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Child trafficking represents the worst of what people are capable
of doing to our most vulnerable populations. It’s one of the world’s largest
underground industries and thrives in communities across the U.S.
This form of modern-day slavery has victimized tens of millions of
people around the world. In the U.S., approximately 300,000 children are victimized by child
traffickers every year.
The child trafficking industry is universally reviled, and there
is little argument that we should make finding and punishing traffickers a top
priority. But what about the victims and their legal options after being thrown
into the child trafficking trade?
Unfortunately, our criminal system has been unable to deliver the
justice that victims should be able to expect. It’s far too often the case that
perpetrators of child trafficking, particularly those that aid and facilitate
trafficking, are given penalties and fines that don’t match their crimes.
However, there are ways for child
trafficking victims to get justice. Civil lawsuits offer
victims the chance to pursue financial compensation and, in some cases, the
opportunity to hold their abusers accountable in person, if they wish to do so.
How Civil Lawsuits Can Help Child
Trafficking Victims
No amount of criminal prosecution or civil litigation can heal the
wounds caused by child trafficking. Children who are subjected to sexual
exploitation and forced labor are confronted with many challenges throughout
their lives, including PTSD, depression, anxiety, difficulties forming close
bonds with others, drug addiction, sexually transmitted diseases and
debilitating physical injuries.
What civil litigation does offer is the chance for a victim to
pursue financial compensation that, at the very least, will give them the
resources to help overcome some of these obstacles and ensure that they won’t
be destitute financially.
There are many state and federal laws that offer victims the
opportunity to hold traffickers accountable for damages resulting from the
abuse and exploitation inherent in these practices. Victims can seek
compensation for medical expenses, lost income, therapy and future wages lost
due to physical or psychological impairment.
Juries might also award victims compensation in the form of
punitive damages that are intended to punish the traffickers and deter future
crimes. For those victims that want to confront their traffickers, this system
offers them the chance to do so in court. For those that wish to remain
anonymous, there are also laws that allow them the opportunity to file a
lawsuit using a pseudonym.
A Strengthening of Laws Means Greater
Protection for Child Trafficking Victims
While the human trafficking industry continues to claim victims
around the world, there have been many steps taken to increase enforcement and
strengthen existing laws in the U.S. In 2016, the inaugural U.S. Advisory
Council on Human Trafficking convened to refine our anti-trafficking policies.
The Council included 11 human trafficking survivors to ensure that its recommendations
would reflect the actual struggles victims have encountered.
The “Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act”
was signed into law in
April 2018. The bill gives federal and state prosecutors more authority to
pursue websites hosting sex-trafficking ads and allows sex trafficking victims
to file lawsuits against those sites.
With stronger laws and increased enforcement, there is reason to
be optimistic about an issue as abhorrent as child trafficking. We are taking
steps to hold traffickers accountable and offer victims pathways to justice.
There
are also ways that we can all help to combat child trafficking. If you know
that someone is in immediate danger, call 911. To report potential cases of
human trafficking, call the National Human
Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888. To report cases
of missing children or child pornography, you can contact the National Center
for Missing and Exploited Children through their Cybertipline
or by calling 1-800-843-5678.
pursue civil litigation if they want to take further steps to get justice for
the crimes committed against them. Lawsuits against child trafficking
perpetrators won’t end this practice, but they will give victims a chance to
have their voices heard.