Texas has a rampant human trafficking problem. After California, it ranks second in number of calls to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. … In 2018, the state created “Texas Businesses Against Trafficking,” which equips businesses to help combat trafficking.
Report from the Statewide Human Trafficking Mapping Project of Texas, a collaboration among the Institute on Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault (IDVSA) and the Bureau of Business Research at The University of Texas at Austin as well as Allies Against Slavery. The study found that there are more than 300,000 victims of human trafficking in Texas, including almost 79,000 minors and youth victims of sex trafficking and nearly 234,000 adult victims of labor trafficking. Minor and youth sex trafficking costs the state of Texas approximately $6.6 billion annually, and traffickers exploit approximately $600 million from victims of labor trafficking in Texas.
Texas is notoriously known for human trafficking. The situation has not and is not getting any better. The study found that there are more than 300,000 victims of human trafficking in Texas, including almost 79,000 minors and youth victims of sex trafficking and nearly 234,000 adult victims of labor trafficking.
Texas officials were failing child victims of sex trafficking in 2017.
As The Texas Tribune previously reported in our “Sold Out” series, state leaders’ bold campaign promises about ending sex trafficking proved hollow on closer inspection. We uncovered state laws passed to create programs for victims that were never funded and identified a pipeline of victims who often came from the state’s foster care program and ended up in jail.
In the three years since, state leaders have made serious reforms to some of the issues we reported on, though advocates say there’s still a long way to go.
Texas lawmakers have funded anti-trafficking efforts with millions of dollars and in 2017 and 2019 poured millions of new dollars into the state’s Child Protective Services and foster care systems.
Still, a federal judge recently fined the state for dragging its heels on implementing reforms ordered in the long-running lawsuit over the civil rights of children in foster care. Facilities that care for child sex-trafficking victims say they still need more funding. And law enforcement agencies say traffickers are changing the way they solicit potential victims faster than Texas officers can adapt.
What has the state done to combat sex trafficking?
Gov. Greg Abbott said he wants the state to prioritize sex trafficking and signed multiple bills last year to establish a Human Trafficking PreventionCoordinating Council, education courses and victim treatment programs.
But to the dismay of many anti-trafficking advocates, Abbott vetoed a bill decriminalizing prostitution for children because he said it would create “unintended consequences” — such as encouraging traffickers to use underage prostitutes so they would not get arrested. He also vetoed House Bill 3078, which sought to establish a separate clemency panel to review cases of jailed abuse survivors and sex-trafficking victims.
If you have any altercations or information on human trafficking world wide please contact 1 (888) 373-7888
The National Hot-line number.
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