Human Trafficking Collaborative of
Lorain County

 Human trafficking cases have been reported in all fifty states. Community and parents can play an important role in preventing, identifying and helping trafficked persons. The purpose of this course is to increase the level of awareness and knowledge about human trafficking so everyone involved can identify and report cases of exploitation and support prevention efforts.

 Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
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Describe the public health implications of human trafficking.
Identify four examples of signs that youth are at risk for being victimized.
Explain how to respond appropriately to youth at risk for victimization.
Identify actions you can take to help STOP human trafficking.

 1.) To be considered a victim of trafficking one must be transported across state or country borders (T/F)?
 2.) Generally Human Trafficking is an international issue most often present in underdeveloped countries (T/F)?
 3.) There are multiple forms of human trafficking and victims may fall in multiple categories (T/F)?
 4.) Under the Federal definition, trafficked persons can only be foreign nationals
(immigrants from other countries) (T/F)?
 5.) Human Trafficking and “Smuggling” humans are considered to be different crimes (T/F)?
 6.) Currently there are countries where
“slavery” is legal (T/F)?
 7.) The terms “pimp” and “trafficker” are synonymous (T/F)?
 8.) For a person to be convicted of sex/labor trafficking they must use physical force/brutality against their victim (T/F)?
 9.) There is estimated to be more humans living in slavery now than ever before
(T/F)?
 10.) If you are arrested for prostitution/soliciting and you are under the age of 18 you are automatically considered to be a victim of sex trafficking
(T/F)?

 A form of modern-day slavery.
 Exploitation of men, women and children for commercial sex or labor purposes.
 Force, Fraud or Coercion of an individual for sex or labor purposes.

“Severe Forms of Trafficking in Persons” defined as:
 Sex Trafficking: the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act , in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person forced to perform such an act is under the age of 18 years; or
 Labor Trafficking: 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.

 “Force”
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Rape, beatings, constraint, confinement
 “Fraud” or deception is another method used by traffickers to recruit and then entrap their victims.
 “Coercion” involves “the use of threats of serious harm,
physical restraint of any person, any scheme, plan or pattern intended to create the belief that a person will have restraint used against them, and the abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process.”
The Salvation Army Anti-Human Trafficking Manual

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The use of any person under the age of 18 for sexual purposes in exchange for cash or in-kind favors, it can occur between a child and a customer, the pimp/trafficker, or others (including family members) who profit from children for these purposes.
This is a required mandatory report.
Building a Child Welfare Response to Child Trafficking, Center for Human Rights for Children, Loyola University of Chicago

 Considered trafficking-related exploitation by the
United Nations TIP Protocol.
 Trafficking victims must reimburse his/her traffickers for travel, room and board, hygiene and other personal items.
 Amount to be repaid is set by the traffickers.
 Illegal in the United States.

 High unemployment
 Poverty
 Crime
 Discrimination
 Corruption
 Political Conflict
 Cultural Acceptance of Practice
US Trafficking in Persons Report, 2008

Commercial Sex act induced by force, fraud, coercion, or in which the individual is under the age of 18

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Truck stops
Motels
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Casinos
The internet
Homes
Apartments
Condos
Brothels
Building Child Welfare Response to Child Trafficking

 Use of prostitution by runaway children to provide for subsistence needs.
 Presence of pre-existing adult prostitution markets in communities where large numbers of street youth are concentrated.
 Prior history of child sexual abuse and child sexual assault.
 Poverty.
Estes, R., & Weiner, N. A. (2001) Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in the U.S.,
Canada and Mexico

 Study done by Celia Williamson and Michael Prior found:
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91% experience child abuse in the home
77% had been involved with child protection services
Over 50% had been in the foster care system

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 Recruitment takes place:
 Streets
 Friend’s house
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Corner stores
Malls
Outside juvenile justice center while waiting to meet a probation officer
Own homes
* Recent study by Williamson demonstrated that the majority of minors were recruited by a female friend who was selling herself
Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Network of Underground Players in the Midwest” CELIA
WILLIAMSON AND MICHAEL PRIOR

 Girls
 Women
 Boys
 Men
 Older men
 Most commonly approached by someone who they knew or who they knew through a friend.
Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Network of Underground Players in the Midwest” CELIA
WILLIAMSON AND MICHAEL PRIOR

 Manipulating young girls into situations where they seemingly make their own decisions to enter, sell sexual services, and give their money to a trafficker.
Examples:
Staying at someone’s home, “being taken care of”, etc.
 Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Network of Underground Players in the Midwest” CELIA
WILLIAMSON AND MICHAEL PRIOR

 Bait and switch – presenting attractive opportunities as bait in order to gain the attention and build trust or hope in one’s victim, only to switch the situation for economic gain of the trafficker.
 Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Network of
Underground Players in the Midwest” CELIA
WILLIAMSON AND MICHAEL PRIOR

 Pimps use the increased glamorization of pimp/ho culture, as well as cultural acceptance of demand for child victims, to help maintain control of the individual .

