Human trafficking is a serious crime against human rights that has permeated every corner of the globe today. Trafficking in persons can broadly be described as the forced enslavement and exploitation of individuals, in which a beneficiary profits at the expense of the victims' freewill and basic human rights. Trafficking victims are abused, raped, tortured, beaten, and sometimes even killed. They live in a world devoid of hope, where their lives are constantly threatened and their identities robbed.

Though official estimates vary, the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that 12.3million people are victims of forced labor, sex slavery, bonded labor, or forced child labor. In the United States alone, approximately 14,500-17,500 people are trafficked into this country annually, 80% of which are women and girls, and 50% of which are children (TIP Report 2007). Despite these high numbers and the fact that the US is one of the major destination and transit countries for human trafficking, the issue is hugely underreported in the public realm.

Below are a few video clips that should help to visualize the trafficking epidemic today: