Is Human Trafficking Our New Slave Trade Shame?

Has the United States been responsible for reconstituting a modern version of the 1700s slave trade routes from Africa?

The State Department defines Slavery: "'Trafficking in persons,' 'human trafficking,' and 'modern slavery' are used as umbrella terms to refer to both sex trafficking and compelled labor." The 2023 State Department report on Human Trafficking states: "Forms of slavery or slavery-like practices—including the sale of children, forced or compulsory child labor, and debt bondage and serfdom of children—continue to exist, despite legal prohibitions and widespread condemnation."

The 13^th Amendment to our Constitution was passed in early 1865 and ratified by the states later that year. This was suppose to abolish "slavery nor involuntary servitude" in the United States.

However, slavery is alive and flourishing in this country. In December 2021, more than 100 workers were freed "from the shackles of modern-day slavery," David Estes, the acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, said in a statement." In February  2023, 48 people were arrested in San Diego — including eight children as young as 13 years old — were sold as sex slaves.

The FBI website on Human Trafficking documents no less than 15 cases in less than two months, August and September 20023, of investigations of sex trafficking slavery from across the country!

In 2021 Caitlyn Yates and Jessica Bolter write in "African Migration Through the Americas" that "Since 2013, migrants from Africa have increasingly trekked through upwards of nine South and Central American countries to reach the U.S.-Mexico border ..." The authors further state that "... African migration to and through the Americas will continue — and continue to increase — in the years to come."

Katherine Donlevy, writing for the New York Post in August 2023, reports: "Thousands of West African migrants are pouring into the US … using WhatsApp, Instagram and other channels to guide fellow migrants along the route, which makes stops in Turkey, Colombia, El Salvador and Managua, Nicaragua ..."

The United Nations website on Transnational Organized Crime estimates "…two of the principal smuggling routes — leading from East, North and West Africa to Europe and from South America to North America — generate about $6.75 billion a year for criminals."

In "Violent drug organizations use human trafficking to expand profits" DEA Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget asserts: "Human trafficking, something we often see inextricably linked with drug trafficking, is so much more prevalent in this area than most people think ..."

The Congressional Research Service report on "Mexican Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking Organizations" reflects drug cartels and drug trafficking organizations are "… poly-criminal organizations [that] also participate in extortion, human smuggling, arms trafficking, and oil theft, among other crimes."

In "Is US drug policy responsible for spike in heroin use?" for The Hill, I reflected that just under 700 hundred drug traffickers had their sentences commuted by September 2016 under criminal justice reform." In "Stem the Tide of the Drug Epidemic" for Newsmax, I make the case that "Released 'non-violent' drug traffickers reconstitute their trafficking organizations."

As we are told by the United Nations, the DEA and the Congressional Research Service,  these reconstituted trafficking networks were founded with trafficking illicit drugs. But multiple sources tell us they have diversified out their profit model to include human trafficking to feed a new form of slavery in the United States.

This is evidenced by the increasing number of criminal investigations into slavery based on involuntary service, forced labor, sex trafficking and especially the exploitation of the most vulnerable as the child sex slaves.

Reinforced by and capitalizing on the open border and criminal justice reform policies of the United States Government, these reconstituted international drug trafficking networks have expanded their criminal operations to include a slave trade, reestablishing a modern version of the 1700s slave trade routes to funnel their prey into the trafficking networks feeding a criminal enterprise reaping tens of billions of dollars a year.

Could someone please direct me to the outrage in the legislative or executive branches of our government over their culpability in reconstituting these slave trade routes?

The above is the opinion of the author and is not meant to reflect the opinion of the U.S.  Navy or the U.S. Government.

John M. DeMaggio retired after 30 years of service as a Captain from the U.S. Naval Reserve Intelligence Program. He holds a Bachelor's of Science in Forensic Science from John Jay College and a Master's of Science from Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University. Privately consulting in counterterrorism, forensic science, and investigations, he also conducts international counterterrorism training, having retired as a Special Agent in Charge and serving as Co-chairman, Investigative Support and Forensic Subgroup, TSWG, developing interagency counterterrorism technology. He is also an Op-Ed contributor for The Hill. He previously published "Mitigation of Terrorist Effects on Victims' Motivation" in U.S. Army Counterinsurgency Center Colloquium. Read John M. DeMaggio's Reports — More Here.