Statement of Commissioner Gail Heriot on the U.S.Commission on Civil Rights Report 'Sex Trafficking: A Gender-Based Violation of Civil Rights'

Abstract

On September 30, 2014, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights published a report entitled "Sex Trafficking: A Gender-Based Violation of Civil Rights.” This Statement was part of that report. It argues that the Commission's report sensationalizes the issue it intends to grapple with in a counter-productive way. It also takes the position that the Commission’s report conflates very different problems (actual sexual slavery, teenage runaway prostitution and adult prostitution) that must be dealt with in very different ways.

Keywords: sex trafficking, human trafficking, prostitution, sexual slavery, slavery, sex discrimination, juvenile delinquency

JEL Classification: A00, A10, K10