Modern day slavery. We hear this promoted as if it is as bad as chattel slavery from the 19th Century. Morally, it is probably worse. In terms of numbers and the fraction of the population, it doesn’t even come close. The issue is also more complicated in that countries include different numbers in their counts. Some nations, like the United States, include prostitutes in their statistics of human trafficking, whereas in other countries they may legalize prostitution, and only include those who are abducted and sold on black markets.
This has received a new push. The Epstein documentary on Netflix, which gives voice to some of the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, has given new life along with the arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell, his alleged madame. When Epstein’s original arrest came along with the #MeToo movement, it seemed that pedophiles were going to be routed and heads were going to roll. Epstein died in his cell awaiting trial and it seemed that Jeffrey and a dirty network of child predators would never see justice. Why does it require a high profile case to push for real justice?
The reality is that some statistics estimate a child goes missing in the world about every 30 seconds. That equates to 120 children every hour. 2,880 every day. 1,051,200 children are estimated to go missing every year. It is believed that abduction plays a dominant role in this. It is hard to believe that there is a market that strong for trafficking children,
There are a lot of dynamics that could play a role. In third world countries, children are often sold to laborers to serve as hired hands. These families are on the brink of starvation and the sale of the child often results in a better life for the child and a higher chance of survival for the remaining family members on their meager means. This is a hard concept to grasp in the United States. We live in quite luxurious conditions compared to most of the rest of the world. In fact, our poorest and most poverty stricken are easily top 10% in the world in terms of standard of living metrics. Our homeless have bridges to sleep under, shelters that take them in when they are hurting most, and hospitals will often “monitor” them for a night for chest or abdominal pain…more common when a night is frightfully cold or wet.
So it is difficult to grapple with the idea that a family could literally starve, and that all members of the family can benefit with the sale of a child into a work camp. We find it appalling in the West. Probably the privilege of standing on the shoulders of the titans of capitalism from our distant past. Luxury has many different names and it is relative. The poor in our nation live like kings and well-connected politicians from some of these third-world countries.
Human trafficking still exists. Prostitution may have a contingent that voluntarily chose the trade, yet there are strong indications that the war on drugs, child abuse and child trafficking are all significant factors among those engaged in sex-trades…even including pornography. So even if we ignore prostitution as an aspect of human trafficking, the disgusting trade of human life still exists in the United States and while we celebrate the abolition of slavery from our nation, we have a black market slavery among us today.
Those who claim to care about human life, and those who claim to be anti-slavery, should be passionately fighting against the factors that lead to trafficking existing anywhere in the world, but especially within our own borders. The drug war hurts this on several fronts. Those on the payroll to serve and protect the community have monetary incentives, from drug war legislation, to spend their time and resources breaking up narcotics rings. It is a reality that all resources are scarce, and an hour of police work trying to entrap little Bobby from selling weed from his locker at school is an hour not spent finding Johnny Gosch. Further, the same black market which moves drugs incorporates the network which traffics persons. By continuing to fight the war on drugs, the government is ironically providing them a monopoly in an industry with undeniable demand. They protect their monopoly with violence, leading to danger in our streets, while also leveraging that monopoly for huge monetary gain. Because of the war on drugs, the creeps that abduct and move children are very well financed and have a well established logistics line for moving goods and people.
Child abuse leads to broken homes. Children from broken homes are more likely to be neglected and engage in risky, or runaway behavior, making them more vulnerable to abduction. I don’t want to make this seem like a claim that every child abducted was neglected or abused, just that those factors would increase the likelihood of abduction. The war on drugs has enabled a social stigma that makes it less likely those with substance abuse problem will seek help. They will be more likely to hide it, feel isolated, and exacerbate problems at home, especially related to their own children.
Moral virtue signalling from the groups who claim to care about fixing the ills in our society are hard to believe when they don’t call for any meaningful change to the policies that cause these problems.
Normally I would link you to a book or a product I’d like you to purchase to learn more about a problem. I really want to address this problem. I will work towards educating people on policies and advocating for change, but Operation Underground Railroad deserves a visit if you have never heard of them. Please support.
Don’t forget to subscribe below and share if you like what you are reading. Give me feedback if you like some content or don’t like it. All feedback is welcome. Also, all purchases you make from the links to products from this site go to support future content.
