By Brianna Dodge, Content and Communications Coordinator
In recognition of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, we’re taking the opportunity to shed light on a critical and often misunderstood issue. Human trafficking affects millions of people worldwide, yet the realities of it are frequently hidden by myths and misconceptions. As an anti-human trafficking ministry, it’s our goal to bring awareness and understanding about what human trafficking really is, what it looks like, and how organizations like Her Song are stepping in to break the cycle. By understanding the problem, we can all play a role in supporting survivors in their journey to healing and freedom.
When most people think of human trafficking, they envision victims locked in dark rooms, trapped in physical confinement and hidden out of sight. While these extreme cases do exist, they represent approximately 6% of all domestic human trafficking situations according to the 2020 Federal Human Trafficking Report published by the Human Trafficking Institute. The vast majority of human trafficking cases involve something much more insidious: invisible chains forged through psychological manipulation, coercion, and fraud.
What is Human Trafficking?
Human trafficking is the exploitation of individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for labor or commercial sex. Traffickers employ various tactics to lure victims into these exploitative situations, ranging from physical violence to emotional manipulation.
Victims, traffickers, and buyers can come from any background, race, gender, nationality, or socioeconomic status. This reality underscores an important truth: human trafficking is not just a distant problem. It happens in our local communities, often hidden in plain sight.
The Tools and Tactics of Traffickers
One of the most persistent myths about human trafficking is that victims are always physically restrained. In reality, traffickers rely far more heavily on psychological tactics than physical force. By exploiting trust, fear, and vulnerability, traffickers create an environment where victims feel unable to escape, even without physical barriers.
These invisible chains are created through methods like:
Emotional Manipulation: Traffickers may put on a pretense of love or friendship, using fake romantic relationships to gain control over victims.
Financial Dependence: False promises of employment or economic stability can leave victims financially reliant on their trafficker.
Threats and Intimidation: Threats to harm the victim, their loved ones, or their reputation keep victims in fear.
Exploitation of Vulnerabilities: Traffickers often target individuals facing hardships, such as poverty, homelessness, or previous abuse, preying on their need for support.
How You Can Help
At Her Song, we work to help survivors break the bonds of these invisible chains and break out of the cycle of human trafficking to reclaim their lives. We understand that the healing journey is not easy for survivors, and it is truly a life-long journey fought on a daily basis. Through safe housing, counseling, life skills training and more, we can empower women with the tools they need to help begin to heal from the trauma they’ve experienced and pursue a brighter future.
As a supporter of Her Song, you play a vital role in this fight against human trafficking. Here’s how you can make a difference:
Educate Yourself: Learn the signs of trafficking and share this knowledge with others.
Advocate: Use your voice to raise awareness about human trafficking in your local community and circle of influence.
Pray: Pray for survivors, the staff at Her Song and other organizations serving survivors, and the continued fight to end human trafficking.
Donate: Your financial support provides essential resources like safe housing and counseling for survivors. To donate, click here.
Join The Nest: Make your gift go further by joining The Nest, Her Song’s monthly giving community. Your monthly gift will help bolster sustainability for Her Song, enabling us to provide survivors with the resources they need and expand our ability to serve more and more survivors. You can join The Nest by clicking here.
National Human Trafficking Awareness Day is a reminder of the work still to be done, but it’s also a call to action. Together, we can help empower survivors with the tools they need to break free of the cycle of human trafficking and overcome these invisible chains to reclaim their lives.
Will you join us in this mission?
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