By Stephen DeAngelis
Each January the world is reminded that slavery and human trafficking are not historical artifacts but continuing stains on the world’s moral fabric. Although anti-human trafficking advocates have been active for decades, it was only in 2000 that the Trafficking Victims Protection Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. Several years later, in 2007, the United States Senate ratified a resolution establishing 11 January as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. The United States Department of State notes, “Every year since 2010, the President has dedicated the month to raise awareness about human trafficking and to educate the public about how to identify and prevent this crime. The U.S. Department of State raises awareness of human trafficking domestically and abroad, through U.S. embassies and consulates. During this month, we celebrate the efforts of foreign governments, international organizations, anti-trafficking entities, law enforcement officials, survivor advocates, communities of faith, businesses, and private citizens all around the world to raise awareness about human trafficking.”[1]
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) reports that the theme of this year’s observance is: “Connecting the Dots. Strengthening Communities. Preventing Trafficking.” The HHS staff explains, “The theme for Human Trafficking Prevention Month 2025 highlights the importance of a holistic approach to preventing human trafficking, recognizing its intersection with other forms of violence and social issues. Connecting the dots between human trafficking, online harassment and abuse, interpersonal violence, and other forms of violence can disrupt multiple forms of exploitation.”[2]
According to the HHS staff, stepping back and viewing broader connections can help everyone see ways to address this problem. They explain, “Understanding the role of economic mobility, desires for connection, technology, and market dynamics can prevent some of the most predictable recruitment schemes into human trafficking. Building healthy relationships and strengthening the resilience of communities and industries can protect against vulnerabilities to human trafficking. We can address the root causes by decreasing known risks and increasing protective factors against trafficking. This theme calls for collective action to strengthen prevention at every level — individual, relational, community, and societal. Our goal is to prevent exploitation before it occurs. It encourages cross-sector collaboration, including partnerships with individuals who have experienced trafficking. Together, we can strengthen our efforts to keep everyone safe from human trafficking.”
As noted above, 11 January is designated National Human Trafficking Awareness Day and everyone can get involved in this effort. Each year, the staff at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sponsors the Blue Campaign to raise awareness. They write, “Throughout the month, Blue Campaign hosts several special events and educational activities, with a spotlight on #WearBlueDay. Why blue? It’s the international color of human trafficking awareness. We invite everyone to take photos wearing something blue and share them on social media with #WearBlueDay.”[3] There are currently over 50 established global organizations focused on combatting this illegal practice. The staff at National Day offers this brief history of slavery and human trafficking:
“Human trafficking, according to Unitas, is the exploitation of another person for labor, domestic servitude, or commercial sexual activity by force, fraud, or coercion. It is also the act of enslaving or exploiting unwilling other people. Unfortunately, slavery in some form has existed for hundreds of years — and persistently exists today, though many are unaware of this fact. Most are familiar with the slave trade of the 1400s and beyond. Instituted by Europeans, the slave trade captured and held in bondage millions of Africans from across the continent, eventually selling them for labor or sexual exploitation. This practice flourished in countries like Spain, the growing United States, Holland, France, Sweden, and Denmark for centuries. It was not until the late 1700s and 1800s that governments began to declare the Transatlantic slave trade illegal, with Great Britain setting the example in 1807 and the United States following in 1820 — the slave trade became a crime punishable by death, but many years passed before more widespread freedom was achieved. The Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 largely put an end to slavery, and the Thirteenth Amendment of 1866 abolished it. It was after the recognition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade as immoral that governments began to discuss ‘white slavery,’ the term used at the time for sexual human trafficking. 1904 saw the passage of the International Agreement for the Suppression of the White Slave Traffic, written into law by European monarchs, and 12 countries signed the International Convention for the Suppression of the White Slave Traffic. The League of Nations soon changed the name from ‘white slavery’ to ‘traffic in women and children.’“[4]
The NGO OUR Rescue lists five common types of human trafficking: 1) Forced Labor – victims are forced to work against their will; 2) Sex – individuals are required to engage in sexual acts; 3) Forced Marriage – victims are forced to marry another person without giving consent; 4) Domestic Servitude – forced labor that occurs in a private household; and 5) Child Soldiers – minors are used as fighters in acts of war.[5] The OUR Rescue staff also provides the following statistics (from 2023):
● Today, there are 49.6 million people in modern slavery worldwide, and 12 million of them are children. (ILO, United Nations)
● 54% of those trapped in modern slavery are women and girls. (ILO)
● Sex trafficking is the most common type of trafficking in the U.S. (Polaris)
● There were 88 million child sexual abuse material (CSAM) files reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) tip line in 2022.
● Child sex trafficking has been reported in all 50 U.S. states. (NCMEC)
● Forced commercial sexual exploitation generates $173 billion in illegal profits annually. (ILO, 2024)
● Human trafficking is the second most profitable illegal industry in the U.S. (UNICEF)
The OUR Rescue staff reminds us, “Behind every stat is a person — someone’s mother, father, brother or sister.” They also note, “Multiple organizations estimate that 500,000 predators are online every day, leaving minors vulnerable each time they access a social media account.” Companies are constantly investigating to determine if forced labor is found anywhere in their supply chains. It’s not as easy as people think to discover it, which is why human trafficking remains an entrenched global challenge. It’s important to continue to bring attention to this continuing tragic challenge.
Footnotes
[1] Staff, “National Human Trafficking Prevention Month Fact Sheet,” U.S. Department of State.
[2] Staff, “Human Trafficking Prevention Month,” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
[3] Staff, “January 11 is #WearBlueDay,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
[4] Staff, “National Human Trafficking Awareness Day – January 11, 2025,” National Day.
[5] Staff, “Human Trafficking Statistics and Facts In 2024,” OUR Rescue, 12 January 2024.
