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Global Statistics
- Approximately 24.9 million people worldwide are victims of human trafficking at any given time, including 4.8 million people trapped in forced sexual exploitation (International Labour Organization, 2020).
- Approximately 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQI+, and they are significantly more likely to be victims of trafficking than their non-LGBTQI+ peers (The Trevor Project, 2021).
- Studies suggest that LGBTQI+ individuals, particularly transgender women, are disproportionately targeted for sex trafficking (Human Rights Campaign, 2020).
- In 2022, the National Human Trafficking Hotline received over 10,000 reports of suspected trafficking in the U.S., with the majority of cases involving sex trafficking (National Human Trafficking Hotline, 2022).
- Children make up 25% of trafficking victims globally. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) reports that 1 in 6 endangered runaways in 2022 were likely victims of sex trafficking (NCMEC, 2022).
- Men make up about 21% of human trafficking victims globally, with the majority trafficked for labor exploitation (ILO, 2020).
- Male victims are often exploited in industries such as agriculture, construction, and mining. They may work in harsh conditions for little to no pay and under constant threat of violence (Polaris Project, 2022).
- While less common than for females, male sex trafficking does occur. LGBTQI+ boys and men are particularly vulnerable, as are boys who have experienced homelessness or family rejection (NCMEC, 2022).
State/Local Statistics
- 90% of high schools researched across San Diego County reported cases of sex trafficking. (The San Diego Trafficking Prevention Collection, 2023)
- California had 1,334 cases of human trafficking, of which 1,108 were female, 1,023 were sex related, and 246 were minors. This means approx. 18% of reported case involved minors (The National Human Trafficking Hotline, 2021).
- A local groundbreaking study found the average age of entry into San Diego's underground commercial sex economy is 16 years old (San Diego County Office of Education, 2023).
