January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. In recognition of this annual event, the White House issued a Proclamation in the final days of 2024, calling human trafficking a “shameful, abhorrent abuse” that denies the most vulnerable members of society “their human rights, freedom, and dignity.” The Proclamation encourages Americans to learn the signs of human trafficking and to share the National Human Trafficking Hotline so that, together, we can “create a world where every person is treated with dignity and respect, lives free from fear, and can lead a life full of freedom and liberty.”
Sharing in that goal is the author of a recently updated book called Freedom for All: An Attorney’s Guide to Fighting Human Trafficking. Kelly Hyland, who co-authored the first edition of this title in 2016 with Kavitha Sreeharsha, partnered with the American Bar Association Book Publishing division to release a second edition in 2023. With this latest iteration, Hyland and the ABA seek to “encourage more attorneys to engage in anti-trafficking work.”
Chapter 1 begins by exploring What is Human Trafficking? and then defines the scale of the problem (27.6 million people worldwide). Hyland breaks the definition into five categories: Forced Labor, Domestic Servitude, Sex Trafficking, Debt Bondage, and Child Soldiering, all of which include some scheme, plan, or pattern that creates a climate of fear to convince captives of the serious consequences they will face for attempting to leave. It goes on to discuss the industries in which human trafficking is found including agriculture, manufacturing, commercial sex, elder care, hospitality, nail salons, restaurants, and janitorial services. Hyland further comments on the root causes and misconceptions about human trafficking as well as the often devastating toll it takes on those who are trafficked.
Chapters 2 through 7 offer guidance, strategies, and calls to action for practitioners in various areas of the law. Hyland begins with a discussion of the criminal justice response, followed by a brief chapter on the role of corporate law in mitigating risk for potential victims. Labor and employment law approaches to human trafficking are explored next in Chapter 4. Immigration protections and international law round out the areas of practice, and the book concludes with a chapter on Public Interest Advocates.
This book is available only through the Law Library’s LexisNexis Digital Library. For information about accessing this title, requesting an account, or browsing the collection, please see the Law Library’s eBook Collection webpage at https://www.harriscountylawlibrary.org/digital-collection.
Additional Resources
Human Trafficking on Ex Libris Juris - Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library blog
Report Human Trafficking - City of Houston
Texas Human Trafficking Resource Center - Texas Health and Human Services