Of the more than 50,000 people who come into the U.S. each year as victims of human trafficking, a quarter arrive through Texas, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

A Presidential Proclamation in 2011 designated January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. In addition, non-government organizations started National Human Trafficking Day, which is observed annually on Jan. 11.

Sandra Spencer, the director of the University of North Texas Women's and Gender Studies Program, is available to discuss why Texas is a hub for both forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation human trafficking. Spencer developed and began teaching a class on the subject after attending the Texas Conference for Women more than 10 years ago and hearing a presentation from one of the organizers of the Polaris Project, a nonprofit group that runs the national human trafficking hotline.

"This young woman spoke about living a few blocks away in Boston from a massage parlor that had been raided because it was suspected of human trafficking," Spencer said. "I thought 'If it's in Boston, then it must be in Dallas-Fort Worth.' And it is. It's estimated to bring in $150 billion in revenue a year, which is more than Nike, Starbucks and Amazon combined."

She said Texas' border with Mexico and its 13 international airports, seaports and interstate highways make the entire state attractive to human traffickers. Houston is especially prone to the crime because of its proximity to both a seaport and Interstate 10, which stretches from Houston both east to Florida and west to California.

"Think about all of the expansion of highways and the fact that they often go through less populated areas, so there's less chance that anyone would notice something wrong," she said.

Spencer noted that both labor and sex trafficking can take place in virtually every business, but is most often found in agriculture work, restaurants, domestic labor, nail salons and massage parlors. Texas has also been the site for Super Bowls and other large sporting events in recent years, which attract many people to sex trafficking, she said.

She advised reporting a possible human trafficking case via the Polaris hotline (1-888-373-7888) unless someone is in immediate danger.

"The first instinct is to call 9-1-1, but Polaris staff members are better equipped to assess the situation and will know how to investigate further with law enforcement," Spencer said. 

E-mail: Sandra.spencer@unt.edu
Phone: 940-565-2532