Is Sex Slavery A Social Issue

The definition of a social problem, also called a social issue, is an undesirable condition that people believe should be corrected. I believe sex slavery is a social problem because, people are willing to pay to have sex with young girls, this is way outside social norms. It is very hard for police to catch the pimps due to the use of the internet. I think this trend is absolutely horrifying and had no idea it was so prevalent in the United States. The fact the average age of a sex slave is 11 years old I found quite shocking. “The Department of Homeland Security defines human trafficking as a modern-day form of slavery involving the illegal trade of people for exploitation or commercial gain.” (Alvarez 2016).
Conflict theory states that
It would explore human trafficking through a lens that looks at groups that possess power and influence and use it to oppress and exploit vulnerable people. Dominant groups vary in each nation, but may include groups that share the majority religion, upper socioeconomic class, racial class, nationality, or higher position of authority. Patriarchal societies also create a breeding ground for ideals aimed at female inferiority and promotion of gender violence which aides in the propagation of sex trafficking and domestic servitude. Children are the victims of human trafficking as well, and their lack of power and authority allows groups of adults to exploit them for the purposes of forced labor as well as sex
Polaris, which runs the hotline, reported 7,572 cases involving 6,340 females, 978 males and 70 listed as "gender minorities." A total of 4,890 reported cases involved adults and 2,387 involved minors. In some cases, callers do not provide demographic information.” (Cone 2017). It is hard to find accurate data due to several factors. One factor is when calls are made to the Human Trafficking Hotline demographics are not always given. Another reason is sometimes the girls are so ‘beaten down’ that they refuse to admit they are being trafficked and simply wind up being arrested for prostitution. "We don't want to arrest her. But she would rather go to jail than a treatment facility. She said she's 'happy being miserable." (Coorlim & Ford 2017). It is also very hard to track the pimps and the girls due to the age of the internet. "(A) man could get on that computer, anonymously, say, 'I'm coming in to go have sex with this child.' He'll fly in on a 3:00 flight, meet the child at 6:00, and be gone on the 8:00," said Dalia Racine, assistant district attorney for DeKalb County, which includes part of Atlanta. "How are we to ever find them? How are we to ever know who they are?" These problems all lead to difficulty in data tracking for this sex trafficking