The 5 Most Important Things You Need to Know About Human Trafficking in North Texas
Human Trafficking is a much closer reatlity than you may realize.
January is National Human Trafficking Prevention month–and for good reason.
Sex trafficking, defined as the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of commercial sex act, is a $10 billion industry in the United States. A monumental crisis in our nation.
But it’s one thing to be aware of an issue at large; it’s another thing to be aware of an issue as it affects you locally in the Denton community.
Refuge For Women is a non-profit, faith based organization that provides specialized long-term care for women who have escaped human trafficking or sexual exploitation. They currently have 11 homes in operation around the U.S. and one here in Denton.
Through the programs, resources, and support offered through Refuge For Women, women receive healing from their trauma and are able to get back on their feet with a different story.
“This is a big issue in North Texas–we don’t need to bury our heads and pretend it’s not. The solution is learning about it and not being afraid,” Executive Director, Abby Germer explains.
So let’s take a note from Abby and build our awareness. After all, the best way to prevent this crime from continuing is through understanding and education.
Here are the 5 most important things you need to know about human trafficking in North Texas:
Human trafficking is happening right now, right here in DFW
Human trafficking isn’t just happening overseas or in foreign countries.
It’s easier to acknowledge this issue globally, rather than understand how human trafficking affects our demographic and population in Denton County.
But the truth of the matter is… it does.
In fact, Texas as a whole is number two in the nation for the number of calls made to the Human Trafficking Hotline. North Texas, specifically, is a hot spot due to the accessibility through the I-35 corridor.
In 2021 Refuge For Women made a record number of referrals for local victims with outcries in need of local services. Germer met with various women who were either found on the street in need of help or who had been identified and recovered from high-profile sting operations to talk to them about options availableavialable to them for help.
Additionally, The Department of Homeland Security has also seen a rise in cases throughout the COVID pandemic. More women are looking for relationships and outside resources, while the loneliness of isolation has added to the demand and need for sex buyers to buy sex. When the two collide, disaster sets in.
2. Human trafficking doesn’t necessarily occur through kidnapping
Trafficking is sometimes portrayed as the big white vans swooping people off the street left and right. Although that can happen, it's not the primary way people get trafficked.
The average age of entry into the sex industry is 12-14 years old and normally sustained through building relationships and trust. Most of the time, it’s through people they know such as a family member or someone they’ve been getting to know for a year or more.
Trafficking is usually built over time which keeps that cycle of attachment to a trafficker even more secure.
From a victim’s perspective, they believed they were entering into a relationship with someone who was going to meet a need they thought they had. But from a trafficking perspective that’s called grooming.
Being groomed overtime is sometimes invisible until it happens…
So how can you spot that process and intervene to prevent that induction from occurring?
For starters, you can identify any irrational changes in behaviors like sudden isolation or mood changes from people or kids you know. Traffickers like to promise material rewards, so keep an eye out for designer shoes, clothes, or jewelry that start popping up unexpectedly which could be a sign of suspicion as well.
To put it plainly: Traffickers look for vulnerable people who have a need to fill.
If a trafficker can meet a need and get their victim to rely solely on them to fulfill that need, the cycle of trafficking through false security and dependency has begun.
3. Victims of human trafficking are manipulated and coerced to stay in the industry
Trafficking is a $99 million industry in the DFW area alone. One of the reasons why is because bodies are seen as a reusable commodity.
Once a woman has been groomed to this cycle, they are then manipulated and coerced into staying through different forms of control. Threats against their family or physical abuse are just two examples that barely skim the surface.
It’s important to understand that these women have a quota to meet on a daily basis. If their quota is $1500 a day, they are required to service X amount of clients to meet that demand. They are either rewarded with material possessions (none of the money goes back to the women themselves) or they are met with extreme consequences if the quotas aren’t met.
It’s a sinister sales game tangled together by manipulation and abuse.
Their trauma is continuously compounded as they are used over and over again. It dehumanizes them so severely that many women turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms such as drugs or alcohol to simply numb the pain. This only adds to the layers of immense trauma these women must work through once rescued.
4. Sex buying in the state of Texas is now a felony charge
Texas is the first state in the nation to make sex buying a criminal felony charged crime.
This is a huge win.
It’s allowed law enforcement to:
Increase their operations
Have more accountability when it comes to perpetrators
Have a more stable foundation to build big trafficking cases against traffickers
Better understand the services and protection needed for victims
The increased awareness of what trafficking is, and how it affects women has helped both law enforcement and citizens alike see victims of trafficking and prostitution with less judgment and more understanding. This is forward moving progress.
Law enforcement wants to have a better understanding so they can do things differently and help victims more. In fact, the Denton County Sheriff’s Department is adding 2 detectives to their task force this year specifically for human trafficking cases. The greater understanding of what services and protection victims need allows traffickers and sex buyers to be targeted more.
There’s no doubt that awareness of this issue has evolved into this action over time.
But there is always room for further understanding.
Refuge for Women is holding a “Truth About Trafficking” awareness event on January 27th at 7 pm at First Church in Denton. There will be a panel of experts who fight this on a daily basis to discuss, educate, and build awareness in the community. It’s free, empowering, educational, and worth the time. You can register here.
5. There’s a shortage of emergency beds for victims in the North Texas area
The shortage of emergency beds available for victims in need of immediate services in North Texas is a major crisis.
When a victim makes an outcry and needs immediate help, there are only 5 beds in 2 organizations within the metroplex…and they are full all the time.
In addition to not being able to serve women in immediate need, it also creates a conflict for law enforcement. If there are no places to send rescued women, planning and implementing stings becomes much more difficult.
Without adequate financial support to aid developments such as these, putting an end to human trafficking only gets harder.
Bringing in women who are in crisis requires a higher level of care. Agencies such as Refuge For Women require a higher level staffing model for nurses and counselors on staff. It’s a demand that comes with a much higher level of funding to make this happen.
A Deeper Look into Refuge For Women
Refuge For Women’s program is up to 2 years long and offers a place for trafficked victims to heal, regroup and re-enter the world. The program is highly relational and therefore only has the bandwidth for 6 residents at one time in either house.
It takes about 4 months for women to see they are in a safe place and put down their walls to begin the healing process. High volunteer and staff turnover aren’t healthy for women needing stability and long-term relationships, so building that trust is of the utmost importance at Refuge For Women.
Additionally, Refuge For Women makes sure their medical and emotional needs are met. They offer counseling, group therapy, 30 books of curriculum, as well as job skills and training. Once a woman has been in the program for 30 days they can begin working through Survivor Made where they make hand-crafted leather goods. They do that for a year, building job training and boosting their resume which sets them up for better qualifying jobs long term.
Once they graduate after their first year, they go to transitional living for the second year where they can live independently but still under the care of a 24/7 Refuge For Women staff. Here they can enhance their career, go to school, and have an additional year to lay roots for a stronger foundation and successful lifestyle.
Join in the solution
The fight to end human trafficking will take everyone growing in their awareness and education and taking action where they can.
You can be part of that solution.
Learn more about human trafficking
Get involved at Refuge for Women
Give financially
Shop Survivor Made products
Support house needs
There’s always something you can do. Look for ways you can get plugged in based on your time, talents, and resources.
For further information on Human Trafficking in North Texas, connect with local experts to help put an end to this modern-day slavery.