Recently, the media has been giving added attention to the ever present problem of child prostitution. Earlier this week the FBI conducted a nationwide child prostitution sweep and uncovered 74 child prostitutes. This lead to the arrest of 104 defendants. An article posted on CNN.com estimates 100,000 American children are lured into prostitution every year. Pimps find the children in places such as bus stops and truck stops and offer to help them to gain their trust. These pimps are targeting disaffected street children, many from broken homes, the most vulnerable children in our society.
This problem however is not isolated to the United States. This plays right into the growing problem of sex trafficking. Across the world young, disenfranchised children are being kidnapped, sold or tricked into the sex industry. This issue doesn’t only affect children but many adult women as well. Sex traffickers promise work and better lives in America, but what awaits them is modern day slavery. One of the major complications with prosecuting sex trafficking cases is identifying the victims. While there has been a recent prosecutorial push behind ending sex trafficking there is still a long way to go in resolving these issues.
This is extremely sad to read, and it is sad to see that child prostitution is still going on in many parts of the world, not just in the US. Although it is hard to end sex trafficking, this issue should be brought to the forefront because it is something that is affecting many people all around the world. We fight for what’s right and for the law so we believe that this issue should be put to a rest soon.
While the recovery of seventy four child prostitutes and arrest of over one hundred prostitution traffickers is a step in the right direction, there are still thousands and thousands of women and children trafficked each day, on an international scale, for their sexual services. Unfortunately, the psychological effects of organized prostitution and sexual trafficking leave victims helpless. Trafficked persons are relocated in secret and submit to the organizers due to the frequent promises of employment, protection, and “a better life.” Additionally, the use of coercion and force by the child trafficking perpetrators can intimidate the victims to the point that they fear to report their “pimps” to the authorities. If victims knew where to turn for help, then more victims would come forward, thereby allowing law enforcement officials to better understand, track, and prevent the pervasion of child prostitution internationally.