(Part 2 of 5 series)
by Lori Stone
California is one of three states with the most human trafficking, with victims smuggled from around the world. There are no statistics on the extent of the problem in Riverside County, but during the year 2008 there were 12 anonymous calls regarding human trafficking incidents made to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center and 49 anonymous calls regarding human trafficking and exploitation made to We Tip. In 2009 there were 16 to the NHTRC and 67 to We Tip. Since the Anti Human Trafficking Task force started training local police and social services providers, more initial reports are being reported. “The Task Force is finding previously overlooked or misidentified problems,” Jennifer O’Farrell, Anti Human Trafficking Director, Operation SafeHouse said.
Human Trafficking Fact Sheet:
Labor Trafficking: The recruitment, harboring, transporting, provision or obtaining of a person for labor or service, through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery.
Examples of Labor Trafficking:
Day labors, agriculture, landscape, factory, nanny/childcare, housework, restaurant, indentured servitude, hotel, restaurant, removal of organs, peddling and carnival door to door.
Quick Tips for Identification of a Victim:
- Accompanied by a controlling person, boss, not speaking on their own behalf
- Commercial sex on the streets or internet, especially minors
- With debt owed to employer or crew leader, an ability to leave their job
- Who is transporting to or from work, lives and works in the same place
- With lack of control over person schedule, belongings, I.D., money
- Unknown terminology-use www.urbandictionary.com
Sex Trafficking: The recruitment, harboring, transporting, provision or obtaining of a person for a purpose of commercial sex act, in which a commercial sex act is by force, fraud, or coercion or in which the person forced to perform such an act is under the age of 18 years.
Example of Sex Trafficking:
Examples are Exotic dancing, prostitution, servile marriage or personal escort.
Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) statistics:
- Average age of entry into CSEC is 12-14
- Approximately 200,000 American youth are at risk of commercial sexual exploitation each year.
- The majority of these children live on the streets in the U.S.
- At least 75% of minors exploited through prostitution are controlled by a pimp.
- 30% of shelter youth and 70% of street youth are victims of commercial sexual exploitation.
(Resource Riverside County Human Trafficking task force, 2011)
If you think someone is a victim of trafficking, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center @ 1.888.3737.888 or visit www.ach.hhs.gov/trafficking
Riverside County Emergency Numbers:
Jennifer O’Farrell, Operation SafeHouse Anti-Human Trafficking Director, (951) 351-4418.
Deputy Aron Wolfe, Riverside County Sheriff Department, (909) 917-8151
Written by Lori Stone ~ County of Riverside Commission for Women, 3rd District Commissioner.