The problem of human trafficking has sparked political attention over the past decade and the focus in the US in terms of advocacy, funding, and law enforcement has been almost entirely on sex trafficking. Globally, The United Nation's International Labor Organization estimates that 21 million people are victims of forced labor, and labor trafficking shows up in supply chains for numerous products, from automobiles to electronics to pet food. The ways trafficking intersects with our own lives are how our nation contains the complications of immigration policy, international migration, global inequalities, and, arguably the American addiction for cheap stuff. There are no clear statistics on the number of labor trafficking victims in the US since the nature of the crime is that workers' situations are hidden and manipulated. Laws on human trafficking vary in strength from country to country or state-to-state within the United States, which results in enforcement to be weak. Citizens are also guilty as to supporting illegal labor. It is as simple as buying a certain brand of clothing. Big brands like Nike have been exposed to have sweatshops throughout the globe. Nearly a third of unauthorized migrant workers in San Diego County have been victims of labor trafficking and more than half have experienced other labor abuses, according to a landmark study released in the nation's capital. A main factor to labor trafficking is the victims' lack of legal status. In California, voters approved increased penalties for convicted sex traffickers. Despite such attention, there
The problem of human trafficking has sparked political attention over the past decade and the focus in the US in terms of advocacy, funding, and law enforcement has been almost entirely on sex trafficking. Globally, The United Nation's International Labor Organization estimates that 21 million people are victims of forced labor, and labor trafficking shows up in supply chains for numerous products, from automobiles to electronics to pet food. The ways trafficking intersects with our own lives are how our nation contains the complications of immigration policy, international migration, global inequalities, and, arguably the American addiction for cheap stuff. There are no clear statistics on the number of labor trafficking victims in the US since the nature of the crime is that workers' situations are hidden and manipulated. Laws on human trafficking vary in strength from country to country or state-to-state within the United States, which results in enforcement to be weak. Citizens are also guilty as to supporting illegal labor. It is as simple as buying a certain brand of clothing. Big brands like Nike have been exposed to have sweatshops throughout the globe. Nearly a third of unauthorized migrant workers in San Diego County have been victims of labor trafficking and more than half have experienced other labor abuses, according to a landmark study released in the nation's capital. A main factor to labor trafficking is the victims' lack of legal status. In California, voters approved increased penalties for convicted sex traffickers. Despite such attention, there