By Wrecked for the Ordinary
If you’re savvy about justice, you’ve most likely heard the statistics about human trafficking and are probably aware that the sex trade runs especially rampant in Southeast Asia.
But, apparently, this is not just an “overseas” issue anymore. Would you believe that trafficking of young people in North America not only exists, but is getting worse? An article from earlier this year in Christianity Today highlighted the issue of a growing number of American teenagers being trafficked in the United States. Here’s an excerpt from “Sexual Slavery on Main Street“:
[N]ew research indicates that the sex-trafficking problem in the United States is more widespread and more severe than previously thought… “Most Americans do not realize that child trafficking is a major problem on Main Street USA,” said Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, at a February congressional hearing. “These kids are victims. This is 21st-century slavery.”
Researchers estimate that between 100,000 and 300,000 American children are trafficked within the U.S. each year. There is credible evidence, based on arrest statistics and field research, that sex trafficking is getting worse and that U.S. children under age 18 compose the largest segment of trafficking victims in the U.S.
Read the rest of the article here.