 Needing to meet their own basic needs for survival, some girls were trafficked and sold in exchange for food, shelter, transportation, etc.
 Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Network of
Underground Players in the Midwest” CELIA
WILLIAMSON AND MICHAEL PRIOR

"Ohio is not only a destination place for foreign-born trafficking victims, but it's also a recruitment place"
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Celia Williamson, associate professor at the University of
Toledo

o According to the Polaris Project, Ohio ranks 7 th in the number of calls placed to the National hotline between 12/07 and 6/09 o The FBI identified Toledo, Ohio as “the top U.S. recruitment city for trafficking children into the sex industry” o In 2010, Central Ohio law enforcement filed 977 solicitation charges
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“They didn’t see us as human beings, but just as whores, just as f lesh that they could use. That’s all.”

 Older broken bones that did not heal properly
 Bed bug bites
 Traumatic Brain Injury
 Bodily injuries: broken bones, concussions, burns, bruising, bite marks, vaginal/anal tearing from violence including assault, stabbings, rape, and torture http://www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking/about/fact_sex.html
Polaris Project

• Victims suffer from host of physical and psychological problems stemming from:
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Inhumane living conditions
Poor sanitation
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Inadequate nutrition
Poor personal and dental hygiene
Brutal physical and emotional abuse
Dangerous workplace conditions
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General lack of quality medical care
Addictions to prescription drugs, street drugs or both

 Mind/body separation/disassociated ego
 states, dissociative disorders
 Shame and grief
Depression, hopelessness
 Anxiety disorders
 Self destructive behaviors,
 including suicide
Traumatic bonding with perpetrator http://www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking/about/fact_sex.html
www.icfi.com/transition

 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD): Acute anxiety, depression, insomnia, persistent flashbacks, physical hyper-alertness, self-loathing that is long-lasting and resistant to change
 “In a study of prostituted women from
9 countries, level of PTSD was 68%, which is in the same range as that of treatment-seeking combat veterans” http://www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking
Farley et al. (2003). Prostitution and Trafficking in Nine Countries: An Update on Violence and
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Prostitution, Trafficking, and Traumatic Stress.

The Core Symptoms that make up the internal landscape of the victim
Shame
Powerlessness
Betrayal
Ambivalence

 Many victims in the U.S. do not speak English and are unable to communicate with service providers, police, or others who might be able to help them.
 Often kept isolated and activities restricted to prevent them from seeking help.
 Victims comply and don’t seek help because of fear .

 Often victims don’t know where they are because traffickers frequently move them to escape detection
 Fear for safety of family in home country/state/city
 Fear and shame
 Self-blame and hopelessness
 Dependency

• Inherent distrust of others
– Years of being lied to by family, friends, abusers
• May appear to be distant and unapproachable
– Mind is clouded by stress and trauma
• Acting aggressive
– Hardened by street life, constantly in survival mode
• Silence
– No one listens to their stories and they feel as if they don’t have a voice, silenced by shame

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Slave or Slave-like
Not allowed to….
I am being forced…
S/he is making me
Being sold..
Working a lot/too much
No identification/passport taken away
Debt to pay off
Told to lie about age or unsure of age
 Don’t know how they got here
 Any reference to prostitution, pornography, commercial sex acts
 Any reference to “pimp”
 Making money for others
 Threats to family
 Cannot talk to visitors
 Must stay in room
 Eats meals separately
 Escorted or supervised

 Trust
 Safety
 Medical care
 Social support
 Mental health support
 Basic life needs

 Trauma – sensitive programming
 Collaborating with Human Trafficking Collaborative of
Lorain County
 Work with local childrens groups by being a mentor

Melinda Kuebler RN, MSN, MBA, SANE-A, SANE-P
440-714-1380 HTCLC
440-225-0188 htclc3@yahoo.com