Myth 1: Women in prostitution and pornography are there because they want to be. They can leave at any time.
Reality: Some women have chosen that path, but the majority have not. They were coerced into it under false pretenses, and they are controlled and cannot leave. They are being trafficked.
Myth 2: Children in prostitution and pornography can leave at any time.
Reality: No child in prostitution or pornography is there because she chose it; someone made the decision for her and she is there by force.
Myth 3: She’s not being trafficked; she’s just ________.
Reality: “Trafficking victims may be mislabeled as victims of sexual abuse, rape, or domestic violence. Though these crimes are a part of a trafficking situation, they do not encompass the extent and complexity of the exploitation that has occurred in sex traffi cking.
"When mislabeled, victims do not receive the entire range of services or victim rights that are necessary for restoration. Further, perpetrators are not held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.” (Source: Shared Hope International, The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: America’s Prostituted Children)
Myth 4: Pornography has nothing to do with trafficking. Everyone should be free to look at what they want.
Reality: This has nothing to do with “freedom.” One hundred percent of children who are in pornographic photos or films are trafficked; they were not free to choose to be in it. If you buy, sell, or look at child pornography, you are participating in child trafficking. You are committing a crime. This has nothing to do with freedom.
Myths 5-14: See the Polaris Project's Top 10 myths and misconceptions about human trafficking in the U.S.
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