Sex Slaves
Day 29 - November 9, 2021
I did not do anything today but I have had several conversations with my hosts about human trafficking in their country and they are unaware that it is an issue in their state. So I did some research for this state and country specifically and not surprisingly this state has the third highest rate of human trafficking in this country. There is also a red-light district in the city where I am currently living as well as a club of anti-trafficking advocates and a hotline for trafficked and abused women.
You may or may not know, but I am actively involved in educating the world around me on the horrors of human trafficking. If this is new for you then you are about to have a rude awakening but for most of you reading this you already know about it because I have spoken about it for years. Let's start at the beginning though just in case.
When I was in high school I first became aware of the trade of human beings called "trafficking." Every country in the world is affected by this practice and the primary target of traffickers are young girls and women. However, in recent years it has been reported that boys are also being trafficked at an increasing rate. "The most common form of human trafficking (79%) is sexual exploitation." The age of trafficked individuals continues to lower and now 8 year old children are common victims. In some situations the families of these children are paid off. In India specifically, families may receive ₹50,000 over the span of 6 months which is about $675 dollars. However, the pimp who now owns the child, man, or woman makes about $6000 in the same time frame.
The life expectancy of victims in sexual exploitation specifically is only about 2-4 years. Women and children who are exploited for sexual purposes spend their days on the streets or in cages waiting for their next "visitor". The average sex slave is sexual abused about 40 times a day. 40 TIMES A DAY. If they have a good pimp then they will have a longer life, but they usually produce children who grow up in the same situation. If they have a bad pimp then their lives will be horrendous and short lived.
Since I first learned about human trafficking the reported number of trafficked victims has almost doubled. The number now stands at an overwhelming 40.3 million people in bondage worldwide.
I am going to pause here because it is late and I don't have a whole lot of energy but I will add more to this later.
References & Resources:
- “Unodc Report On Human Trafficking Exposes Modern Form of Slavery,” UNODC.org, accessed November 9, 2021, https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/global-report-on-trafficking-in-persons.html .
- "Crime in India," NCRB.gov.in, accessed November 9, 2021, https://ncrb.gov.in/sites/default/files/crime_in_india_table_additional_table_chapter_reports/Table%2014.1_6.pdf
- “Coalition Partners,” EndItMovement.com, accessed November 9, 2021, https://enditmovement.com/about/#partners .
- “Slavery Now,” TheExodusRoad.com, accessed November 9, 2021, https://theexodusroad.com/slavery-now/
- “Learn Facts,” TraffickWatch.org, accessed November 9, 2021, https://traffickwatch.org/learn-facts
- IJMIndia.org, accessed November 9, 2021, https://www.ijmindia.org
