Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade vs. Human Trafficking Essay

When thinking of slavery, it is common for a person to think of stereotypical slavery: African Americans working in harsh conditions without pay or choice. However, since the Thirteenth Amendment was passed, this type of slavery has decreased significantly. Today, we use the term ‘human trafficking’ to describe modern slavery. Grant Oster states that, by definition, “human trafficking is the act or gathering, moving, receiving, or keeping of human beings by threat,

Over the last several years, the issue of human trafficking has been compared with the slave trade. This is because both are focused on taking someone against their will and forcing them to engage in demeaning activities. Yet, the practices of modern traffickers are different from slave traders. To fully understand the similarities and disparities requires contrasting them with one another. The combination of these factors will provide specific insights about the two. (Bales, 2010)

During the year 1865, the Unified States passed the thirteenth amendment of the constitution which helped end the act of slavery in across the states. Over a century has passed by since this day, but some place behind the veil of opportunity that our nation holds with such pride waits a shrouded exchange. This is the exchange of the modern subjection of slavery that remains in parts of our own nation. Regardless of the freedoms we are given as residents of the Unified States, human trafficking is a gigantic issue that is frequently ignored. Indeed many people rarely see the reality of this topic, yet the dreadful the truth is there and around out world. Consistently ladies, youngsters, and even men are seized, taken from their families, and

The earliest form of human trafficking was the international African Slave Trade. This went on for years until it was banned. People began to start a White Slave Trade, whereas instead of Africans, they would trade caucasian women and girls against their will for prostitution (Oster, 2015). The criminalization of this did not happen until 1910 (Oster, 2015). In 1921, women and girls were the only ones being trafficked, and the reason was for prostitution and sexual abuse (Oster, 2015). Today, men and boys are also trafficked, but for labor positions like textile, agriculture, fishing, or other hard labor jobs. Today, the media is helping and hurting this issue.

One could argue that the only important factor of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade is the creation of the political system in America; however, the geographic aspects, economic developments, and social status of people are the most important factors created from the introduction of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. These three factors are significant elements of the slave trade, while the political system simply derived from these factors. Without the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the United States of America would not be shaped the way it is today. Politics are the foundation of a country; a nation is born when the political system is set.

The common relations of slavery are between slavery and the Civil War. Most would argue that slavery ended in 1865. With this standpoint, we often brush off or neglect to further investigate slavery in its most modern forms. Over the course of history, there are few times we can truly say a social problem was completely solved. Starvation still exists, as does poverty, racism, war, segregation, injustice within government systems, and yes, even slavery. Human trafficking is modern day slavery, and it exists everywhere with two different categories: sex exploitation and labor exploitation. Human trafficking is not new, but what is new is the volume of trafficking taking place, and how little we know about it. How can a problem, so monstrous and so widespread continue with most society being unaware of its existence? The 1800’s, and even years’ prior, were a period of unfathomable abuse towards people considered less than. The 21st century is also a period of unfathomable abuse towards people considered commodities. Now the common place relation between slavery and the civil war must be over, because the monster of modern day slavery has awoken.

Human trafficking can take many forms, as well as many victims. One form of trafficking is slavery. Slavery is having a worker who is unpaid and who works by force using coercion, fraud or threat of bodily harm. “According to the United Nations, there are between 27 and 30 million modern-day slaves in the world (Jesionka, “Human Trafficking: The Myths and the Realities”).” “By 1860, the nation’s black population had jumped from 400,000 to 4.4 million, of which 3.9 million were slaves.(Henry Louis Gates).” That means there are nearly ten times more slaves today than there were in the late 1800’s.

In the dark, grim corners of a world that largely supports liberty and a certain amount of freedom exists the evil of human trafficking. Human trafficking is a horror consisting of people getting stolen from their ordinary lives of freedom, and then placed into the vicious hands of malicious tyrants. Governments have long struggled with fighting the battle with such oppressors, and have tried nearly everything to rid the world of this filth. Slavery does still exist, and whether people choose to believe this fact is beyond the point. The fact remains that many individuals are still tragically reduced to mere animals by certain groups of ferocious oppressors who do not value the sanctity of humanity. Harriet Jacobs provides glimpses of the terror

Slavery is a modern, pervasive problem. Human trafficking has been found in every state in America (humantrafficking.org). It seems that most Americans likely live within a comfortable drive of someone who is being exploited through human trafficking. There is a growing trend in human trafficking toward sexual exploitation (Bennetts, 2011). The Information Age has helped to create new opportunities for sex trafficking to flourish.

