413047-Underground-Commercial-Sex-Economy

Chapter 1
Introduction
Purpose of the Study
The global profit generated through human trafficking, which includes both sex and labor trafficking, has
been estimated to be approximately $32 billion a year (Belser 2005). Of that $32 billion, approximately
$28 billion can be attributed to forced commercial sexual exploitation (Belser 2005). Belser’s study is the
only published attempt to date to empirically measure the profits generated through human trafficking,
and, as the author points out, is based on rough estimates and assumptions. In a more systematic attempt
to measure the global commercial sex economy, Kara (2009) estimates that the global commercial sexual
exploitation of victims generated $51.3 billion in revenues in 2007. However, this estimate is again based
on a number of estimates and assumptions. The goal of the current study is to derive a more rigorous
estimate of the underground commercial sex economy (UCSE) in eight major US cities, as well as provide
an understanding of the structure of this underground economy. To date, no reliable data exists to provide
national or state policymakers with a verifiable and detailed understanding of underground commercial
sex trade networks, or the ways in which these networks interact with one another on the local, state, or
interstate level. In addition, there is no information regarding the relationship between the UCSE and the
local commercial sex trade or commercial sex activity conducted over the Internet. This study aims to
close the gap in our understanding about the nature and extent of these activities.
In 2010, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) funded the Urban Institute to measure the size and
structure of the underground commercial sex economy in the United States. In order to meet our goal, we
collected data that would allow our research team to estimate the size of the underground commercial sex
economy in eight major cities in the United States and the ties across different types of activities within
the UCSE. We relied on a multi-method approach using both qualitative and quantitative data to estimate
the size of UCSE including:
Collecting official data 4 on crime related to the underground weapons and drugs economies;
Conducting semi-structured interviews with convicted traffickers, pimps, child pornographers,
and sex workers at the federal, state, and local levels; and
Conducting semi-structured interviews with local and federal police investigators and prosecutors
to inform our analysis of the interrelationship across different types of underground commercial
sex activity.
Our research methods and data collection allowed us to generate an aggregate estimate of the
underground economy and its sub-economies in eight major US cities, as informed by the insights and
experience of local and federal law enforcement and convicted offenders. The interviews explored the
known nature and extent of the UCSE in local areas as understood by law enforcement, as well as
documented its potential reach and resilience as understood by convicted offenders.
This report documents the findings from the study. The remainder of this chapter includes background on
estimating the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States; however, almost all subsequent
chapters, with the exception of the methodology chapter (chapter 2), will include their own literature
review. Chapter 2 describes the study’s research questions and methodology, including how we selected
the eight sites, developed the estimation methodology, and identified and ultimately interviewed study
participants. Chapters 3 through 9 5 include the findings of the study presented by topic, including the size
4 See chapter 2 for a full list of official data sources used for this study.
5 Chapters 4–6 all contain information documented in our interviews with traffickers and pimps, and each chapter builds off what
was discussed in the previous chapter. Thus, they should be read in consecutive order to best understand our findings.
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