A Light in the Dark--Creating Hope for Victims of Trafficking with HIV/AIDS

Although some form or another of human trafficking occurs in practically every corner of the world, for the purposes of this paper, I will focus on the ramifications of HIV/AIDS infection in victims of trafficking in the United States. As the HIV/AIDS crisis continues to grow, victims of trafficking face increasingly difficult obstacles to gaining legal status and healthcare in this country. The first portion of this paper will describe the history of trafficking and prostitution and the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The second portion will discuss current legislative action regarding trafficking. The third portion will analyze many of the complex issues victims of trafficking face-principally the effect of HIV/AIDS infection on legal status. The final portion of the paper will consider creating and implementing new legislation to further protect and aid victims of trafficking and HIV/AIDS