E05: Selling Girls in America – Traffickers

Here’s the fifth episode of the Podcast: Selling Girls in America, which I host with Guardian Group. to learn more about this horrible crime and how to protect yourself and your loved ones, visit their website at www.guardiangroup.org.

To listen to the podcast, go here or subscribe at your favorite podcast platform.

The Traffickers

Pimps or traffickers are responsible for running the supply aspect of the sex trafficking industry. Each uses their own tactics to recruit, manipulate and exploit the women and children involved. Selling people has become less risky and more rewarding than taking part in selling drugs or guns for two reasons: a person is a reusable product, they can be sold over and over. Second, a victim of trafficking experiences a lot of complex trauma and often times is too fearful to testify against their trafficker.

Statistics:

• 70% of pimps/traffickers are brought into the industry from a previous generation, they are continuing on the family business [source].
• 110 gangs in San Diego Country from a wide variety of neighborhoods and racial/ethnic backgrounds have members that are engaged in profiting from sex trafficking in San Diego. See the full study here.

There is some argument that due to inequality or lack of options we have “forced” people into making the choice to get into trafficking, however, does that make it right to exploit other humans? This is an argument we are going to leave to some else for now we will focus on helping law enforcement stop the violence associated with trafficking by placing these predators behind bars.