Sex Trafficking in the Mid-State

By Abigail Wild

When people hear the word trafficking, they often think of some faraway land, someplace with no bearing on their dayto-day lives. They picture people in shackles being moved from country to country or state to state. They don’t realize that we have a trafficking problem in the mid-state or that people can be trafficked without ever leaving home.

This issue of Harrisburg Magazine celebrates women not only by sharing their accomplishments, but by shining a light on that which we must overcome: practices like trafficking that objectify and exploit women in our communities.

Sex trafficking is here. It’s in Harrisburg, York, and Lancaster. It’s even in Halifax. When someone uses force, fraud, and/or coercion to make a person take part in the commercial sex trade against their will, that’s sex trafficking. It’s illegal and painful and terrifying, but it’s also something we can work together to do something about if we know what to look for and where to turn for help.

Women are more likely to be trafficked by someone they know than someone following them around Walmart (which is scary in its own right, of course). Women, especially those who society has turned its back on are exponentially more likely to fall into trafficking than their counterparts. How does this happen?

We all have vulnerabilities. We are all searching for something. We all experience self-doubt. Sex traffickers pinpoint what we need the most—whether that be love, money, or acceptance—and capitalize on it for personal and financial gain. They love-bomb their targets in a way that fulfills their deepest needs. And once they have a target’s trust, they begin exploiting that trust and pushing that person deeper into trafficking. It’s generally not an “all-of-a-sudden” occurrence as many suppose. Traffickers chip away at you little by little. They may begin to force drugs on you. They surround you with a network of people who make it seem as if this new life that you never wanted and don’t want now is impossible to escape. We aren’t talking about those who choose; we are talking about those who are forced.

At She’s Somebody’s Daughter, we work with and for women who are being or have been trafficked to help facilitate positive outcomes. We build communities of love and hope that honor women and work to erase the lines of separation that isolate those affected by sexual exploitation. We started ten years ago, choosing our name as a conversation starter for those who pay for sex. We wanted them to realize that this could be their daughter, sister, or mother who was being forced to perform sex acts. And it worked. Potential sex purchasers began to take a step back and think about what they were about to do. If you are in need of help, would like to learn more about our work, or would like to volunteer or lend your support, please visit ShesSomebodysDaughter.org.

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