hand, many who have shared details of their story with us have described their abuser as a family member or close family friend.
Myth
The only way to reduce child sex trafficking is to arrest all the perpetrators.
Fact
Law enforcement is an important partner in the fight against human trafficking, but arrests alone will not solve the problem. Building and supporting strong families and communities will help prevent trafficking before it happens.
There are many other rumors about trafficking going around. Among the loudest ones out there is QAnon, which accuses one of the major political parties of everything from child sex trafficking to cannibalism. There has never been any evidence to support any of these rumors, but they have been widely spread on social media, producing some vehement and sometimes violent adherents.
While many people who spread the myths and misinformation about human trafficking may genuinely have the interests of trafficking victims in mind, the reality is that spreading these and other false narratives distorts peoples’ understanding of what human trafficking really looks like. This in turn makes it far less likely that kids in those situations will recognize themselves as victims and reach out for help.
If you would like to learn more about human trafficking, an important resource is the Polaris Project. Polaris not only researches and compiles data about all forms of human trafficking, they operate the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline, 888-373-7888. This important resource is available around the clock to “help survivors build plans to safely leave their situations, or get the help they need to rebuild their lives.” The myths and facts in this article were abstracted from their Website and our experience.
Another resource closer to home is the Michigan Human Trafficking Task Force. They are a consortium of over 100 agencies that range from federal, state, and local law enforcement to domestic violence shelters. Lost Voices has been associated with this group for many years.
