The Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) held the 17th annual Day of Dialogue on October 23. The CCE fellows organized Wednesday’s panel, titled “Student Perspective of Human Trafficking: What Can We Do?” The panel examined the challenges surrounding discussions of human trafficking and how “the average student” can work to prevent it. This event features many panels, discussions and other workshops with the intention of educating the Hofstra community on issues from a local to global scale.
Senior political science major and CCE fellow, Donia Firooz, lead this Human Trafficking panel, which featured Hofstra professors Yuki Terazawa and Kari Jensen, Safe Center Long Island director of education, Keith Scott and CCE fellow, Imani Thompson.
“Human trafficking is an issue that affects the whole world, not just developing countries,” said Firooz. “The US has one of the biggest issues with human trafficking, and sex trafficking isn’t the only problem.”
The speakers discussed the various types of human trafficking that occur internationally as well as right here on Long Island that many may not be aware of.
Terazawa is an associate history professor and specializes in Japanese history. She opened by giving a historical instance of human trafficking, focusing on the topic of “comfort women,” a system of sex slavery that was created by the Japanese Military during World War II. She also touched on “the feminist perspective” of sex trafficking. “If we cannot eradicate prostitution,” said Terazawa, “we could provide a safer environment for sex workers by legalizing and regulating the sex industry.”
Dr. Kari Jensen, associate professor of global studies and geography, continued by discussing his research on labor trafficking in Bangladesh, mainly covering the issues of child domestic workers in Bangladesh. “Human trafficking is not a synonym for slavery,” said Jensen. She included research from sociologist, Kevin Bales, who estimates that 10-15% of slaves in the world today have been trafficked while others were born into slavery.
Jensen told the audience what they could do to help labor trafficking victims. She told audience members to look towards India’s successful efforts in rehabilitating former child slaves, and to support Fairtrade products.
“I’m here to give a perspective from Long Island, and what we’re seeing domestically here,” said Keith Scott,the director of education for the Safe Center LI, the only sex trafficking safe home on Long Island.
“The opioid epidemic has done a tremendous amount in fueling the sex trafficking problem we have here on Long Island,” said Scott. He continued by noting various instances of traffickers capitalizing on the vulnerability of opioid users. Scott also mentioned the prevalence of “Romeo pimps,” or traffickers who coerce young women and utilize love as a tool to control.
“Nassau and Suffolk county are some of the most affluent places to live in this country,” said Scott, “but we have kids being sold for sex left and right because no one is doing anything about it.”
“We encounter more victims than we realize,” said junior public policy major, Alexa Osner. “Knowing how to identify victims of human trafficking issues is important, as it’s a bigger issue domestically than we think.”
“The federal government in the United States specifically reinforces and perpetuates human trafficking,” said Imani Thompson, a junior public policy major and CCE fellow.
Trafficking was also increased through the US prison industrial complex and ICE. Thompson explained how the US being built on the exploitation of slaves laid out the framework for a continued reliance on unpaid forced labor today. “Through policies that are racist, the government was able to incriminate black people after slavery ended,” Thompson said. “This forced them back into prison to do the same things they were doing as slaves. This still continues today.”
Thompson included how $480 billion in federal funds have been given to private prison industries to fund US detainment centers for people seeking asylum. These facilities are intentionally understaffed, forcing detainees to give free labor.
Thompson urged the audience to pay attention, and that talking to your representatives and understanding laws can lay groundwork for preventing human trafficking.
