Often when we think of human trafficking, we picture it happening in foreign and/or developing countries. The reality is that it happens in the United States, much closer to home than you might imagine. Earlier this month, law enforcement successfully pulled-off a human trafficking bust in St. Joseph, Missouri. This is how they did it. (1)
Human Trafficking Bust in St. Joseph, Missouri
On the evening of Friday, February 5th, law enforcement successfully completed a human trafficking bust at two truck stops in St. Joseph, Missouri. They rescued eight people from the scheme: Five women, one man, a two-year-old child, and an infant. Three people were arrested, with several other arrests pending. (1)
The victims were all given food, shelter, medical services, and whatever kind of counseling that they needed. (1)
“This unprecedented success should send clear a message to traffickers: you are not welcome in Missouri, and you can’t hide any longer,” said Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt. (2)
This rescue human trafficking bust and rescue mission is the result of hard work from 16 different groups and agencies. (2) The Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force from the Schmitt’s office coordinated the bust with (1):
- The St. Joseph Police Department
- Missouri State Highway Patrol
- Kansas City Police Department
- The Buchanan County Sheriff’s office
- The Johnson County Sheriff’s office
- The FBI
- U.S. Marshalls
- The Department of Corrections
- Probation and Patrol
- State Parks
Thirteen other departments were also involved with the operations. (2)
Human Trafficking in the United States
It is estimated that there are millions of victims of human trafficking in the United States and millions more in what’s known as “modern slavery.” (3) Victims are both men and women, adults and children. Traffickers most often are involved in the sex industry. However, they force victims to work in both legal and illegal industries, including (3):
- Hospitality
- Traveling sales crews
- Agriculture
- Janitorial services
- Construction
- Landscaping
- Restaurants
- Factories
- Care for those with disabilities
- Salon services
- Massage parlors
- Retail services
- Fairs and carnivals
- Peddling and begging
- Drug smuggling and distribution
- Religious institutions
- Childcare
- Domestic work
Human trafficking can also take various forms. These include (3):
- Forced labor
- Debt bondage
- Domestic servitude
- Forced child labor
- Sex trafficking, including child sex trafficking
Traffickers do not discriminate who they take, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or socio-economic background. (3) That being said, certain people are more vulnerable than others. These include (3):
- Children in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, including foster care
- Runaway and homeless youth
- Unaccompanied foreign national children without lawful immigration status
- Individuals seeking asylum
- American Indians and Alaska Natives, particularly women and girls
- Individuals with substance use issues
- Racial or ethnic minorities
- Migrant laborers, including undocumented workers and participants in visa programs for temporary workers
- Foreign national domestic workers in diplomatic households
- Persons with limited English proficiency
- Persons with disabilities
- LGBT+ individuals
- Victims of intimate partner violence or other forms of domestic violence.
Read: What if the problem of poverty is that it’s profitable to other people?
How You Can Help
Want to see more human trafficking busts? If you think you may know of a possible human trafficking situation, do not try and stop it yourself. Instead, use the following number to report it to federal law enforcement (4):
If you, yourself, are a victim of human trafficking and need help, use the following information:
Call 1-888-373-7888
BeFree (233733)
Together, we can help put an end to human trafficking on US soil.
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