(Ira Gelb, Creative Commons)

Human trafficking, the term for modern-day slavery, is defined as the illegal trade and transport of human beings through forceful or coercive means, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation in this context usually means sexual slavery (as in forced prostitution), or forced labor.

According to Polaris Project, an organization at the forefront of the fight against slavery, human trafficking is the third largest crime industry in the world, and it is also the fastest growing. About 50 percent of the victims of trafficking are under 18 years old.

The United Nations adopted the “Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children” in 2000. The protocol, part of the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime, went into effect in 2003.

To mirror this international pledge of protection on a national scale, the United States passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in 2000. This act “established the State Department Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, authorized the annual Trafficking in Persons report, and established a global minimum standard for confronting trafficking and slavery,” according to the International Justice Mission. The act “was also designed to combat trafficking in the U.S. by establishing it as a federal crime, and providing assistance programs for survivors, including visa protection for victims trafficked across international borders.” The bill is now up for renewal.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) would extend the original law for three more years, with added provisions that aim to “strengthen global and domestic anti-trafficking programs and services.”

This legislation is a crucial tool for the ongoing battle against slavery in the modern world. Renewing the act is essential to preserving the human rights of the people of the world. If the act is not passed, funding for services for trafficking victims, including legal protection of survivors in the United States, will no longer be provided.

To make sure your members of Congress know that you care about preventing human trafficking, protecting victims of trafficking, and punishing the perpetrators, make your voice heard. You can contact your members of Congress online here.

You can also participate in a national call-in day, September 8, 2011. Information can be found here.

Human trafficking is a crime against humanity. We all have a moral obligation to speak out. If we do not, millions more men, women, and children around the world will be enslaved and exploited. Let’s adopt the vision of the Polaris Project – a vision “For a world without slavery.”

Reach Staff Columnist Cara Palmer here or follow her on Twitter.