Vulnerability to any crime is subject to a variety of socioeconomic, cultural, and independent factors that place some individuals at higher risk of entering dangerous situations than others. Although financial insecurity is a huge vulnerability for many college students and recent grads, it is not necessarily the only factor in a persons decision to be come a sugar baby. [Read more →]

Since 1945, the United States has maintained a significant military presence in the Republic of Korea (also known as South Korea). Currently, about 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed on military bases throughout the country. Beginning in the 1950s, U.S. Forces in Korea (USFK) identified the need to provide entertainment in order to maintain high levels of morale among U.S. troops stationed there. The USFK and South Korea cooperated to establish centers of “rest and relaxation” for American troops called kijichon near American military bases. What began as a well-meaning effort to keep homesick American troops amused, and Korean citizens employed, resulted in an exploitative network that has spanned international borders and four decades. [Read more →]

Charmed by Hollywood images of Julia Roberts in “Pretty Woman,” a misconception of the life of young girls and women trapped in prostitution has spread through American consciousness. It is important to reveal to people what really happens to many of the girls and women. However, the enormity of the task means that just one organization cannot do this alone. This is why we often collaborate with other organizations, on international, national, and local levels, to ensure that we can make the biggest possible impact with the limited resources we have available. [Read more →]

The brochure is available in English, Korean, and Mandarin Chinese

The issue of illegal brothels posing as legitimate massage parlors is tied to Polaris Project’s first moments as an organization.  Our founders, Katherine Chon and Derek Ellerman, became passionate about the issue of human trafficking after learning about one of these brothels in Rhode Island, which operated a couple blocks from their college apartments.  Over the past nine years, our organization has focused on combating all forms of human trafficking, but we’ve always maintained an expertise and understanding of this particular network. [Read more →]

Sex trafficking thrives when landlords comply, turn a blind eye, or fail to monitor how their properties are being used.  This was the central message behind the DC Stop Modern Day Slavery group’s online petition on Change.org that launched on Friday March 4, 2011.  More than 300 community members have signed the petition, calling for Jerry Schaeffer, the property owner of the four-story building at 1215 Connecticut Ave., NW, to take action by closing down a brothel disguised as a legitimate massage parlor on the fourth floor. [Read more →]

Organizations and community groups from across the country have traveled to Arlington, TX to participate in the anti-trafficking awareness events surrounding the Super Bowl.  Throughout the week, events have been held to educate the community and to reach out to potential victims of human trafficking.

Because of the clandestine nature of this crime, we must bring awareness to community members, supply them with the resources to recognize potential trafficking situations, and understand how to increase public awareness.  Significantly, 40% of the calls received at the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) last year were from community members, and 16 percent of these calls were tips.  Since December 2007, more than 4,000 potential victims have been referenced in calls to the NHTRC. [Read more →]

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness month, a time for reflection and for increasing awareness about the high rate of intimate partner and familial violence that occurs in the U.S. and around the world.  As President Obama’s recent presidential proclamation indicates, despite many gains, “domestic violence remains a devastating public health crisis when one in four women will be physically or sexually assaulted by a partner at some point in her lifetime.”  It is also important to consider the many ways that human trafficking intersects with domestic violence. [Read more →]

Coming shortly after Craigslist’s decision to close its “Adult Services” section in the U.S.,  The Washington Post closed a chapter in its own history of advertising for brothels that have involved human trafficking and other violent crimes. [Read more →]

Last week craigslist shut down the Adult Services section in cities in the United States. However, the Erotic Services section is still up in the rest of the world. With more than 250 pages international pages generating nearly 25,000 ads a day, craigslist has neglected its responsibilities as a global company by keeping these sections available for users worldwide.

Today, Polaris Project and more than 100 other experts from the anti-trafficking field signed onto a letter asking Craig Newmark and Jim Buckmaster to shut down all of the Adult and Erotic Services sections around the world. You can also do the same by signing Change.org’s petition. Although craigslist has been silent on this issue during the past week, we eagerly wait to hear what their next steps will be. Tomorrow a representative from craigslist will be testifying before the House Judiciary Crime Subcommittee. Perhaps after tomorrow’s hearing we will get the answer to our question – what will they do now?

As millions of American families hit the roads for summer vacation and take breaks at truck stops to refuel and grab snacks, they may unknowingly come across human trafficking. Commercial truck stops are locations where pimps compel women and girls to engage in prostitution. We are not talking about state owned or state operated welcome centers or rest stops where there is often law enforcement presence (e.g. state patrol). Pimps are taking advantage of locations where there is a large concentration of male truck drivers who are on the road and may be willing to purchase sex. Moreover, these places allow pimps to move the women and girls with ease to other locations as a way of evading law enforcement. Pimps may advertise or have the women and girls advertise via CB radio, or in many cases have the women and girls solicit by going from truck to truck looking for customers. The pimps are also familiar with “party row” where truck drivers park their rigs in the farthest end of a lot with the intention of purchasing sex.

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