Title: What is Human Trafficking? | National Human Trafficking Hotline
Headings: What is Human Trafficking?
What is Human Trafficking?
What human trafficking is, and isn’t
Force, fraud, or coercion
Action-Means-Purpose
How many people are trafficked in the U.S. every year?
Who is vulnerable?
Who are the traffickers?
How do traffickers control victims?
Who are the survivors?
Human Trafficking

Content: Shocking as these numbers are, they are likely only a tiny fraction of the actual problem. Who is vulnerable? Human trafficking can happen to anyone but some people are more vulnerable than others. Significant risk factors include recent migration or relocation, substance use, mental health concerns, involvement with the children welfare system and being a runaway or homeless youth. Often, traffickers identify and leverage their victims’ vulnerabilities in order to create dependency. Who are the traffickers? Perpetrators of human trafficking span all racial, ethnic, and gender demographics and are as diverse as survivors. Some use their privilege, wealth, and power as a means of control while others experience the same socio-economic oppression as their victims. They include individuals, business owners, members of a gang or network, parents or family members of victims, intimate partners, owners of farms or restaurants, and powerful corporate executives and government representatives. How do traffickers control victims?