Even after
reading/watching so much regarding the sex traffic industry I still find it
hard to believe that there people out there that are so evil. In my eyes
"evil" is the only way to describe people that commit crimes like
this and it's just as bad to solicit these women. I think the real problem is
that most people simply don't know it's happening on such a level. It's good to
realize that there are organizations out there to raise awareness to this
blight; such as the Half the Sky movement and the Somaly Mam Foudation. After
reading through chapter 2 of Half the Sky I thought a lot about other groups
that are assisting in fighting sex trafficking and human trafficking in
general. The Polaris Project is another great resource for raising awareness
and helping victims restart their life. The Polaris Project statistics show
that in the U.S. human trafficking and slavery have dropped substantially in
the past three years. This is mainly because victims are starting to find more
avenues for help. However the reality is that this isn't enough, as I stated
earlier this topic was something I knew nothing about and I consider myself a
well informed person. There is little to no push to inform the general public
and condemn the men surrounding this issue. If there is no demand then there
will be no need for supply. I realize that's easy to say and hard to make a
reality but just as early as two days ago President Obama stated in his speech
that he plans to continue his efforts against human trafficking and slavery.
You can read more about the White Houses efforts to combat human trafficking
here - http://m.whitehouse.gov/blog/
Do you think these efforts are enough? It's hard to wrap your mind around ways that YOU could help. Any ideas?
I, myself feel that it should start with some hard prosecution of the men that pay for and participate in such illegal practices.
Do you think these efforts are enough? It's hard to wrap your mind around ways that YOU could help. Any ideas?
I, myself feel that it should start with some hard prosecution of the men that pay for and participate in such illegal practices.
I agree that one of the real problems is that people simply don't know at what level this is happening. I had heard about this problem before but never realized exactly how big it is. It sickens me to think about what these women and young girls are going through mainly because they are uneducated. I also agree that the men who buy these young girls and women need to be prosecuted along with the men who frequent the brothels.
ReplyDeleteAs it mentioned in this chapter, “when one woman went to the police to report she had been gang raped the police responded to her complaint by gang raping her.” Unfortunately, most of the police that are supposed to be protecting these women are actually protecting the men who are committing the crime.
I also feel that there should be a crackdown on the johns that solicit the women. In this class, the numbers of women that are trafficked each year do not surprise me. This is only because I did a paper on human trafficking in France in one of my classes last semester. Before I did that paper, though, I had no idea that things were this bad in other countries. Honestly, I didn't even realize that it was a crime that was still such a problem. But after completing the paper and researching some of the methods that have been used to rid countries of human trafficking, I saw that cracking down on johns and offering prostitutes help afterwards (and treating them as victims instead of criminals) has worked the best for most countries.
ReplyDeleteAny efforts will help against sex trafficking and slavery. When it comes to evil, I agree that it drives people to these heights of crime against other people. When hopelessness and desperation takes over people then these acts take place. Its good to know that people get to a place in their lives when they say, "No more. This will never take place in my life, or things must change around me today." Very inspirational, hopefully the suppressed and the suppresser get to that.
ReplyDeleteI do have to agree with you, it sickens me that this is going on in our country and around the world. I wish there was something people have thought of to stop it, but I do not think we can ever stop it. look at drugs the government trys to stop it, but there is still a demand for it. This is a damand and I do hope it stops or someone stops it. I am just happy our president and organizations are helping the victims I feel horrible for them my heart breaks for each and everyone of them.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important for us to understand that based on cultural morals separate from our own, the way these women are being treated is not necessarily evil in the eyes of those who belong to that culture. It is cruel and unacceptable to us, but to those who are putting these women in these situations, they might not really understand why we see their actions as evil. In the United States, one of the most prevalent beliefs is that if you are an honest, hard-working person, you can rise above any classification that may have been placed on you when you entered this world. The “American Dream” is not something that exists in all countries, and some people can never escape the class that they were born into because the existing social order will not allow them to.
ReplyDeleteI believe it’s important to have someone as important like President Obama on board with this issue. Having high profile people tackling critical issues head on usually inspires people. I’m glad you said that you were well informed on issues, but had no idea about this current topic being discussed in class. I feel the same way. I obviously knew things like this happen but I never found myself thinking about them until this class.
ReplyDeleteI do not feel that we are doing enough. We are not doing enough to make people aware of the human trafficking issue. Until coming into this class I didn't even know it existed, and I'm sure many of my peers are the same way. What I immediately think of is the KONY:2012 (I think thats what it was...) about the child warfare in Africa (or maybe India?) and how many people we unaware of that issue as well. When people started campaigning for it, and utilizing social media, It became a well known issue. Why can't someone step up and do the same for this? And even that might be enough, because after the initial hype of the KONY issue, it all died down again.
ReplyDeleteI agree that in order to change the sex trafficking there has to be awareness in the general public. Many people don't know that it is an issue so they aren't participating in the effort to stop it. Political leaders such as President Obama should bring up these serious issues and the public should be aware of the conditions of millions of women in the world. I also think that there should be serious prosecution set in place for both the people who traffic women and those who seek the women's services. If there are no serious consequences, the demand will continue to be high for sex trafficking. The public should cease placing their contempt upon women involved in prostitution, and sex trafficking and focus their judgments upon those who continue to put those selling sex in business.
ReplyDeleteI have a idea that is used often. In my sorority we have an initiative that focus on human rights and my chapter focus on many other rights, but we do an event every year that does highlights and speak about human trafficking. Last year we had a very deep discussion stating facts and opinions about human trafficking in America and then we watched a movie called "Taken". It is a sad thing to discuss, but a good thing to be aware of. You never know what people may think of doing after hearing about Human trafficking. This year I think it will be a good idea to volunteer at the place in Detroit that was discussed in class. This will be a different experience not only for me, but for my sorority. I think another thing would be to donate money to a small business in India where they give back and help victims of Prostitution and modern slavery.
ReplyDeleteIt is crazy that there are so many terrible things going on around our world today, some things that have been going on for a loooong time. Before I started this class, topics like these never really crossed my mind. I would occasionally hear stories on the news or online about stuff related to this, but never really knew it was this bad. Its bad enough hearing about bad things happening in the US, kidnappings and rape, but to think about it in terms of the people over in different countries who fear this every single day, it mind blowing. I don't know how I would survive worrying about things like these every day, that's not living. it is good that people are doing things to help raise awareness, because like myself, a lot of people do not know how bad it really is.
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