Human trafficking has been a social issue for a long time. It comes in second only to illicit narcotics. Sonia Paras, an immigration attorney, states that numerous victims are invisible. The Public Broadcasting Service’s premiere of the Frontline documentary “Trafficked in America” demonstrates the illegal actions surrounding trafficking from Central America’s Guatemala to Ohio. Daffoid Altan and Andres Cediel’s documentary shows how young Guatemalan youths were forced to work in an egg producer farm based in Ohio. The film shows how human smuggling is still an issue that needs to be addressed in the United States.
Legal Factors That Contributed To the Root Causes of the Human Trafficking
Human trafficking remains a serious problem in Ohio. Because of the lack of uniform data accounting and the circumstances of the case itself, the extent of the issue in Ohio is unclear, as it is in the rest of the nation. Nevertheless, various events and reports over the last century indicate that the issue is significant. In 2005, for instance, the FBI sting “Operation Precious Cargo” retrieved 151 victims of sex trafficking in Ohio. Seventy-eight of the victims were from Toledo, and forty-five were underage (Kubasek & Herrera, 2015). The documentary “Trafficked in America” explores the issue of human trafficking. This is a concern that is likely to go unnoticed because individuals believe that human trafficking is a relic of the past and does not occur in today’s society.
Human trafficking from Guatemala to Ohio is an outcome of Central America’s absolute poverty. Alberto’s family is poverty-stricken in the case being investigated by Frontline. Aroldo Castillo’s pledge to have their son relocate to the United States for better education and employment intrigues them because they believe it could be an alternative for their son to get an education and obtain gainful employment. The immigration department and HHS also assist in transporting minors to farms. Senator Rob Portman contends that the immigration office and HHS have bad policies or are run by greedy individuals who collude with smugglers to ensure the successful smuggling of unauthorized immigrants into Ohio (PBS, 2018). The teens are then exploited and mistreated because of the trafficking. The department of immigration’s halting of verification through fingerprinting and allocation of original birth certificates illustrates the agency’s vital role in the success of human smuggling.
Motives, Characteristics, and Methods Used by Traffickers
Control tactics used by traffickers vary, but the most common include physical and emotional abuse and threats, isolation from family and friends, and economic abuse. To enforce control, they make a promise to meet the needs of their goal. As a result, victims are entangled and fear leaving for several reasons, such as psychological trauma, pity, emotional connection, or threats of physical violence to themselves or their family members. Castillo is a third-party worker who worked for Trillium Egg Farm, and he exploits low-income family members by taking full advantage of Guatemala’s economic hardship (PBS, 2018). He guarantees the teen a better quality of life and a decent education, but he fails to deliver when they arrive in Ohio. Castillo does not work alone; the Trillium farm employs unregistered minors. J.T. Dean and Pablo Duran, farm executives, denied knowing about the underage children working on the farm.
Limitations of the Local Law Enforcement and Federal Government’s Response
The Guatemalan government is unconcerned about the security of its citizens, as it allows the illicit trafficking of minors across its boundaries. Immigration offices, the Department of Health and Human Services, and law enforcement agencies work together to deliver unaccompanied minors to their assailants. HHS, for example, fails to account for unaccompanied children in the United States by suspending verification by fingerprint identification and original birth certification, allowing minors to be easily delivered to farms. The film reveals the involvement of both individuals and the government, demonstrating that social issues have both individual and structural causes.
The Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act was enacted in September 2014. States are obliged to address the following issues with this act: “identify, document, and determine appropriate services for youth at the threat of trafficking; and improve data on preventing minor trafficking of non-American children (Kubasek & Herrera, 2015).” Even though this legislation is well-intended in labor trafficking, it does not recognize how reporters should react if these survivors are not in the children protection framework. This is because child protective services are generally restricted to reacting to parents or caregivers in the welfare system rather than labor trafficking victims. Although some states have introduced and ratified labor trafficking legislation, most law enforcement officers are untrained in recognizing domestic minor sex trafficking. It can be exceedingly difficult to track down the underground activity of human trafficking at times. This, in turn, makes it difficult to obtain current and accurate details on the victims.
The documentary “Trafficked in America” explores the problem of human trafficking. A concern is likely to go unnoticed because individuals believe that human trafficking is a thing of the past and may not exist in today’s society. Trafficking from Guatemala to Ohio results from Central America’s dire poverty. Human trafficking, as depicted in the film, begins in the family and the local community. Low-income families in Guatemala should weigh the risks of allowing their adolescent children to leave their homes against the pledges to them by people such as Castillo. Based on the interviews conducted in the documentaries, labor trafficking in the Ohio fresh eggs corporation is a terrible onset that must be resolved.
Kubasek, N., & Herrera, K. (2015). Combating domestic sex trafficking: Time for a new approach. Texas Journal of Women & The Law, 24(2), 167-193.