Admission Essay
Human trafficking is a social issue that threatens the safety of children and adults alike, exploited for attaining the interests of organized crime groups. Such exploitation affects the victims’ further development and negatively impacts their wellbeing and self-esteem. This issue is significant to social work practitioners, responsibly committed to reduce poverty throughout the world, to empower vulnerable groups, to sustain the gender equality, to erase the gender-based oppression and to promote equitable and equal access to education (Haoughton & Khandker 176). Hence, human trafficking severely abuses human rights and social workers fight for reinstating them. Human trafficking is an increasing concern in Texas, United States. Although the authorities are making significant efforts to stop it, social worker practitioners should contribute in fighting for to the elimination of this social abuse by applying methods specific to social work activity.
Although Texas enacted laws to criminalize human trafficking, it still deals with significant rates of exploited individuals. Because it is one of the major border states in the U.S., it is a significant location for human trafficking. Statistics indicate that one in five victims of human trafficking in United States travels through Texas (Health and Human Services Commission 8).
For being prepared to fight against such a complex problem, a social worker must be equipped with the proper resources and knowledge in order to plan a suited approach. Knowing the source of this problem is essential in eliminating this form of slavery. Poverty is a very severe social problem which affects communities throughout the world and forces people to seek employment in suspect conditions. As such, out of desperation and dreaming of a better life, they turn to dubious individuals or groups to help them find a job. They often end up being exploited and unable to escape their employment, fearing the consequences. Women are mostly the focus of these groups, as the procurers are taking advantage of their vulnerability and lack of opportunities to find employment in their home-countries. While adults may be lured and hijacked into such organized crime groups, the children placed in human trafficking are either kidnapped or sold by their own families in exchange for some financial remunerations. Similarly, parents can also be deceived into allowing their minor children to leave home accompanied by individuals who promise them a better life, but who will end up exploiting their victims instead. Disunited families, another key factor of human trafficking, targeting mostly the children, influencing minors to leave home, searching for work or to join doubtful groups which will led them towards being trafficked.
Using social work activity to address the human trafficking issue would require the development of a consistent and aggressive awareness campaign meant to reach the vulnerable groups, educating them on how to identify the deceiving employment opportunities, and to inform authorities to take measures against those groups.
A possible solution for addressing poverty that leads to human trafficking would be to improve the skills and competencies of vulnerable individuals who belong to disfavored communities. Possessing more and improved skills, such individuals would benefit from increased opportunities for finding employment. As such, they would not feel tempted to appeal to dubious groups for finding jobs, reducing the human trafficking rates.
Similarly significant is the involvement of social workers in reinstating familial values in the vulnerable communities, improving the communication between the family members and strengthening family unity. Hence, youngsters will feel comfortable within their family structure and they would not attempt to leave their homes, decreasing like this their chances of becoming victims of human trafficking.
Works Cited
Haughton, Jonathan & Khandker, Shahidur, R. Handbook of Poverty and Inequality. Washington DC, The World Bank. 2009. Print.
Health and Human Services Commission. The Texas Response to Human Trafficking. Texas, The State of Texas. 2008. Print.
