Somebody'S Daughter: The Domestic Trafficking of Girls for the Commercial Sex Industry and the Power of Love

William and Mary Journal of Women and the Law, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2002

30 Pages Posted: 3 Oct 2008

Date Written: September 1, 2002

Abstract

In recent years, there has been much media attention and increased law reform efforts to address the phenomenon of the international trafficking of women and children for the purposes of sexual exploitation. In contrast to international trafficking, however, we know very little about, and have done almost nothing to address, domestic trafficking since the passage of the Mann Act in 1910. This article explores the domestic trafficking of girls for the commercial sex industry. It argues that the motives as to why girls end up in the sex industry is often misunderstood. The domestic trafficking of girls is symptomatic of a much larger problem in American life and politics. Much of the feminist-inspired literature on children and the sex industry has been enormously helpful in identifying the many ways in which girls, and increasingly boys, are exploited. But it also has had the tendency to ignore the fact that path leading from bad boyfriend to self-medication, to addiction, to turning tricks, and, in some cases, to death, is paved with hope that she will one day find love in a good man.

Keywords: girls, commerical sex, trafficking, teenage girls

Suggested Citation

Hanna, Cheryl, Somebody'S Daughter: The Domestic Trafficking of Girls for the Commercial Sex Industry and the Power of Love (September 1, 2002). William and Mary Journal of Women and the Law, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2002, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1276833

Cheryl Hanna (Contact Author)

Vermont Law School ( email )

68 North Windsor Street
P.O. Box 60
South Royalton, VT 05068
United States
802-831-1282 (Phone)

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
785
Abstract Views
3,126
Rank
58,659
PlumX Metrics