Human trafficking is a crime that deprives millions of people of their dignity and freedom. An estimated 27.6 million are currently victims of trafficking worldwide, and, sadly, many of them are often hidden right in front of us. To properly tackle this crime, it will take a commitment from each of us to end human ... Read More»

Victims of  human trafficking  come from every region of the globe. Increasingly, survivors are taking the lead in the fight against the crime and in helping its victims to heal. To understand the scope of the problem, caused primarily by criminals subjecting victims to forced labor or sex trafficking, one need only see the  International Labour Organization  estimates, which say ... Read More»

“The scale of this problem is vast,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken, announcing the report’s findings July 19 at the State Department, noting that nearly 25 million people are currently victims of trafficking. “The United States is committed to fighting it because trafficking destabilizes societies, it undermines economies, it harms workers, it enriches those who exploit ... Read More»

To that end, I convened today the Administration’s first meeting of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.  Agencies from across the government shared their initiatives to address this crime, with a special focus on what’s new in those efforts, including through implementation of the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking. Read More»

In 2020, as governments focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, human traffickers found new ways to perpetrate their crimes, a new State Department report says. Traffickers targeted vulnerable families with fraudulent offers that led to exploitation. And more time online left some more vulnerable to trafficking. Meanwhile, lockdowns and social distancing requirements limited victims’ access to ... Read More»