Legislatively Speaking
By Senator, Lena C. Taylor
Lena C. Taylor
January is National Human Trafficking Awareness Month. Immediately many of us may think of places like Cambodia, Asia, or anywhere outside of the United States.
We might envision children and adults who are forced into prostitution, migrant farming and sweatshop work. In fact, it is estimated that some 21 million people around the world have been trafficked.
Alarmingly, that number includes 5.5 million children who have been used as sex slaves, forced in to marriages, or used as free labor.
The U.S. is not exempt from this growing epidemic. We are the second most popular destination country for trafficking victims.
An estimated 18,000 people are being trafficked into the United States every year.
The victims who are not outright kidnapped lured into the country with the promise of jobs.
Once here they are coerced through violence, the threat of violence, or manipulation to work long hours for little or no pay.
Many of the victims end up working as domestic laborers, in the service industry, on a farm, in a factory, or as prostitutes.
Human trafficking is nothing more than modern day slavery that has huge economic implications.
Human trafficking is the second most lucrative criminal enterprise, generating an estimated $32 billion around the world each year.
Perhaps one of the most disturbing forms of trafficking is sex trafficking.
Many young children are thrust into of life sex slavery even before they have reached puberty.
The average age of entry into prostitution is between the ages of 12 and 14 years old, it is estimated that 100,000-300,000 U.S. kids are at risk of being recruited and trafficked within the country.
Human trafficking exists in Wisconsin; at least one case has been reported in each of the 72 counties in Wisconsin. It takes the form of both sex trafficking and labor trafficking, and it is committed against both adults and minors.
Most of the human trafficking cases reported occur in areas of the state that are highly populated and have a significant tourist or visitor population.
Early intervention is critical for helping victims or potential victims leave or avoid a life of trafficking.
We are fortunate that a number of groups have come together, along with state legislators like to address this problem.
From federal and local prosecutors, to law enforcement and civic engagement groups, efforts and coalitions around the state have come together in the effort to eradicate Human Trafficking in Wisconsin.
This past week, legislators came together at the anti-human trafficking symposium on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 to learn more about the problem of sexually exploited youth in Wisconsin and discuss what we can do to end it.