One of the most tragic human rights issues of our time is human trafficking. Human trafficking is a lucrative market-driven industry that is based on the principles of supply and demand. It is a problem of global scale that is characterized by the movement of people – whether voluntarily or involuntarily – to control them for sexual exploitation or forced labor on the conditions of violence, fraud, or coercion (UNODC 2010, 39). This heinous crime presents a unique threat to women and adolescents, both boys and girls, especially those who have a low socioeconomic status. This profound violation of human rights occurs at all levels of society, within local settings, as well as between countries. Yet, it is largely invisible to the public even as it generates millions of dollars for transnational criminals as well as legal enterprises. Although many people continue to think of human trafficking as a third-world problem, the numbers paint a different picture, anywhere from 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked per annum in the United States (Yeaky, Sanders-Thompson & Wells 2013, 384). The U.S. continues to be both a source and a destination for human trafficking, with the preponderance of trafficking occur around international travel-hubs with large immigrant populations, most notably California, Texas, and Georgia.For nearly two decades, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) has been the cornerstone vehicle to address human trafficking, both domestically and internationally. This legislature protects former, current, and potential trafficking victims, prosecutes perpetrators, and prevents further trafficking. Despite tremendous efforts by the federal government to protect victims, solutions remain elusive. This report will review current policy and look for inadequacies and service gaps in the current legislature and offer a reorientation of policies to protect vulnerable populations.References:United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime. 2010. “The globalization of Crime: A Transnational Organized Crime Assessment”. Retrieved Sunday, April 26, 2020, from https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/tocta/TOCTA_Report_2010_low_res.pdfYeaky, Carol, C., Sanders-Thompson, Vetta, L., and Wells, Anjanette. 2014. Twenty-first-century Complexities of Urban Living in Global Contexts. Lexington Books. Feedback from the professor:I am responding to your idea for the policy. I think you are on the right track. One way to delimit your search is to identify which vulnerable population you are looking at – children, migrants, etc. That way you can really go after that part of the law and see what needs to be done.How do law and policy work together? Law sets out the rules; policy makes sure they are followed. Keep that in mind.
