When Leaders Emerge: The Globalization of Slavery
Some have called them modern day abolitionists, tireless crusaders for the cause to end human trafficking and sex trade organizations worldwide. Forerunners of a movement that is just now garnering public sympathy and support, many of these have been pounding the pavement for years, awaiting the legislation and public awareness that they needed to establish critical mass.
It's beginning to happen.
"People need to realize that human trafficking has been named one of the greatest illegal commodities worldwide, even greater than drugs or weapons. And unlike drugs and weapons, humans are a commodity that is considered re-usable."
A statement that is shocking in severity and consequence, Bethany Bevan is one of those crusaders. Desaparate to be a voice after recognizing the severity of the problem in the United States she was quick to find a way to help.
"I first heard about human trafficking from the viewpoint of the fashion industry and sweat shops used to make the T-shirts and clothes we all wear."
Within months of that moment, she was traveling to Thailand, a country well-known for its sex tourism industry, with a group of women from varied bachgrounds.
"We spent most of our time working with girls who had escaped prostitution and sex trade by making and selling jewelry as a means to support themselves."
At a grass-roots level, teaching women an alternative means of income seems to be the trench work that many organizations are involved with. On a larger scale, however, legislation is finally catching up with the work that Bevan and others have been pioneering.
In 2000, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, having garnered support from both sides of the political equation, was instrumental in drafting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of
2000, followed by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003. Since then, more than half of the states have also started or passed legislation to bring harsher penalties to
individuals and organizations involved in the ramifications of human trafficking on US soil.
Hawaii, a gateway to the east and easy port of entry for many who are trafficking in persons, has been leading this fight for more than a decade now. Organizations such as the Globalization Research Center at University of Hawaii-Manoa are working alongside victims of
trafficking here within our state, as well as providing the statistical groundwork needed for local legislation. The establishment of this Anti-Trafficking Task Force led to Hawaii being the first state to pass anti-trafficking legislation in 2004, while The Honolulu Star Bulletin has been an instrument of public awareness and activism. Yet, after the largest recorded human trafficking case having been settled in Honolulu just last year, it seems that the need for a resurfaced Underground Railroad and modern-day Harriet Tubman's doggedly persist.
"To begin with, as citizens, we have to speak out to our politicians regarding the issues of human trafficking, slavery, and the sex trade," says Bevan. "If our political leaders pass new legislation on this issue, and crack down on the punishment of predators and traffickers, we can begin to see positive change here, and hopefully, other countries will follow suit; we must lead by example"
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