What’s the Key to Ending Sex Trafficking? One Anti-Trafficking Expert Weighs In
Sex trafficking is when a woman is kidnapped, smuggled into another country, and forced to perform sex acts, right? Well, while this scenario does happen, there are many other ways that sex trafficking plays out, many of which happen right in your town and others like it all over the US involving people of all genders, not just women.
The official definition of sex trafficking is any time “a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age.”
Examples of sex trafficking include:
- Advertising modeling jobs to lure people into doing porn.
- Selling online sex videos or live sex performances-
- Forcing or coercing porn performers to film sex acts they don’t want to perform.
Sex trafficking is a huge problem, but what can be done to stop it? Dr. Michael Shively, an expert on the international issue of sexual exploitation, gives some advice on things that we can all do to combat sex trafficking.
Know That Sex Trafficking Is a Business
Sex trafficking is a business with the goal of making money.
Dr. Shively says that “anywhere there is commercial sex, there is trafficking.” In other words, when there is a demand for commercial sex (commercial sex, online pornography, or any other time sex acts are performed for money), the supply for it will increase to match. If people of any gender and age aren’t willing to pay for the traffickers’ products, then the motivation to provide it disappears.
Stop the Demand for Commercial Sex
There are many reasons why buyers (predominately men) purchase sex. It can be because of feeling lonely, wanting a thrill, having a particular interest, or being curious. Often buyers of commercial sex don’t realize there are serious consequences that come along with it. Buyers assume the sex acts are performed by choice and compensated fairly.
Fortunately, research shows that when men are educated about the truth behind commercial sex and its relation to sex trafficking, the demand for commercial sex drops significantly.
Change the Porn Culture
Pornography teaches unhealthy sexual behavior, fuels a sense of entitlement, and encourages pleasure to be sought from another person’s body regardless of consent.
Porn sells the ideas that:
- Women are always available and eager for sex.
- Consent doesn’t matter or that a lack of consent is sexy.
- Escalating sexual behavior is okay even when it leads to violence or degradation of others.
- Rough, violent, and extreme sex acts are always enjoyable and don’t require consent first.
- Men are entitled to experience what’s portrayed on-screen even when it’s nonconsensual.
Pornography is a deeply flawed educator of sex. However, that’s not the worst part about porn. The truth is that the porn industry has deep connections to the sex trafficking industry — and fuels it in direct and indirect ways.
Remember the previously-mentioned definition of sex trafficking? Any time an individual is forced, tricked, coerced, pressured, or blackmailed into performing sex acts on or off-screen, sex trafficking has occurred. There’s no way to really know if consent was ever given, but all too often, the on-screen performers don’t feel like they have a choice in the matter.
Make an Effort
While no problem can be 100% solved, it doesn’t mean making an effort isn’t worth it. What can be done?
- Stop the demand for sex trafficking by rejecting porn and sexual exploitation.
- Call a human trafficking hotline if you suspect someone is a victim or perpetrator.
Learn more about Fight the New Drug.
