See what changed — and what didn’t — through the pandemic.
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John,
Human trafficking is a pervasive and versatile crime. Traffickers and exploiters adapt all too easily to changing environments — including the COVID-19 pandemic.
A new Polaris report, “Human Trafficking During the COVID and Post-COVID Era
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,” examines National Human Trafficking Hotline data from January 2020 through August 2022. The report highlights pandemic-related trends while reinforcing what we already know about how trafficking happens and who is most vulnerable.
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During the study time period, the Hotline identified 26,872 trafficking situations involving 42,887 likely victims. Noteworthy findings include:
Self-Reporting: Victims of trafficking are increasingly self-reporting their situations to the Hotline. As the pandemic progressed, fewer bystanders — those with no relationship to or interaction with the victim — were involved in Hotline reports.
Online Sexual Exploitation: Although the initial surge in reporting during the pandemic’s early months has returned to pre-COVID levels, online sexual exploitation continues to be a substantial problem that shows no sign of abating.
Restaurants and Food Service: As businesses shut down or closed, the number of labor trafficking situations involving restaurants and food service dropped. Now this trend is reversing: From late 2021 through 2022, that statistic is back on the rise.
Even with these changes, victim demographics, trafficking types, and methods and means of trafficking all remained largely the same. The pandemic may have been unprecedented, but exploitation continued to flourish, impacting the most vulnerable people and communities.
The good news? As we continue to listen to victims and survivors, they are trusting the Trafficking Hotline to help them. Polaris is committed to responding to their needs and amplifying their voices as we work together to fix broken systems and prevent trafficking.
We know you’re committed to this vision, too! So we ask that you read our report
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and share it with your networks to keep raising awareness about how trafficking happens, who is at risk, and how everyone can help.
Thank you!
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Will you make freedom happen now?
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