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International Trafficking in Women to the United States: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery and Organized Crime

NCJ Number
181952
Author(s)
Amy O. Richard
Date Published
2000
Length
71 pages
Annotation
Trafficking in women and children for the sex industry and for labor is prevalent in all regions of the United States; an estimated 50,000 women and children are trafficked annually, primarily by small crime rings and loosely connected criminal networks.
Abstract
Trafficked victims have traditionally come from Southeast Asia and Latin America, although they are increasingly coming from countries in the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe. Trafficking to the United States is likely to increase, given weak economies and few job opportunities in the countries of origin, low risk of prosecution and enormous profit potential for traffickers, and improved international transportation infrastructures. Although it may be impossible to eradicate trafficking to the United States, it is possible to significantly diminish the problem by targeted prevention and micro-credit strategies in source countries, strengthening penalties and laws against traffickers in the United States, and enhancing assistance and protection for victims. Details are provided on the scope and magnitude of trafficking in women and children, enticement and deception, the illegal use of legitimate travel documents to enter the United States, routes to and within the United States, Asian criminal enterprises, Russian crime groups and syndicates, and Latin American traffickers. Additional information is presented on profits from the trafficking industry and related industries, and issues and challenges associated with trafficking and victim assistance are identified. Appendixes contain supplemental information on major trafficking cases in the United States over the last 8 years and the involvement of international organized crime in the trafficking of women and children. 194 references, 171 footnotes, and 1 table