This KWVE Radio interview features an in-depth look at Saved in America through the eyes of founder Joseph Travers. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reports an estimated 800,000 children go missing every year. According to additional studies, an estimated 30% of all those who go missing will end up victimized by a human trafficking ring.

Myths About Human Trafficking

Another point that was discussed during this interview explains some myths about human trafficking. One such myth is the fact that kids ending up in the sex trade, or a human trafficking ring, does not usually take place like in the movie Taken. In other words, kids are not taken off the streets, stores, or from the safety of their bedrooms. They are instead groomed and often coerced through drug addiction as they become victims of an evil triad made up of street gangs, prison gangs, and drug cartels. The way that human trafficking works is through social media relationships, coercion, and recruitment. Often this includes kids recruiting other kids to earn their place within a gang. There are recruiters in virtually every school, which means that even in a place where kids should be the safest, in school, they are still at risk. This is to say nothing of the risk that social media poses to a kid even within their own home. 

Age Range for Human Trafficking

A child is considered as such by Saved in America when they are a minor, or someone who is aged 17 or younger. In some cases, the kids being trafficked are much younger, some as young as 11 years of age. This horrific crime impacts kids of all ages and has taken place in every state of the nation. There is no certain type of family that is exempt from this danger. Therefore, all parents have to remain diligent when it comes to knowing what their kids are doing online and who they are interacting with at all times. Knowing what a kid is doing online can be a way to keep them safer in this world of digital media. Kids might want privacy but until they are old enough to understand the dangers associated with social media, human trafficking, grooming, and coercion, parents need to protect their kids by being involved in all aspects of their lives.