Human trafficking and vulnerability go hand in hand. According to the United Nations (UN) Office on Drugs and Crime, the more vulnerable you are, the more at risk you are to fall victim to both forced labor and sexual human trafficking related crimes.[1] Therefore, it is important to highlight that human trafficking is a crime, but being vulnerable is not. That is what international holidays like the UN’s World Day against Human Trafficking Persons strives to highlight, as well as organizations like End Child Prostitution and Trafficking – USA (ECPAT-USA). With millions of trafficking person victims worldwide, ECPAT-USA concentrates their efforts in fighting against Commercial and Sexual Exploitation of Children and Youth.
Through the work of ECPAT-USA, child prostitution has gained attention as a global phenomenon that affects over two million children every year, vulnerability being a crucial independent variable. It is urgent to act against human trafficking and to protect children and youth from labor-related and sexual exploitation. This is why FRJ, an organization that itself acts to protect vulnerable youth through the channels of social and economic self-sufficiency, is honored to acknowledge the amazing work of ECPAT-USA and stand in solidarity with their cause on this World Day against Human Trafficking Persons.
Reducing the spaces of vulnerability within our society is the first step to overthrow the structural barriers of inequality and extreme forms of violence – like prostitution and human trafficking. There is no one way to assess this problem, as both the work of ECPAT-USA and FRJ exemplifies. Thus, the more original and creative solutions we can come up with to combat issues that face vulnerable youth, the faster we will be able to change narratives and discourses, and consequently, a whole culture of injustice.
If you want to help assess the problem of human trafficking and child prostitution, on this World Day against Human Trafficking Persons, ACT NOW by watching this video about ECPAT-USA and the extraordinary work they do! But, you don’t have to stop there, you can also visit their website and make a donation to support freedom.
By Maria Ignacia Castellon
[1] http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/faqs.html