Human Trafficking By Cindy Weigle

It’s modern day slavery, the exploitation of men, women, boys and girls forced into labor and/or prostitution. Human trafficking is the second-fastest growing criminal industry – just behind drug trafficking – with children accounting for roughly half of all its victims. In the U.S. it’s a $32 billion a year business and it’s growing. San Diego alone has seen a 600 percent increase over the last five years.

Awareness is the key, according to Jamie Quient, a lawyer with San Diego-based law firm Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP. Quient is also the founder and chair of the Lawyers Club of San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force. She recently gave a presentation on the topic of human trafficking to the San Diego Chapter of ASIS International. Her message to the security and law enforcement professionals in the room was that they can play a key role in the fight against this de-humanizing crime.

“You are literally the eyes and ears of our society, so you can stop this,” said Quient. “If you can learn the signs of trafficking and report it as it is happening you can help fight this.”

There are two types of human trafficking – labor trafficking and sex trafficking. Labor trafficking is worker exploitation where workers are brought into the country to work for little or no pay. They are funneled into construction, restaurant, landscaping, janitorial services and domestic services jobs. Often times they are not in the U.S. legally, so their exploitation is even less likely to be reported. Quient’s presentation focused primarily on sex trafficking, where individuals are forced or coerced into prostitution and other areas of the commercial sex trade.

The Internet and social media have gone a long way to making sex trafficking easier. Victims are recruited on sites like Facebook with misleading and enticing posts and then sold for sex through websites like Craigslist and Backpage.com. Gangs are responsible for much of the trafficking, recruiting girls out of middle and high schools. The average age of entry is 12 – 14 years-old. In San Diego the demand is fueled by the military, large sporting events, tourism and conventions.

Spotting victims isn’t always easy. According to Quient, while disadvantaged and at risk youth are often targeted, human trafficking transcends age, race and socioeconomic background. It can happen anywhere. Some of the ways to identify a victim include:

• Claims of just visiting and the inability to clarify where he/she is staying/address
• Lack of knowledge of whereabouts and/or do not know what city he/she is in
• Has numerous inconsistencies in his/her story
• Is not allowed or able to speak for themselves (a third party may insist on being present and/or translating)
• Shows signs of physical and/or sexual abuse, physical restraint, confinement, or torture 
• Is fearful, anxious, depressed, submissive, tense, or nervous/paranoid 
• Appears malnourished 
• Avoids eye contact 
• High security measures exist in the work and/or living locations. For example: opaque windows, boarded up windows, bars on windows, barbed wire, security cameras, etc. 
• Apartment with several women as tenants and frequent male visitors
• Payment of rent in cash for a year or two in advance 
• Expensive clothing, jewelry or electronics (beyond the usual means of the victim) 
• Branding (often performed by pimps to denigrate and control victims)
  

Quient said California lawmakers recently passed Senate Bill 1165, which encourages sex trafficking prevention education to be incorporated into the public school curriculum. She also said Lawyers Club of San Diego is launching a Community Education Program, which will offer presentations and training on human trafficking. She again emphasized the importance of raising community awareness.

“If you see someone you think is being trafficked call law enforcement,” said Quient. “There is also a 24/7 National Human Trafficking Hotline (888-373-7888) or text BEFREE.”

ASIS International is also taking a stand against human trafficking. Recently the organization announced plans with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to provide private security professionals with free online training focused on preventing child victimization. The free e-training is scheduled to be available any day now on the ASIS website.