Assignment:
Human Trafficking a Dark Part of Contemporary Culture
Q: I've never kept tight controls on my teenagers. I don't enforce strict curfews or get uptight when they come in late at night. But recently, I read an article about sexual slavery and human trafficking in our community, and it left me deeply unsettled. Am I overreacting?
Jim: Human trafficking is a terrible reality that impacts not only the developing world, but middle-class neighborhoods right here in the U.S. So yes, you need to be aware of this dark underside of contemporary culture.
At the same time, alarmist fears are helpful to no one. You don't want to scare your kids unnecessarily. Nor is it wise to convey an attitude of suspicion or distrust to your teens without good cause. Statistically, they face far greater danger from simply riding in an automobile every day than they do from the possibility of trafficking.
You know your kids best, and you're in the best position to determine whether they might be vulnerable to this kind of deception and victimization. Are they troubled in any way? Do they struggle in school? Are they slipping academically, dealing with social rejection or facing bully problems? Are they new in the neighborhood, unpopular with their classmates, insecure or low on self-esteem? If so, their innate desire for some kind of human connection could make them easy targets.
The best way to prevent this is to make sure you're building strong relationships with your kids. The family should be their primary point of connection. You can protect them against all kinds of negative outside influences by forging a bond of mutual trust. Make it clear that they can always come to you with their needs, problems and concerns.
While your first responsibility is to your own kids, it's also important for everyone to do their part to ensure their communities are safe. Keep your radar up for signs of suspicious activity in your community. If, at any point, you come across evidence that your children or anyone else you know have become caught up in human trafficking, contact local authorities or call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.
Critique
There is always going to be a dark side on every corner of any community, city, and state. Some communities are best known for their darkest sides. For example, Chicago is a place of drugs and Compton is known for gang violence. We always need to be aware of what happens within our communities. I think Jim gave the anonymous parent some good advice on dealing and calming the parents nerve down with the human trafficking that is happening within their community. Like giving the example of a teenager being in more danger in an automobile thank being trafficked. The anonymous parent feels like they are overreacting because there have been no reports on human trafficking here.
In our textbook in chapter 18 on page 499 it talks about the statistics on human trafficking here in the United States. Our textbook it states that there are between 100,000 to 300,000 children are trafficked in the United States each year. So, I feel that the anonymous parent should feel concerned about their children. Jim says that a healthy relationship between the anonymous parent and their children will keep them safe. Jim also states that the traffickers usually tend to go after loners. Last Class we had a woman from the FBI describe the same victims that the traffickers go after. Overall, I really liked the advice that Jim gave to the anonymous parent on how to deal with a concern as serious as sex trafficking.