In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution ended the institution of slavery (McGough). Even though slavery has been abolished, modern slavery still exists and has evolved under a different guise and is known as “human trafficking” in today's society. Every year, thousands of people are trafficked across borders or internally, and exploited for cheap labor or sexual services. Under U.S. federal law, human trafficking involves children involved in the sex trade, adults coerced or tricked into the sex trade, and anyone forced into various forms of labor or services (Polaris Project) . Human trafficking is a violation of human rights; it is a crime against the dignity and integrity of an individual. This is the trade in human beings as commodities. This is “modern-day slavery,” with more slaves at work today than at any time in history. Human trafficking is the third most profitable and fastest growing criminal activity in the world, after arms, ammunition and drugs. Around 2.5 million people are trafficked every year. They are recruited through some form of coercion or deception and exploited, primarily for forced labor or sexual exploitation. The market value of human trafficking is approximately $32 billion per year. (Polaris Project.) “This is a global problem, no country is spared. » (Slavery today). Around three out of every 1,000 people worldwide are trafficked at any given time. Women and children are the main targets, but men are also victims of trafficking. Forced labor claims 20.9 million victims, 90% of whom are exploited in the private economy (Slavery Today). Victims of human trafficking are subjected to force, fraud or coercion for the purposes of sex work,...... middle of paper ...laws and increased funding at the federal level; they have received more than $50 million in federal funding for victim assistance, investigations and prosecutions, and critical prevention efforts. Their advocacy efforts were critical in supporting the passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection and Reauthorization Acts of 2008 and 2013. The Polaris Project also launched “Vision 2020” in 2012, to help scale its impact globally by mapping, connecting and supporting human activities. global anti-trafficking hotlines (Polaris Project). This year alone, thirty-nine state legislatures have passed anti-trafficking laws, and for the first time, a majority of states have significant laws to combat trafficking. Over the past hundred years, the end of human trafficking has become closer and more achievable than years before. (Polaris Project).