Today is Human Trafficking Awareness Day. The general public should be aware of the signs of human trafficking which include sex slavery and prostitution, human organ sales, forced labor, and forced marriages. There are also situations that include domestic servitude or debt bondage. It is also commonly believed that women are the victims. Boys and men are just as likely to be victims of human trafficking as girls and women. However, they are less likely to be identified and reported.
Each of these individuals can be trafficked by force, but people can also be trafficked through threats, coercion, or deception. People in trafficking situations can be controlled through drug addiction, violent relationships, manipulation, lack of financial independence, or isolation from family or friends, in addition to physical restraint or harm.
Many believe that this does not affect rural northern Iowa but think again. The United States is one of the most active sex trafficking countries in the world, where exploitation of trafficking victims occurs in cities, suburban, and rural areas. Labor trafficking occurs in the U.S., but at lower rates than most developing countries.
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate sat down with KIOW/KHAM News Director A. J. Taylor to discuss the issue and give those who may see this activity, even in their own neighborhood, a way to stop or prevent it.
(888) 373-7888 Trafficking Hotline
ibat.iowa.gov The Iowa Businesses Against Trafficking website
