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MYTHS & FACTS

Myth No. 1: Trafficked persons can only be foreign nationals or are only immigrants from other countries.

Reality: The federal definition of human trafficking includes both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. Both are protected under federal trafficking statutes and have been since the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000. Human trafficking within the United States affects victims who are U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, visa holders and undocumented workers.

Myth No. 2: Human trafficking victims always come from situations of poverty or from small rural villages.

Reality: Although poverty can be a factor in human trafficking because it is often an indicator of vulnerability, poverty alone is not a single causal factor or universal indicator of a human trafficking victim. Trafficking victims come from a range of income levels, and many may come from families with high socioeconomic status.

Myth No. 3: Sex trafficking is always or usually a violent crime.

Reality: The most pervasive mythabout human trafficking is that it often involves kidnapping or forcing someone into a situation. Most traffickers use psychological means, such as tricking, defrauding, manipulating or threatening victims.

Myth No. 4: Only women and girls can be victims and survivors of sex trafficking.

Reality: The most frequently cited global statistics on human trafficking indicate as many as 50% of all trafficking victims and survivors are male. That percentage may be even higher, as advocates believe that male victims are far less likely to be identified. LGBTQ boys and young men are particularly vulnerable to trafficking.

Myth No. 5: Human trafficking and human smuggling are the same thing.

Reality: “Trafficking” is based on exploitation and does not require movement across borders. “Smuggling” is based on movement and involves moving a person across a country’s border with that person’s consent in violation of immigration laws. Although human smuggling is very different from human trafficking, human smuggling can turn into trafficking if the smuggler uses force, fraud or coercion to hold people against their will for the purposes of labor or sexual exploitation.

For More Information:
National Human Trafficking Hotline - Myths and Facts
Polaris Project – Myths, Facts and Statistics
U.S. Dept. of State - Fact Sheet on Assisting Male Survivors of Human Trafficking
The Dept. of Homeland Security Blue Campaign - Myths and Misconceptions

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