IndexVictimsDrugs, Violence, and VictimsOther Victims When the topic of human sex trafficking is mentioned, some people imagine themselves as sex slaves in foreign countries and remote places in the world. The reality is that human sex trafficking is a major problem even in developed nations like the United States. Human trafficking is a term that refers to the trafficking of human beings, and is most commonly practiced for forced labor, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation. The United States is a technologically and legally developed nation. Despite the sophistication of the United States, human sex trafficking is still a problem. Every year, people enter and exit the United States for the purpose of engaging in illegal human-to-human sexual activity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Victims When discussing human sex trafficking, it is important to consider who the victims are. The crime has multiple victims. The primary victims are real people who are coerced, tricked or coerced into living in the sex trade. Many of the sex workers are beaten, threatened, and forced to use addictive drugs (Walker-Rodriguez & Hill, 2011). The most common victims of sex trafficking are young women, but there are also older victims and even men (Walker-Rodriguez & Hill, 2011). There are other victims too. Society in general is made worse by the presence of the illegal sex trade. Some parents and families may force their children or siblings to engage in the sex trade. Taxpayers also pay the price in the form of prison sentences, drug rehabilitation programs, and even crimes (such as theft) often committed by those involved in sex trafficking. The main victims of sex trafficking are people forced to work in the sex trade. In some countries around the world, corrupt law enforcement and government are the main forces that prevent victims from speaking out against criminals (Bernat, 2013, p. 57). In such circumstances, even if a victim approaches law enforcement, law enforcement may look the other way or even contact the pimp or other person working with the victim to punish him or her for attempting to speak out . The victim therefore finds himself in a dangerous situation. They cannot speak openly about the crime for fear of retaliation, so they are forced to accept whatever poor working conditions are offered to them. In many cases, the person forcing her into the sex trade will take almost all of the money the victim earns through sex work (Bernat, 2013). In the United States, victims are in a slightly different situation. Many people are forced into the sex trade out of desperation (Walker-Rodriguez & Hill, 2011). Some young people who are homeless or disowned by their families are targeted by pimps and others involved in human sex trafficking (Walker-Rodriguez & Hill, 2011). Criminals may give the young person a place to stay temporarily and then force them to engage in sex work as a way to make money. If the victim has low levels of education and income, then they have few, if any, options. This is especially true if they are staying in a homeless shelter or somewhere unpleasant. The pimp or sex offender may entice them with lies about a more comfortable life. They may initially give them a place to stay, food, and other services, only to then take those things away if the victimrefuse any of their requests. Drugs, violence and victims At the center of the discussion on human sex trafficking and the sex trade in general are the issue of drugs and violence. Illegal drugs are used as a powerful tool to gain compliance and prevent sex workers from seeking help from law enforcement. In the United States, a pimp could take a young homeless girl and force her into the world of prostitution. However, without the use of drugs or violence, that prostitute could theoretically report the pimp at any time and stop the operation. Drugs make the situation different. Addictive drugs, such as heroin and cocaine, are frequently used in the illegal sex trade (Tiefenbrun, 2000). This is true both nationally and internationally. In some major international sex trafficking rings, victims are first given large quantities of addictive drugs, such as heroin, when they enter the sex trade (Tiefenbrun, 2000). The purpose of giving them such drugs is to make them addicted. Once the victim becomes addicted to drugs, he or she has less incentive to report sex traffickers or pimps because he or she relies on them to obtain more drugs. Even in cases where they suffer terrible abuse, they may continue to return to traffickers or pimps to get another fix of their drug of choice. Drugs and alcohol are also used as coping methods. The sex trade often involves violence, verbal and physical abuse, and other traumatic events that can have a significant impact on an individual's psychological well-being (Tiefenbrun, 2000). While victims of sex trafficking are not forced to abuse drugs or alcohol, they may turn to them as a way to cope with difficulties related to working in the sex trade. Illegal drugs play an important role in the entire illegal human sex trafficking industry. Violence and threats of violence are important components in the world of human sex trafficking. There are some situations where someone is kidnapped and physically forced into the world of human sex trafficking (Oram et al., 2012). Such situations are more common in underdeveloped nations. A young person may be physically kidnapped and then transported or sold to someone in a different country (Oram et al., 2012). Although such situations are less common in developed nations, they continue to occur (Oram et al., 2012). In developed countries, it is easier for a victim to turn to law enforcement and report their kidnapper. However, there are some situations where the kidnapper keeps the person locked up for a period of time and gets them addicted to drugs. Subsequently, the person has less incentive to report the kidnapper due to his or her desire to continue using an illegal drug. The kidnapper may also use violence or the threat of violence to scare victims. They may fear that the kidnapper, pimp, or sex trafficker will kill them if they choose to report the problem. Even if such threats are not real, the mere presence of such threats may be enough to gain compliance from the victim. Language barriers pose another challenge for victims of sex trafficking. In many cases, the human trafficker will take the victim to a different country that he or she is unfamiliar with. As a result, the victim may not understand the language of the country to which they are taken. If they cannot understand or speak the language, they are severely limited and dependent on the human trafficker (Baldwin et al., 2011). This is true for several reasons. For one thing, they might not.