XIX ISA World Congress of Sociology (July 15-21, 2018)

578

Modern Slavery: Women, Violence, Exploitation and Vulnerability in the Politics of Human Trafficking in the United States and Globally

RC32 Women in Society (host committee)

Language: English

This session explores the intersection of gender, violence, exploitation and vulnerability in the politics of human trafficking in the United States and globally. The session seeks to explore patterns of Modern Slavery within forced transnational domestic labour and sexual trafficking among other forms of human trafficking. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), 21 million people are trafficked worldwide, women and children are more likely to be trafficked then men, with an estimate of 11.4 million being women and girls. Despite human trafficking being a long standing issue, there remains an absence of systematic research regarding true statistics on the total numbers of individuals being trafficked. The reasons for this are multi-faceted, including the extreme marginalisation and invisibility of vulnerable individuals who are trafficked as well as the criminal yet highly profitable nature of trafficking. Abuse operates at every level and is committed by bands of criminals and by individuals connected with migrants. It is also associated with commercial organizations and government officials and includes threats, blackmail and extortion to rape frequently leading to the death of migrants (Foro Migraciones 2002; Ruiz 2004). Open borders in Europe have contributed to the development of human trafficking and in the United States the border with Mexico has been open to trafficking with an average of 5,000 women and children being brought to the US every year (Brooks and Simpson 2012). The session calls for a multidisciplinary approach to include sociologists, anthropologists,  political scientists, human rights and health perspectives among others