Human trafficking and exploitation of children in the US

A problem within US borders:
If you've been keeping an eye on the news recently, you may have read an article about former NFL linebacker Lawrence Thomas's most recent run-in with the law. Thomas was recently charged with raping a prostitute, and although there have been some recent developments in the story, I blog about it tonight because it underscores a few fundamental misconceptions that many Americans have of human trafficking and sexual exploitation here in the United States.

The first misconception is that these problems don't exist here in the US, at least not in any significant numbers. Nothing could be further from the truth. Indeed, it is estimated that between 100,000 and 300,000 children are at risk for commercial exploitation each year - a staggering and tragic statistic to say the least. It is estimated that around 17,000 people are trafficked into the the US each year for the purpose of forced labor or sexual exploitation - again, staggering. And the statistics continue - further estimates calculate that there are 17,000 girls and young women forced into the sex industry each year in the US by organized crime alone. Stories of human trafficking in the US include Mexican citizens being lured with the promise of jobs, Asian women brought into this country and forced to work in textile mills or restaurants for little or no compensation and American girls lured into prostitution and pornography. That this exists in the land of the free is nothing short of a tragedy. It IS a problem.

Second, and tied directly to the recent Lawrence Thomas case I mentioned earlier, is the tendency to identify child victims of sexual exploitation in the United States as anything other than a victim of that horrible crime. Girls forced into the sex industry are labled prostitutes, hookers, whores and any number of equally degrading terms. Even if light is cast on their lot, they are often disregarded and even charged with crimes (e.g. prostitution). It is assumed by many that this is a lifestyle that is chosen voluntarily by these children - that somehow, because they have not escaped their horrible situation, they are to be blamed for it. The sad truth is that these same victims, if in Thailand, Cambodia, the Phillipines or any other country notorious for its child sex slaves, would be identified as exactly that - victims. They would be afforded pity, grace and love by those that learn of their plight and it would be widely understood that they were in dire need of rescue. But somehow, the perception of victims in the very same circumstances here in the US has become distorted and instead of rescue they are met with villification and discarded by the very society that should be intolerant of such injustice. Note that in the Lawrence Thomas story (link provided above), very little mention was made of how the 16 year old victim was coerced into that lifestyle and forced to remain there through threats of physical violence. I submit to you that no child elects a life of regular violence and violation and that even adult prostitutes can trace their entrance into the sex industry to force and coercion at some point in their past. Allison Keyes of NPR recently did a story on this very misconception, interviewing the co-founder of The Rebecca Project and a survivor of sex trafficking in the US. Check out this story to hear a true story of survival, straight from the mouth of an American girl that was once caught up in the sex industry.

A training update:
Thankfully, the weather has taken a slight turn for the better and even though it was still cool and a bit drizzly today, I was able to get outside for a run. Four laps around Harvard Gulch Park, near Porter Adventist Hospital, added another 5.1 miles to my training total. By my calculations, I completed the run averaging 7:30 miles which is an improvement. The times are still too slow to achieve a 42 minute 10K (my goal for the Bolder Boulder) but I am encouraged because it is a strong showing for this point in the training regimen.


Today's miles: 5.1
Month-to-date miles: 53
Remaining miles: 47