Human trafficking is a type of crime that involves kidnapping and transporting of women, men, and children out of the country with the purposes of slave labor, prostitution, organ harvesting, and other nefarious purposes (Haynes, 2017). It is considered to be one of the cruel and heinous crimes of the modern world. By statistical estimations, between 20 and 40 million people around the world are subjected to slavery, out of which more than 50% are children (Patterson & Zhuo, 2018). Rescue percentages are extremely low due to extreme secrecy and low survival rates of victims, with only 0.04% of all cases ever coming into light (Burke, 2017).
Often being referred to as modern slavery, this practice has a deep-rooted tradition in the history of humanity, which follows in the pattern of modern trafficking. The capture and exportation of slaves was the early example of human trafficking, one that many nations engaged in (Haynes, 2017). Early nations that fought in wars often took prisoners from the peaceful populations of captured cities, employing them in a variety of ways, ranging from forced labor to sexual slavery and entertainment.
Colonial countries were notorious for slave-trading, creating the trans-Atlantic triangle between Africa, Europe, and the US (Horne, 2018). Colonial heritage also had a great impact on nations in Eastern Asia, including China, India, and others. According to statistics, the majority of trafficked humans come from countries that were, in one way or another associated with colonial trade (Lessard, 2018). Rather than being a modern development, human trafficking in the 21st century is a heritage of slave-trading and colonial practices that have left an imprint on the culture, economy, and social relations between people in affected countries.
References
Burke, M. C. (2017). Human trafficking: Interdisciplinary perspectives. New York, NY: Routledge.
Haynes, D. F. (2017). Human rights in crisis. New York, NY: Routledge.
Horne, G. (2018). The apocalypse of settler colonialism. Monthly Review, 69(11), 1-21.
Lessard, M. (2018). Sex, race mixing, and empire. Journal of Women’s History, 30(4), 159-168.
Patterson, O., & Zhuo, X. (2018). Modern trafficking, slavery, and other forms of servitude. Annual Review of Sociology, 44, 407-439.