On Juneteenth, people remember the day in 1865 when Union General Gordon Granger told enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, that they were free and that the Civil War was over.
As a result of White slaveowners' opposition to Black people's freedom, many enslaved people remained such even after President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, which was issued more than two years earlier. As we commemorate Juneteenth, we are also conscious of the fact that many Black people were still enslaved until 1945 in Galveston due to neo-slavery practices like sharecropping.
Even though Juneteenth has been observed for many years, it wasn't until last year that it was made a federal holiday, allowing
more people in the United States to become familiar with it and grasp its significance in the history of our nation.
On Juneteenth, we commemorate the emancipation of Black people, but we are also made aware of how far we still have to go to put an end to the brutality and injustice that Black people endure every day.
RACIAL & GENDER DISPARITIES IN THE SEX TRADE SEX TRADE
SURVIVORS ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY WOMEN OF COLOR
In a two-year review of all suspected human trafficking incidents across the country, 94% of sex trafficking victims were female, 40% were Black, and 24% were Latinx.
In South Dakota, Native women represent 40% of sex trafficking victims, though Native people are only 8% of the population.
In Hawaii, 83% of sex trafficking survivors are female and 64% are all or part Native Hawaiian.
In Nebraska, 50% of individuals sold online for sex are Black, though Black people comprise only 5% of the general population.
CHILD SEX TRAFFICKING SURVIVORS ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY GIRLS OF COLOR
In King County, Washington, 52% of all child sex trafficking victims are Black and 84% of youth victims are female, though Black girls only comprise 1.1% of the general population.
In Connecticut, the Department of Children and Families reported that 73% of referrals for trafficking were children of color and 87% were girls.
In Louisiana, 49% of child sex trafficking victims are Black girls, though Black girls are only 19% of Louisiana’s youth population.
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 55% of sex trafficking victims are minors, 97% of victims are female, and 65% are Black, though Black people are only 27% of the population.
SEX BUYERS ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY WHITE MEN
In King County, Washington, 80% of sex buyers are white men.
In Pennsylvania, 74% of sex buyers are white men.
A 2017 study on sex buyers in Minnesota found that the majority of buyers in their state are white, middle-to-upper class, married men.
In a 2012 study of men who use the internet to buy sex, researchers found that virtually 85% of the buyers were white men.
BLACK WOMEN AND GIRLS BEAR
THE BRUNT OF PROSTITUTION ARRESTS
Survivors of sex trafficking and sexual exploitation, particularly those of color, are often not acknowledged as victims of crime and are instead arrested for prostitution-related offenses. By contrast, in many jurisdictions, buyers face little to no consequences for their role in exploiting vulnerable women and girls.
In Pennsylvania, 70% of prostitution arrests are for selling sex, while only 30% of arrests are for purchasing sex.
Women account for 62% of adult prostitution arrests
Black people account for approximately 42% of adult prostitution arrests —more than any other racial group.
Girls account for approximately 71% of juvenile prostitution arrests.
Black children account for nearly 51% of all juvenile prostitution arrests—more than any other racial group.
Statistics provided by rights4girls
For additional human trafficking resources, please view https://www.globalhope365.org/human-trafficking-resources
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