Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson testifies before state senators during a confirmation hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019, in Juneau. (Becky Bohrer | Associated Press File)

Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson testifies before state senators during a confirmation hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019, in Juneau. (Becky Bohrer | Associated Press File)

Opinion: Trafficking in Alaska must end

One of my priorities is to combat this scourge and eliminate it from our communities.

  • Attorney General Kevin Clarkson
  • Saturday, January 25, 2020 10:13pm
  • Opinion

It might come as a surprise to some, but in the midst of Alaska’s beautiful outdoor surroundings, we have a human trafficking problem. Human trafficking takes two forms — labor trafficking and sex trafficking. As Alaska’s attorney general, one of my priorities is to combat this scourge and eliminate it from our communities.

Labor trafficking involves using force, fraud, or coercion to induce another individual to work or provide service. Victims can be found in both legitimate and illegitimate labor industries, including sweatshops, massage parlors, agriculture, restaurants, hotels, and domestic service. Sex trafficking involves inducing or causing an adult to engage in a commercial sex act by force, fraud or coercion; or inducing or causing a minor to engage in a commercial sex act (no force required). Commercial sex acts include prostitution, pornography, or any sexual performance done in exchange for value, such as money, drugs, shelter, food, or clothes.

A recent tour that I took of Anchorage with a group called Priceless Alaska was genuinely eye opening. Priceless is a nonprofit organization dedicated to working with law enforcement to help women escape from trafficking by providing them the assistance and resources they need for their rescue. The amount of trafficking activity taking place in Alaska and Anchorage alone is staggering.

Trafficking is different from smuggling. Trafficking is the illegal exploitation of a person — trafficking crimes do not require any movement across state lines. Victims can be recruited and trafficked in their own villages and hometowns —and sadly, even in their own homes. Traffickers use violence, manipulation, or false promises of well-paying jobs or romantic relationships to lure victims.

Traffickers prey on our most vulnerable citizens. Traffickers disproportionately target at-risk populations including individuals who have experienced or been exposed to other forms of violence — child abuse and maltreatment, interpersonal violence and sexual assault, community and gang violence — and individuals disconnected from stable support networks — runaway and homeless youth, and unaccompanied minors. Reports indicate that a large number of child sex trafficking survivors in the United States were at one time in the foster care system.

Children are particularly vulnerable. In 2018, over half of the criminal human trafficking cases active in the U.S. were cases involving children. Advocates report a growing trend of traffickers using online social media platforms to recruit and advertise targets of human trafficking. Often, traffickers use social media, the internet, and gaming platforms to make initial contact with victims.

And these statistics reveal only the tip of the iceberg. Human trafficking is notoriously underreported. The trauma caused by traffickers can be so great that many may not even identify themselves as victims or ask for help, even in highly public settings. Recognizing potential red flags and knowing the indicators of human trafficking is a key step in identifying more victims and helping them find assistance.

Perpetrators recruit victims online, at schools, homeless and abuse shelters, bus stops and many other places. One of the most commonly reported venues for sex trafficking is hotels and motels. We know that traffickers use hotel and motel rooms when setting up so-called “dates” between victims of sex trafficking and those individuals purchasing sex. We also know labor trafficking is present in both the hotel industry’s work force and in the supply chain of its products.

As a state, Alaska is on the precipice. Change is needed. We need to change the attitudes of many in our communities, both rural and urban, regarding domestic violence, sexual abuse and sexual assault. Allowing sex trafficking to flourish in Alaska diminishes our ability as a state to change our culture in this important way.

I commend the many organizations in our communities, like Priceless and Downtown Hope Center, who are making a difference for abused women and trafficking victims. These fine organizations need your help and assistance, both financial and otherwise.

The Department of Law is committed to preventing these heinous crimes, prosecuting traffickers, protecting victims, and educating Alaskans about this important issue. When it comes to trafficking, the message should be clear: Alaska is not open for business.

To report suspected human trafficking, call the Alaska State Troopers at 907-375-6409 or the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or text “help” to BeFree (233733). You can reach the hotline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in more than 200 languages. All calls are confidential and answered live by highly trained anti-trafficking hotline advocates.

For general information about human trafficking in Alaska, contact the Department of Law at 907-269-5100.


• Attorney General Kevin Clarkson


More in Opinion

Alex Koplin. (courtesy photo)
Opinion: Public schools do much more than just teach the three Rs

Isn’t it worth spending the money to provide a quality education for each student that enters our schools?

Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks to reporters at the Alaska State Capitol on Thursday, April 17, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Letter to the Editor: Law enforcement officers helped ensure smooth, secure energy conference

Their visible commitment to public safety allowed attendees to focus fully on collaboration, learning, and the important conversations shaping our path forward.

Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire file photo
The present-day KTOO public broadcasting building, built in 1959 for the U.S. Army’s Alaska Communications System Signal Corps, is located on filled tidelands near Juneau’s subport. Today vehicles on Egan Drive pass by the concrete structure with satellite dishes on the roof that receive signals from NPR, PBS and other sources.
My Turn: Stand for the community radio, not culture war optics

Alaskans are different and we pride ourselves on that. If my vehicle… Continue reading

U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) delivers his annual speech to the Alaska Legislature on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: Sullivan, Trump and the rule of lawlessness

In September 2023, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan established his own Alaska Federal… Continue reading

UAA Provost Denise Runge photographed outside the Administration and Humanities Building at the University of Alaskas Anchorage. (courtesy photo)
Opinion: UAA’s College of Health — Empowering Alaska’s future, one nurse at a time

At the University of Alaska Anchorage, we understand the health of our… Continue reading

U.S. Rep. Nick Begich III, R-Alaska, address a joint session of the Alaska Legislature on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: A noncongressman for Alaska?

It’s right to ask whether Nick Begich is a noncongressman for Alaska.… Continue reading

Boats return to the Homer Harbor at the end of the fishing period for the 30th annual Winter King Salmon Tournament on Saturday, March 23, 2024 in Homer, Alaska. (Delcenia Cosman/Homer News)
Opinion: Funding sustainable fisheries

Spring is always a busy season for Alaska’s fishermen and fishing communities.… Continue reading

Gov. Mike Dunleavy holds a press conference on Monday, May 19, 2025, to discuss his decision to veto an education bill. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: On fiscal policy, Dunleavy is a governor in name only

His fiscal credibility is so close to zero that lawmakers have no reason to take him seriously.

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski, speaks in support overriding Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of House Bill 69 at the Alaska Capitol in Juneau, Alaska, on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)
Capitol Corner: Finishing a session that will make a lasting impact

Sen. Jesse Bjorkman reports back from Juneau.

Courtesy/Chris Arend
Opinion: Protect Alaska renewable energy projects

The recently passed House budget reconciliation bill puts important projects and jobs at risk.

Rep. Justin Ruffridge, R-Soldotna, speaks in support of debating an omnibus education bill in the Alaska House Chambers on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024 in Juneau, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Capitol Corner: Choosing our priorities wisely

Rep. Justin Ruffridge reports back from Juneau.