Celebrity Sex Trafficking

By Charlotte White

In the modern-era, the term sex trafficking is seen by most as something that is largely extinct, with many in the United States questioning if sex trafficking in the U.S. exists at all.  This mindset causes cases of sex trafficking to take an unfortunate backseat in news and media coverage.

While press around trafficking is diminishing in interest, rates of sex trafficking are on a horrifying rise both nationally and globally. The United States alone ranks in the top 3 nations of origin for victims of human trafficking only behind Mexico and the Philippines. A question weighing on the minds of Americans is how trafficking can run so rampant in one of the most developed nations in the world, and while there are many contributing factors, one of the biggest is the public’s dated perception of what a trafficker looks and acts like. 

Sex traffickers, while usually envisioned as shadowy figures lurking in dark alleyways waiting for their next victim, are often quite the opposite. A new form of trafficking, known otherwise as Celebrity Sex Trafficking has become the method of choice for traffickers worldwide. Celebrity Sex Traffickers take advantage of their power, fame, and money to groom and exploit victims.

People involved in this kind of trafficking almost never speak up due to the added fear of public backlash from the trafficker’s supporters and repercussions on their career. Only recently have a small portion of victims finally chosen to speak out about their Celebrity traffickers.

High-profile cases like Epstein Island and P. Diddy reveal a dark underbelly to trafficking going completely unnoticed in the United States . It’s believed that Jeffrey Epstein had been trafficking women for over a decade and sex trafficking minors for nearly five years before being formally prosecuted. Epstein’s case highlighted how easy it is for traffickers to operate in plain sight, using their wealth and status to evade justice for years. In order to eradicate this modern-day slavery and protect our most vulnerable, we as a united nation must hold our public idols to a higher level of scrutiny. Since trafficking thrives in darkness, the only response we have is to shine a continuous spotlight on it. 

“The issue of trafficking and exploitation is all around us. We all must be aware and we must be willing to do something. If it were a member of our family we would be upset. Let’s be upset for all children.”