When we hear the word slavery our mind paints a picture of colonial America down in the South with big plantation houses harvesting wheat, with workers being unpaid and unfairly treated. At this time in our county we were struggling with the idea of equality for all. America has come a long way from those days but not with out a fight. Abraham Lincoln, the Civil Rights moment and free and public education has been addressed. Today, we face a new conflicts and a different type of slavery. Slavery and sex trafficking is occurring not just abroad but at home as well. In 2004, “800,000 to 9000,000 men women and children are trafficked across international borders every year, including 18,000 to 20,000 in the US. Worldwide slavery is in the

Human trafficking is the fastest growing crime in the world and is defined as the stripping away of rights from a person to turn them into property, whether it be for labor or sexual purpose. The victims of human trafficking are exploited through the threat of violence against themselves and potentially their loved ones as a way to force them to comply. The International Labor Organization has released data stating that there are currently between 27.4 and 35.8 million victims of trafficking worldwide and 1/3 of these victims are believed to be minors (ILO News). Human trafficking is often referred to as modern day slavery and if we support this comparison, there are currently more slaves in existence now than ever before in recorded human

Although the term human trafficking is relatively new, the underlining issue of slavery is not a new concept. “Human trafficking is modern day slavery and involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.” On some level we all are connected to this industry. This may involve purchasing goods such as clothing apparel, electronics, or chocolate manufactured by laborers working in the most inhumane conditions. It can also include children and women being exploited in the sex trade industry. The Department of Homeland Security reports “human trafficking generates billions of dollars per year, second only to drug trafficking as the most profitable form of transnational crime.”( The Department of Homeland Security).

In the past, slavery was defined as an individual legally owning another individual (The Facts 3), whereas today, slavery is illegal, but still continues to occur. Slaveholders maintain control of a person, having all the “benefits of ownership” without the “legalities.” This lack of legality dismisses the slaveholder’s responsibility, which is interpreted as an improvement in the eyes of a slaveholder. “It is no longer a question of race and color for those being enslaved; it is now a question of vulnerability” (Bales 5). Most commonly, slavery is thought of as being linked to the oppression of the population of developing countries, but with the transnational affair of trafficking in persons, slavery is not confined at only the borders of third world countries.

The practice of human trafficking is one of the oldest in the world; it has been occurring worldwide since the earliest known civilization. Even today, despite the fact it is illegal in most places, it occurs all around us without us even noticing. Human trafficking is “the illegal recruitment, transportation, and trading of humans for sexual exploitation, forced labor, or the removal of organs.” (Fundukian) The modern system of human trafficking is derived from the colonial patriarchy, and today anyone in the world can be a victim of trafficking. Many experts estimate that there are more slaves in the world today than there have even been, and they are cheaper than ever. The average cost for a slave today is close to $90. Battling the horrific industry of human trafficking is a difficult task due to it’s size but it can be accomplished by educating people of the risks and signs of human trafficking, educating young teens on how to avoid being roped into trafficking, and being vigilant in attempting to identify people who could potentially be in trafficking situations.

When most people hear the word “slavery”, they envision an outdated practice of the past, the idea of publicly buying and selling humans for means of labor. What most do not realize is that this concept is not as archaic and dead as it’s preached to be. Every year, millions of men, women, and children are ripped from their homes and are forced into countries around the globe as a result of human trafficking. The United Nations defines human trafficking as the “recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons by improper means (such as force, abduction, fraud, or coercion) for an improper purpose including forced labor or sexual exploitation”. Just about every country in the world is affected by trafficking, whether as a country of origin, shipment, or final station. Offenders prey on individuals with high vulnerability and levels of psychological damage. Victims of this injustice usually stem from areas of socio economic adversity, political chaos, and/or natural disaster. Routes of human trafficking tend to commence from an underdeveloped country to a more developed country. Human trafficking is an abuse of human rights and a crime against humanity; one that international law has struggled to combat for years.