When push comes to shove: sites of vulnerability, personal transformation, and trafficked women's migration decisions

Family Sex Trafficking Among the Bedia Caste of India: Defying the Dominant Human Trafficking Discourse

Largely characterized as an urban issue, empirical studies of minor sex trafficking in rural communities-including India, a global hotspot for child sex trafficking-are exceptionally uncommon. Yet, the commercial sexual exploitation of children thrives in many rural Indian villages, fueled by caste discrimination, family tradition, and poverty. In response, this study aimed to investigate minor sex trafficking among a particular culturally unique and geographically isolated population, in relation to the dominant human trafficking literature. In-depth interviews were conducted with 31 female members of the Bedia caste-a unique population whose primary form of income is derived from participation in the rural sex trade. Framed by the social theory of intersectionality, we sought to (1) identify vulnerabilities for commercial sex industry entry among Bedia youth and (2) examine the cultural context of the commercial sex industry among the Bedia, with particular attention to the dominant victim/perpetrator paradigms. Implications for continued research, practice, and policy are included.

The mothering experiences of sex-trafficked women: between here and there

This qualitative study focuses on the mothering experiences of women from the former Soviet Union (FSU) who were sex-trafficked to Israel. In-depth interviews were conducted with 8 women who gave birth either in the FSU or in Israel. The women's stories reflect 3 experiential spheres, those of "the good mother," "the sacrificing mother," and "the mother who wants for herself." These mothering spheres were found to exist against the backdrop of a life between 2 countries, where the women's mothering is split between "here" and "there." Furthermore, it was found that the women's sex-trafficking experience continually threatened to invade the 3 mothering spheres and destabilize the balance among them. The splits and conflicts among the mothering spheres are examined from a gendered perspective with emphasis on mother-daughter relationships and on the social constructions of mothering and prostitution.