By using our site, you agree to our collection of information through the use of cookies. To learn more, view our Privacy Policy. To browse Academia. Oxford: Mansfield College. Regarding sexual exploitation, the problem clearly resides in the fact that fighting sex trafficking is often conflated with fighting prostitution.
In many countries the boundary between both activities is unclear. As a consequence, many sex workers — and especially immigrant prostitutes — face violent law enforcement operations, raids and arrests. Currently mass media not only fails to help detecting victims but also contribute to the marginalisation of sex workers.
Due to the growing visibility of human trafficking in the media, it is important to critically analyse the current discourses on the issue and to highlight certain social representations and stereotypes. Human trafficking in general and the trafficking of women in particular have been attracting increasing interest from states, international bodies, non-governmental organisations, the media and academia.
The greater visibility conferred on this phenomenon has translated, on a national and international level, into policies designed to combat and prevent it, whose efficiency is debateable. This is the result not only of a lack of understanding of the specific features of the trafficking of women, but also of the fact that other objectives underlying the construction of these policies hardly meet the subjective needs and expectations of trafficked women.
Providing an overview of human trafficking and modern slavery, by laying some foundations in terms of definitions and then looking at current policies and legislation. The discussion is developed by taking a critical look at some campaigns to raise awareness about these issues, and try to identify some implications for how the policies are put into practice. This article examines the migratory processes and work experiences of Brazilian female sex workers active in Spain.
