Human Trafficking Figures

The Washington State Attorney General’s Office website contains information about what they call “sexual trafficking” (including child pornography). They provide statistics about their individual state but also national statistics. One staggering statistic from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) quoted on this website states that “100,000 to 293,000 children are in danger of becoming sexual commodities.” The website also links to the main website for Shared Hope International and gives some of the shocking statistics that organization has found. Also, highlights from the State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report are provided. The most shocking of which (to me) was that “Less than 10 percent of state and local law enforcement agencies surveyed had protocols or policies on human trafficking, and recommended augmented training, standard operational protocols, and dedicated personnel within police agencies.” How are they supposed to stop something when they aren’t even prepared to look for it?

http://www.atg.wa.gov/HumanTrafficking/SexTrafficking.aspx#.URZeFB1X0sJ