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The media usually portrays homeless and alone young women and some young men, relying on their sexuality to survive, and more often, coerced by a pimp, but generally compliant.

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Victims are stereotypically kidnapped against their will, although sometimes the circumstances around this, such as being a runaway, put them in a situation where they were more vulnerable to being kidnapped.

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Sex trafficking victims are often portrayed as young adolescent female who are non-English speaking.

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The media often portrays perpetrators and victims of sex trafficking as being from another country and often involved in additional criminal activity, such as drug manufacturing and trafficking, alongside of the sex trafficking.

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Drug addiction and a disconnection from family or adult support are portrayed as risk factors.  These factors quickly put teens into a vulnerable position where they feel their choices are limited and they make choices out of desperation or as a matter of survival.

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The media portrays sex trafficking as young females often vulnerable due to homelessness or drug addiction.  The perpetrators are often portrayed as a non-white males who are also engaged in additional criminal activity.

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I think drug use and addiction is often stressed as a risk factor. If people are using the perception is they become dependent and desperate for their drugs and are making "risky choices" that land them in a trafficking situation.

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Yes, definitely. I think about shows like Law and Order SVU that frequently show "runaway" girls as being involved in trafficking.
Additionally, I have heard a lot of people in my town who suspect that trafficking happens when women are kidnapped. There are always warnings going around about suspicious men hanging around outside stores or following women, and there's a suspicion they're going to "jump" you and sell you into a trafficking ring. I think this sensationalized fear is a real problem- it prevents people from recognizing how mundane looking and insidious trafficking can really be.

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Frequently. I think in the general perception of sex trafficking we think of international sex trafficking rings. Mail order brides, and victims from so called "sex tourism" countries are often viewed as the primary victims.

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Sex trafficking victims are almost always portrayed as young women. I don't think I've ever seen images of men being trafficked. Also, I think they are often portrayed as being non white.

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I think the media often portrays sex trafficking victims as young women from foreign countries. I think about stereotypes of "mail order brides" or young women from southeast Asian countries.

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I think a little of both are portrayed. Some thought is that the girls are running away from home for a better life. When kidnapping is portrayed it's typically this big scene where the child is taken from their bedroom in the middle of the night.

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Sometimes, yes.

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Typically portrayed are girls who are preteens/teens and most often aren't white.

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Images that the media portrays are bad girls who run away from home for a more lavish life with a male.

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Most people think people are being trafficked from overseas but most people are from the USA.

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"Why can't kids just come out and say they are being trafficked?" The common question. We need to stress that kids are often being "blackmailed" with something to stay.

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I feel like both are looked at depending on the area you live in. Big city vs small city.

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Images I see in the media are girls/women who are locked into a room with mattresses on the floor and have limited light access. Otherwise all locked in a tight location with no hygiene access.

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Only girls are victim of sex trafficking.

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Sex trafficking victims have a choice to leave and just refusing to do so.

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The media often times have images of girls locked up with chains and ropes without the ability to speak. These images send a mixed message to our community about what sex trafficking means.

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People who operate human trafficking are from other countries.

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Students who runaway are doing sex work to survive.

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Only girls can be victims of sex trafficking.