Page 22 - April2019_BarJournal

BarJournal WOMEN IN LAW

JULY/AUGUST 2015
feaTure looking Beneath the surface

Representing Human-Trafficking Survivors

BY MAuREEN (KENNY) GuIRGuIS

ooks can be deceiving. Lawyers trafficking, grossing an estimated $150 billion announced an 846% increase in reports of
often encounter victims of human per year. The International Labour Organization suspected child sex trafficking between the
trafficking in courtrooms without estimates that there are 40.3 million victims years of 2009 and 2014 — an increase the
realizing it because, rather than of human trafficking globally. Ohio has the organization found to be “directly correlated
L being identified as “victims,” the fourth-highest number of reported instances to the increased use of the Internet to sell
individuals may be labeled as “prostitutes” of human trafficking in the United States. children for sex.” 3
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or “juvenile delinquents.” In other contexts, And, for the last decade, Cleveland has ranked So there is no question that this is happening
the victims may appear to be “unfit parents” 13th in the top 100 cities for reported cases of here — in our city — on our streets — to
in abuse, neglect, and dependency cases or human trafficking. 2 individuals appearing in our courts.
as defendants in domestic-violence or drug- This crime’s continued growth is due, in Here is a quick example (with a fictitious
possession cases. Behind the scenes, however, part, to the continued growth of the internet. name): Delilah grew up in Rootstown and
these individuals may be struggling with Compared to “street-level” prostitution, had a difficult home life. When she was
an extreme and often prolonged period of internet trafficking is the preferred method twelve, she was molested by a neighborhood
victimization that is difficult to comprehend. for today’s criminals because it allows them shop owner. At sixteen, she met a man who
Human trafficking can be separated to achieve maximum profit with minimum was twenty-five and claimed to be a lawyer.
into two distinct types of trafficking: labor risk. A trafficker on the street with his “girl” He said he loved her and he was going to
trafficking and sex trafficking. Labor may be able to get her only several dates per “take her away from all of her troubles.”
trafficking is generally defined as a situation day while remaining vulnerable to arrest if She agreed to go away with him for the
in which a person is placed into involuntary the police do a sweep of the area. Meanwhile weekend. By the end of that weekend, he
servitude through force, fraud, or coercion. another trafficker can advertise his victim was forcing her to prostitute herself behind
Sex trafficking with minors involve situations online and get more dates (one 15-year-old neighborhood bars. He then regularly made
where children are exploited by becoming client told me she would get an average of her sell herself at local truck stops. She would

involved in commercial sexual acts. Sex 20 calls within 5 minutes of her ad being get arrested and charged with prostitution
trafficking with adults involve commercial posted) while using a burner phone number or solicitation and then released back to

sexual acts that occur as a result of force, to protect his anonymity and reduce the odds her trafficker. At one point, when she was
fraud, or coercion. of being nabbed by authorities. With respect seventeen, a judge told her that she was

Human trafficking is the second-leading to child-sex trafficking alone, the National “disgusting” and that he never wanted to
criminal enterprise worldwide, behind drug Center for Missing and Exploited Children see her in her courtroom again.

Her trafficker then brought her to New
York City and introduced her to cocaine,
in the moment phrase 1. Fully engaged and focused. 2. Keen which led to an addiction that lingered for
awareness of one’s surroundings. 3. A core skill of good Mediators. more than a decade. Her trafficker regularly
beat her, raped her, and threatened her if she
ever tried to leave him. She did not find the
Jerome F. Weiss, Mediator courage to leave until she was thirty years
old and pregnant with twins. Delilah has
now been clean and free of her trafficker for
almost two decades. But she still struggles
Facilitating dispute resolution every day from the lingering effects of her
for individuals and institutions many years of victimization. The complex

Tel 216.589.9995 trauma she suffered leaves her with serious
Fax 216.589.9723 mental-health issues that require medication,
www.mediate.com/mediationinc individual counseling, and group therapy.

She was never able to finish high school so
22 | Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Journal clemetrobar.org