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Date: November 22, 2024 Fri
Time: 11:36 am
Time: 11:36 am
Results for anti-trafficking raids
1 results foundAuthor: Ditmore, Melissa Title: The Use of Raids to Fight Trafficking in Persons Summary: Trafficking in persons refers to the transportation and compulsion of an individual into any form of labor through use of force, threats of force, fraud, or coercion, or debt bondage. In 2000, the US passed legislation recognizing “serious forms of trafficking” as “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion” in all forms of labor, including, but not limited to, sex work, bringing domestic legislation in line with international standards governing trafficking in persons. (Trafficking Victims Protection Act, 2000; United Nations Optional Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, EspeciallyWomen and Children, 2000) Enforcement of federal anti-trafficking legislation has taken place in large part through anti-trafficking raids, conducted by federal law enforcement agents, and vice raids targeting prostitution conducted by local law enforcement agencies. Notwithstanding the broader reach of the current legislative definition of trafficking, US law enforcement agencies have been criticized for continuing to focus on trafficking into sex work to the exclusion of other widespread forms of trafficking. (Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women 2007: 239-241; Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children 2007) Indeed, the word “trafficking” primarily evokes images of women and children forced into sexual servitude in the popular imagination and, prior to 2000, anti-trafficking legislation focused exclusively on prostitution, based on the presumption that no woman would ever exchange sex for material gain without extreme coercion. In reality, trafficking occurs in a far broader range of sectors and types of work, including domestic work, agricultural labor, manufacturing and the service industries, and affects men as well as women and children. This report summarizes the findings of a human rights documentation project conducted by the Sex Workers Project in 2007 and 2008 to explore the impacts and effectiveness of current anti-trafficking approaches in the US from a variety of perspectives. It is among the first efforts since the passage of the TVPA to give voice to the perspectives of trafficked persons and sex workers who have experienced anti-trafficking raids. A total of 46 people were interviewed for this report, including immigrant sex workers and trafficked persons who have experienced raids or otherwise had contact with law enforcement, along with service providers, attorneys, and law enforcement personnel. The data collected from this small to medium-sized sample is extremely rich, and suggests that vice raids conducted by local law enforcement agencies are an ineffective means of locating and identifying trafficked persons. Our research also reveals that vice raids and federal anti-trafficking raids are all too frequently accompanied by violations of the human rights of trafficked persons and sex workers alike, and can therefore be counterproductive to the underlying goals of anti-trafficking initiatives. Our findings suggest that a rights-based and “victim-centered” approach to trafficking in persons requires the development and promotion of alternate methods of identifying and protecting the rights of trafficked persons which prioritize the needs, agency, and self-determination of trafficking survivors.They also indicate that preventative approaches, which address the circumstances that facilitate trafficking in persons, should be pursued over law enforcement based responses. Details: New York: Urban Justice Center, Sex Workers Project, 2009. 74p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 9, 2012 at: http://www.sexworkersproject.org/downloads/swp-2009-raids-and-trafficking-report.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: http://www.sexworkersproject.org/downloads/swp-2009-raids-and-trafficking-report.pdf Shelf Number: 126659 Keywords: Anti-Trafficking RaidsHuman TraffickingProstitutionSex WorkersSexual Exploitation |