During President Donald Trump's second term as president, the administration has made immigration reform and enforcement the clear priority. The executive order issued on January 20, 2025, indicated that many executive agencies would be diverting resources and manpower to accomplish this goal. The subsequent reshuffling of resources away from fighting against human trafficking, slavery, and child sexual exploitation has left advocates concerned.
A Guardian investigation into the actions of the Trump administration has shown massive cuts in funding and departments that previously stood together in making the U.S. the world leader in battling these heinous crimes. While spokespersons for the federal government insist their focus on immigration has proven an incredibly effective policy to combat traffickers, the decision of the administration not to release a required annual trafficking report on June 30, 2025, has been construed by some as a major red flag.
Compounding concerns about the Trump administration's commitment to fight child sexual exploitation is President Trump's apparent reneging on his promise to release the Epstein Files, which contain names and other information associated with accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. With federal agents who previously combated trafficking and slavery either reassigned to immigration enforcement or fired, advocates are fearful that the war against these crimes may become difficult or even impossible to win.
A Battle Worth Fighting
Slavery was abolished in the U.S. in 1865. However, its modern-day equivalent, human trafficking and child sexual exploitation, remains a problem. The victims are often the poor and vulnerable in other countries who are promised a better life in America. They arrive to find themselves at the mercy of the traffickers, who then force them into slavery and prostitution.
The United States has long been a worldwide leader in the fight against human trafficking and its associated crimes. Starting with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000, coverage was expanded with 2014's Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act and 2015's Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. The U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking was also created.
In 2020, during his first term, President Trump unveiled his administration's plan to fight human trafficking. Centered on prevention, protection, and prosecution, it was welcomed by many in the fight against trafficking. The plan's goals and intentions made no mention of focusing on immigration as the way to best fight human trafficking. That would change five years later.
Like Trying To Fire a Bow Without Arrows
Many executive agencies play a hand in the ongoing battle against human trafficking. Front and center is the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP). In addition to working abroad to combat human trafficking, TIP also coordinates the efforts of the other agencies on the domestic front. Under the TVPA, TIP is required to issue an annual report that serves as one of the most important documents involved with fighting human trafficking.
The report contains reports on the efforts of 185 countries to stop human trafficking. Tied to forms of U.S. foreign aid, it examined each country and made recommendations for improvement to those not meeting required standards. If it sounds like an excellent tool for leverage to force other nations to provide more than lip service, well, that's because it is. Or, as the case may be, was.
Officials confirmed that the report had been finished and approved by higher-ups. A press conference led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio for its release was scheduled for June 30, but it was abruptly canceled without explanation. As of September 17, the report has yet to be released despite being required by the TVPA. It's never been released later than June before.
Further reductions of the TIP staff in July brought the total removed from the office to 71% since the Trump administration took over. Much of the funding earmarked for dispersal by the TIP has been diverted or frozen without explanation. This has left non-profit human trafficking victim foundations that depend on grants to stay operational with no money and no timetable on when it might arrive, if it ever does.
The Trump administration continues to maintain that its reallocation of funds and services into immigration also serves as an excellent method of fighting human trafficking. It cites a rise in immigration during 2023 and 2024 as justification for its methods. Data shows that almost all the uptick was due to noncitizens with legal paths to citizenship being included, such as protective status.
With the Trump administration shrinking the role the U.S. plays in the war against child sexual exploitation, slavery, and human trafficking, things may get even worse for the most vulnerable.
Related Resources
- SCOTUS Gives (Another) Thumbs Up on Trump's Firing Federal Employees Charged With Protecting U.S. Consumers (FindLaw's Federal Courts)
- Understanding the Supreme Court's Ruling on USAID (FindLaw's Federal Courts)
- Crimes Against Children (FindLaw's Criminal Charges)
