What to know about online sex trafficking.
It’s time Iowans woke up to what is really happening right here in our state and in our own communities. January is “Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.” This is the second in a series of three articles exploring a variety of topics related to this disturbing issue.
by Michelle Watson
Online social media and gaming sites are major places where traffickers find their victims. Iowans need to educate themselves on how to keep children safe when they are using these sites.
“Pedophiles and human traffickers are always on the look. Their whole life is sitting behind a screen looking for people to exploit. During Covid traffickers shifted to online exploitation and grooming,” said Melody Stone, a licensed, trauma clinical therapist with over 30 years of experience and founder of North Iowa Coalition Against Human Trafficking. “They are like cockroaches. They move and adapt. It’s all big business to them.”
Every child is vulnerable and predators make it their business to find out what a child’s hopes, hurts and dreams are. Then they use it to exploit them. Here is what a predator looks for:
•If the child is seeking love and acceptance,
•If they want to fit in.
•If they feel misunderstood.
•If they are insecure.
•If they are lonely.
Online predators will befriend a child and get to know all about them. This is called “grooming.” They often pretend to be someone else. They will study a child’s profile and learn their likes and adapt a new online persona. Children may think they are talking to someone their own age, when in fact it could be a much older person.
Predators may spend months, or even years, grooming a child so they seem like fun, trustworthy and safe friends. They may send gifts to earn loyalty. From here, it’s a short step to being willing to meet. Or the predator may begin to encourage a child to send compromising photos that can later be used for blackmail and extortion, also known as “sextortion,” which is the practice of extorting money or sexual favors from someone by threatening to reveal evidence of their sexual activity.
“Many children don’t see any harm in sending pictures. The problem with that is pictures don’t go away,” said Stone.
They will use the photos and blackmail a child, saying they will tell their parents, or they will show them on social media and ruin their reputation.
“We used to teach our children about ‘stranger danger.’ I now tell children there are ‘tricky people’ out there and sometimes it’s people we know that can lie to us,” said Stone. “What would your child do if a person said that their Mom told them to pick them up. Would they go? Children need to learn that people will trick them. Tell them to never go with someone or meet someone, even if they do know them. Have designated safe people in their lives. And tell them to not share personal information.”
Stone said she has seen predators from many walks of life including, policemen, coaches, teachers, health care providers, pastors, judges, etc.
She identifies “Buyers” as those who are purchasing the services traffickers are offering. “Buyers” for the most part are middle-aged males with families of their own who have the means to purchase illicit activities and have the ability to travel.
“Here in Iowa, I feel a lion’s share of Iowans have integrity, but it only takes a few that don’t,” said Stone.
Another ploy traffickers will use are fellow school-aged children. They will pay these children to spot or identify at-risk children and report back to them. The classmates may even befriend them and do the “grooming” for the predators. Some don’t even know they are being used in this way.
“Human trafficking is the exploitation of vulnerabilities,” said Stone. “If a child has a dream, such as being a model or a singer, the predators will tell them they have connections and can make those dreams a reality.”
Once the predator has met with the child and engaged in illicit activities (either in-person or online), they begin to make threats to have power and control and keep the victim silent.
Here are warning signs that indicate a child may be communicating with an online predator:
•They withdraw from family and friends.
•They are overly obsessed with being online.
•They hide their device screens.
•They receive expensive gifts from a friend you don’t know.
•They become upset when they don’t have wifi access or cell service.
•They have different friends.
•Dropping grades.
•They are tired a lot.
•Someone is sending them pornography.
Stone said pornography and trafficking go hand-in-hand. She suggests buying security systems for online use that can help block pornography sites. She said it’s important to have conversations and present scenarios to children and to keep conversations short and concise.
“Human trafficking only occurs if we allow it and do nothing about it,” said Captain Mike Colby, of the Clear Lake Police Department. “We need to have resources in place for those who are trafficked to help them escape and we need harsh penalties for those that traffic others and for those who are consumers of services provided.”
Next week: Ways we as a community can help in the fight against human trafficking.
