When It Comes To Human Trafficking, Language Matters.

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and not only in January, but all through the year, i-5 Freedom Network's commitment to our community, to Survivors, and to a future of equality is absolute.

Even so, there is always more for us to learn. To help us grow as an organization, strengthen our communities, and reach more people and make the most impact, we have to listen to Survivors.

This January, let’s take a more in depth look at language especially in our messaging and how it can make a difference when it comes to human trafficking and the impact it can have in our work and in our communities.

We know that our word choices are powerful, both helpful and hurtful. When it comes to human trafficking, whether our words help or hurt can make a difference in the outcome of a Survivor’s journey and, ultimately, in the prevention of trafficking in our communities.

How we tell the story of human trafficking is how we understand it, the shortfalls, and the solutions.

Empowering our Words: Five Factors to Consider

The Polaris Project interviewed Survivor lived-experts for a more informed look at how we tell the stories of human trafficking and Survivor healing.

1. Language can harm victims by preventing them from recognizing they’re in a trafficking situation.

“Words like ‘rescue’ turn people off from getting help. It’s too dramatic, like you’re hanging off a side of a cliff. But when you are in the situation, you don’t think you are being trafficked, you just think this is your life. So you don’t recognize it yourself.”

- Survivor of Human Trafficking

Human trafficking rarely begins with a kidnapping by a stranger. Instead, it often involves the subtle manipulation and coercion into trafficking by someone the victim knows and trusts. The result is that for much of the time they are in the trafficking situations, survivors do not see themselves as victims needing to be “rescued” or “saved” in any physical sense, so they assume the services and supports available to trafficking survivors have nothing to do with them.

2. Language can shape public perception of how human trafficking happens.

“Understanding what happened to you in trafficking is a really important part of healing, but it took me 10 years to realize: Hey. Wow. I was trafficked, because my situation was so different from what I had seen represented as trafficking.”

- Survivor of Human Trafficking

When we use phrases like “break chains” or imagery that reinforces harmful stereotypes, such as victims in physical constraints, we paint a picture of how human trafficking looks that is not what the majority of Survivors experience. Not only does this narrative prevent victims from self-identifying, it does a disservice to Survivors by reminding them of what it felt like to be seen as less-than-human. This type of language and imagery can also prejudice or influence the public on what trafficking looks like when it shows up in our communities.

3. Language can place blame on victims and survivors.

“One thing I find hard to take is language or pictures or stories about ‘innocence lost.’ I feel like that means some victims are worthwhile and some are ‘guilty.’”

- Survivor of Human Trafficking

Another way our language can influence the way people understand human trafficking is words that lay blame. We may unknowingly place blame on Survivors simply by how our sentences are framed. For example, saying “he sold sex” versus “he was sold for sex” may seem trivial, yet it can change the way we interpret the situation. Saying “she was trafficked by him” versus “he trafficked her” changes who is doing the action and is more Survivor-centered.

4. Language can perpetuate saviorism.

“You can’t rescue a person being trafficked. What you can do is create an opportunity for that person to leave.”

- Survivor of Human Trafficking

Trafficking Survivors don’t need to be saved. Instead, they need to be supported as they leave their trafficking situation and they need access to services that allow them to rebuild and heal. Terms like “rescue”, “save”, and “set free” can perpetuate a savior narrative that centers us or our work over Survivors.

5. Language can neglect to recognize the inherent strength of survivors.

“It’s long past time to replace “rescue” with resiliency. I mean do we really think that these programs… are the reason a person who has experienced such trauma is successful? No. Not at all. A person’s success in healing belongs to them and is thanks to them. Period.”

- Survivor of Human Trafficking

Language is always evolving, and although adapting to new ways of using it can be hard, listening to Survivors, creating Survivor-centered solutions, and honoring their experiences in the way we talk about human trafficking is vital to rebuild and heal, and ultimately change the systems that prevent human trafficking from happening in the first place.

We Heal in Community

When we talk about ending human trafficking in our communities, it's important to understand that vulnerabilities are exploited by traffickers, so healthy communities are built by ending vulnerabilities. One of the ways we can do that is empowering Survivors, and language is one of the the most important tools we have to do just that.