One of the most significant and complex problems relating to human rights that affect the entire population, both locally and globally, is regarded as human trafficking. A person is recruited, moved, and exploited in this situation. There exist many distinct forms of human trafficking, but the most well-known ones are sex trafficking, child labor, and forced labor. Although human trafficking is a significant issue in today’s society, it is possible to lessen and even eradicate the problem in the United States by educating all individuals and increasing awareness of it. The essay aims at analyzing the issue of human trafficking and the need for its use through a historical lens.
Slavery was accepted, controlled, and legal for a large portion of humanity’s history across many civilizations and continents. It was frequently inflicted on one group of individuals by another. Human trafficking is thought to have begun in the 16th century when Portugal first traveled to Africa to buy or abduct individuals, enslave them, and transport them back to Europe (Cockbain & Bowers, 2019). Other European countries did the same thing later on. However, a global effort to end slavery in all its manifestations started in the 19th and 20th centuries. Even though the practice is widespread in most countries, these movements have contributed to our growing knowledge of and commitment to the battle against human trafficking.
The Greater Mekong Sub-Region is considered home to a sizable fraction of the 9.49 million persons in forced labor in the Asia-Pacific region. Mekong communities are proud of who they are. According to their culture, the more enslaved people a person owns, the greater their social standing. As a result, there are several diverse patterns of human trafficking in the Mekong Region, each with a particular victim and criminal profile (Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, n.d.). Even though there has been trafficking for millennia, it has recently blossomed into a highly lucrative and predominantly low-risk criminal enterprise due to the unequal impacts of globalization in the region of Mekong.
Everyone has a part to play in human trafficking. Communities are crucial in preventing human trafficking, reporting possible cases, and offer needed assistance and resources. Communities have received education on how to spot businesses that employ slave labor or participate in exploitative behavior and have been encouraged to try to buy Fair Trade items. For instance, the U.S. government has established a counter-trafficking project intending to eradicate the practice by preventing human trafficking through public awareness campaigns, education, advocacy, and outreach, protecting and assisting victims by offering shelters as well as vocational services, health, psychological, and, legal, and prosecuting human trafficking by offering technical assistance and training to law enforcement agencies, such as police, prosecutors, and judges.
Human trafficking is a severe crime against humanity since the victim is kept in captivity and made to labor against their will by the offenders. The topic was selected because human trafficking is a serious issue that is ripping at the fabric of society of every country and economic system while remaining undetected. Deciding on the topic was not easy, but given the historical nature of human trafficking, it needs to be dealt with into extinction since it continues to be a reality in the 21st century. According to reports, there are 40.3 million enslaved people worldwide, with children making up an increasing share of this total. Thus, it is necessary to provide education by illuminating the repercussions of human trafficking.
In conclusion, human trafficking is still a challenge centuries after its origin. The analysis depicts how societies have impacted the challenge globally to help eradicate it. However, there is still a need to create awareness by educating the general public. It is a pandemic that individuals must be cautioned against, especially minors, since they are the most trafficked in this era.
References
Cockbain, E., & Bowers, K. (2019). Human trafficking for sex, labor, and domestic servitude: how do key trafficking types compare, and what are their predictors? Crime, Law and Social Change, 72(1), 9-34.
Global Report on Trafficking in Persons. (n.d.). United Nations; Office on Drugs and Crime. Web.