Human Trafficking

Sex trafficking

Under the Federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), sex trafficking is recruiting, enticing, harboring, transporting, providing, obtaining, advertising, maintaining, patronizing, or soliciting a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act, when that commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud or coercion.

Common types include escort services, pornography, illicit massage businesses, brothels, outdoor solicitation.

Traffickers use threats, manipulation, lies, debt bondage, and other forms of coercion to compel adults and children to engage in commercial sex acts against their will.

Labor Trafficking

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) defines labor trafficking as: “The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery” (22 USC § 7102(9))

Commercial Sexual exploitation (CSE)

Is a term to describe those who sell or trade sex to meet survival needs, or in which vulnerability is exploited by a buyer, trafficker or pimp. It includes all forms of sexual exploitation for profit, including escort, street and brothel prostitution, as well as pornography, and stripping. Anytime payment is exchanged for some kind of sexual objectification of another person it’s considered CSE.