Human Trafficing

In 2000, Congress passed the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act. This was the first step in a large scale fight against human trafficking. This along with a slew of similar acts is being passed to give the United States tools to help fight human trafficking across the U.S. and the world. This also gives people who escape their traffickers, or coyotes, a chance to persecute them and make sure they never ruin the lives of anyone ever again. First, a trafficked victim must prove/admit to being trafficked and second must submit to prosecution of his or her trafficker. However, a problem arises from the second portion of requirements of an applicant because many trafficked persons are extremely fearful of their traffickers. The fear of retaliation upon the self or the family and thus serves as a major deterrent to individuals even considering application often keeps individuals from coming forward.

This bill is an excellent step toward stopping human trafficking along the border. Human trafficking is a global affair that is extremely hard to stop due to the difficulty of identifying a trafficker and the lack of evidence that is often associated with this type of crime. Unless the trafficked person themselves come forward, it becomes a demanding task to accomplish. This bill will hopefully give victims of human trafficking the courage to rise up against their captures. The bill also includes a clause that states that certain victims “shall be eligible for Federal and State benefits and services, including Supplemental Security Income (SSI)-to the same extent that refugees are eligible for such benefits and services.”

This bill has been in Congress since the start of the second millennium and has been modified and reformed in 2004, 2006, 2008, and now. Each addition and reformation has made the bill stronger and stronger against the human trafficking industry. This problem, while it is a global crime, is largely being commuted along the border. People are being shipped by the dozens to and from Mexico sometimes at their own will because they feel it’s the only way to gain access to America. Some however encounter people who, intend of providing them freedom, take them captive and make them slaves whether for labor or other illicit activities. For the last decade, captives have been afraid of going to the police because they fear nothing can be done for them. The Victims of Trafficking an Violence Protection Act will hopefully change all that.