Page 7 - SeptemberOctober24 Report

labor trafficking with services to provide help and safety. For Ohio in 2023, there were 810 hotline calls, SMS reports, online reports, email, and web chats to which 258 cases were identified through the national number and of those 458 victims were identified.
The Human Trafficking Annual Report, by the Ohio Office of the Attorney General, states that Ohio law requires local law enforcement agencies to collect data surrounding human trafficking investiga- tions. The 2022 Report demonstrated that law enforcement in 60 counties reported open investigations. In these investiga- tions, 100 human trafficking suspects were identified, resulting in 55 arrests and 26 criminal convictions.
Discrepancies in these statistics are due to a variety of factors including disconnect in the type of screening tools utilized, the inability of individuals to understand human trafficking, and the lack of standardization in outreach to at-risk communities. As a result, the numbers we report in Ohio and elsewhere underreport the true impact.
Vulnerabilities for Trafficking
According to the Polaris Project and the Ohio Attorney General 2022 Annual Human Trafficking Report, the most common risk factors include:
• Substance Use
• Sexual Abuse/ Domestic Violence
• Lack of Housing
• Involvement in Child Welfare/
Juvenile Justice Systems
• Lack of Citizenship
• Mental Health Concerns
• Economic Instability
Traffickers identify victims’ needs and learn how to fulfill those needs to create a cycle of dependency. By promising economic stability, food security, shelter, community, safety, or emotional support/ love, traffickers can compel victims to engage in previously unthought of acts. To combat human trafficking, it is imperative to understand that caring about human trafficking must equate to caring about the systems that make people vulnerable to trafficking in the first place. It is a public health issue that must be addressed at its root causes. Until, as a society, we address people’s holistic, whole personhood, we continue to perpetuate the ground for individuals to exploit others whose needs remain unmet due to systemic failure.
The listed vulnerabilities outline certain demographics that are predis- posed to being trafficked because they are disproportionately impacted by social, cultural, economic, and political factors such as the systemic disconnec- tion from social services and support, lack of education access, stigmas, forced assimilation, familial poverty, racism, cultural norms, economic hierarchies, etc. Because these factors are a direct deriva-
tion of the social-political system, these factors impact and directly contribute to the facilitation of vulnerabilities and their concurrent predisposition to human trafficking.
Summary Statement:
As members of the legal or legal-ad- jacent community, it is necessary to continue expanding knowledge about this topic, to become more proactive at identifying individuals who are at-risk, and to understand the best trauma-in- formed resources available to address the variety of risk-factors that provide space for human trafficking to flourish. We must first understand what human traf- ficking is/is not, what it entails, and how its influence is impactful on our entire community. We must also seek to dedi- cate ourselves to bettering the systems that allow these exploitations to continue to flourish. Human trafficking is a crime of exploitation and vulnerability. The underlying root causes that make human trafficking possible, lack of access to housing, healthcare, food, mental health support, and gainful employment, must remain a priority in our focus as we move forward in working to eradicate the impact of human trafficking.
Simek and Husein are affiliated with The Human Trafficking Law Clinic (HTLC) at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. It focuses on legal wellness direct civil legal representation, and referral to social service agencies to address clients’ holistic, whole-person needs. Our legal focus and social service support help with sustainability and stabilization of clients.
Harold D’Souza is a survivor of labor trafficking. He was trafficked
from his hometown in India to work seven days a week for
14–16-hour days at a restaurant in Cincinnati. He was forced to pay
his trafficker for food, clothing, and shelter which depleted the little
money he earned. He was tricked into signing for a loan, which he never received and put him in debt. He eventually told law enforcement about being trafficked even though his trafficker threatened to kill him. D’Souza is now a public speaker on human trafficking and the founder of Eyes Open International, a non-profit focused on survivor-informed research and human trafficking prevention efforts.
THE A-M-P MODEL
ACTION
Induce Recruits Harbors Transports Provides or
Obtains
+
MEANS*
Force Fraud or Coercion
PURPOSE
Commercial Sex
+ (Sex Trafficking) = TRAFFICKING or
Labor/Services
(Labor Trafficking)
*Minors induced into commercial sex are human trafficking victims — regardless if force, fraud or coercion is present.
THE REPORT | September/October 2024 | CincyBar.org
7
Interested in learning more?
We offer a CLE hosted by the author. Visit our website and sign into your On-Demand CLE page.