Protect Your Children Against Child Exploitation!

There are over 40 million victims of human tracking, 25 percent of whom are children. Human trafficking has surpassed the illegal sale of firearms, and over the following years, it is predicted to reach the sale of drugs. Children are the primary victim and targets of human sex trafficking. In 2018, 51.6 percent of human trafficking cases in the U.S. were sex trafficking cases involving just children. Children of all ages are at risk, the average age is 12-14, and children at the age of three have been sexually trafficked.

For their financial benefit, traffickers use the internet to target impressionable and vulnerable young people. In today’s era, children as young as five are using social media or have access to the internet. Children are fragile and naive and, most of the time, do not know what is good and evil. Many children play multiplayer games where they can talk and play with random people worldwide. The children don’t know the people they are playing with, and many predators play these games pretending to be kids to look for victims.

How To Protect Your Children

Teaching your children at a young age what “stranger danger” is and teaching them who a trusted adult is is crucial to protect them. Parents can inform their children and have a plan for them when they are in unfamiliar areas with many people. For example, taking your children to the movie theatre, park, or amusement park, you should have a plan if you get separated. Rachael Pulsfort is a teacher at Pennridge Highschool and a mother of two young children. She, as a mother, knows how important it is to keep her children safe when out in public. Pulsfort states, “we go everywhere, so we have places where we go all the time, so for each place, there is always a place to meet up in case we ever get separated” Having a plan is a crucial key to keeping your children safe.

Traffickers frequently use video games, social media, dating apps, and other online platforms to attract tweens and teens. The child believes they are starting a loving relationship when a trafficker is grooming them. Leanna Goodrich, a teacher at Pennridge High School, has a daughter and a son, 13 and 15 years of age. Goodrich states she “is a big one for limiting social media for kids when they are young. My kids did not have a cell phone until my son was in eighth grade, and they shared a phone, simply for the sake of after-school activities and had to get a hold of us.” Limiting young kids to having access to the internet and social media is a crucial way to protect your children.

When To Help

Helping someone who is a victim of human trafficking can be difficult, and not knowing when to say something can also be challenging. There are many different signs to be aware of, and if you suspect a child is being trafficked, you should tell someone and reach out to the authorities to get the child’s help. As a teacher of many years, Goodrich has seen a lot in her classrooms. She states, “what I have noticed in my years of doing this job is there are signs that you pick up on that the child needs help and support.” You have to be available to help, and if you have any suspicion that a child is in harm, you have to be there for them and be able to listen to them. Goodrich loves her kids as if they are her own; she calls her students “family” and creates a very loving and safe environment and a good relationship with them. Goodrich also states that “as a teacher, the most important thing is to be approachable, to show kids that they are valued in your room, to make children treat each other with respect in your classroom, and hope that if you create that environment that they will come to you.” She has made this a safe and loving environment in her classroom, so students feel safe coming to her and talking to her, then taking the following steps to help the child.

Child exploration will never disappear, but there are ways to prevent it. Some methods are public awareness, education on the topic, campaigns, and protests. These ways will not end the problem, but they can spread awareness and help educate people on the warning signs.

https://liberatechildren.org/blog/what-is-child-trafficking

https://liberatechildren.org/child-trafficking-statistics

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/faq/can12#:~:text=Under%20the%20Victims%20of%20Trafficking,the%20production%20of%20child%20pornography.

https://liberatechildren.org/blog/what-is-child-trafficking

https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-trafficking-in-persons-report/