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This timely and critical volume calls for a fundamental rethinking of how human trafficking is understood and addressed. Bringing together voices of survivors, activists, practitioners and researchers, this collection interrogates why countless interventions by governments, NGOs and international bodies continue to fail.
Merging lived experience with critical scholarship, it offers fresh perspectives on the deep-rooted structural issues that fuel human trafficking such as poverty, racism, patriarchy and neoliberalism. The collection poses transformative ideas to reshape global anti-trafficking responses toward real, lasting justice and change.
'A timely collation of divergent perspectives on trafficking and migration: a book that captures the chaos that ensues when widely differing worldviews collide – from critiques of liberal capitalism to concerns over the mission creep from criminal to social justice, interspersed with survivor testimonies and warnings about the risks of the AI-driven surveillance state. Uncomfortable reading at times, the book lays bare the fundamental disagreements shaping counter-trafficking discourse at a moment of profound global change and sets the stage for what happens next.' Jonathan Martens, International consultant and practitioner
'A critical intervention that carefully documents the failures of anti-trafficking while calling for a serious rethink of strategies to combat exploitation and violence in these times of international conflict and chaos.' Kamala Kempadoo, York University, Canada
'Insightful and transformative, this book addresses the true root causes of trafficking while critiquing systemic injustices, enhancing our understanding of human trafficking and the need for meaningful change.' - Jose Lewis Alfaro, Lived Experience Expert & Consultant
'Anti-trafficking is at a crossroads. The problems with current models are well known, but the pathways to something better remain murky and uncertain. With this important volume, Sarah Elliott, Megan Denise Smith and a cast of expert contributors take up the essential challenge of mapping out practical alternatives and more effective starting points.' Joel Quirk, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
'With contributions from academics, practitioners and people with lived experience, this book provides a timely and critical evaluation of the current state of anti-trafficking work.' Borislav Gerasimov, Anti-Trafficking Review
'A timely and deeply necessary contribution to the anti-trafficking field. Disrupting Anti-Trafficking Norms challenges long-standing assumptions and calls for more ethical, survivor-centred responses grounded in accountability and structural change. The volume powerfully highlights the importance of meaningful survivor engagement, not as tokenistic participation, but as intellectual and policy leadership. Essential reading for anyone committed to effective and rights-based anti-trafficking responses”.' Tatiana Kotlyarenko, Independent Human Rights and Anti-trafficking Expert
'This insightful book challenges conventional thinking in the anti-trafficking field and highlights the essential role of survivor leadership in driving meaningful and lasting change.' Abdus Salam, Independent Lived-Experience Consultant
Sarah Elliott is an international human rights lawyer and senior protection specialist with over a decade of experience working for the United Nations Refugee Agency.
Megan Denise Smith is an independent consultant and expert in gender-based violence with experience across UN agencies and NGOs.
Introduction: For whose benefit? Critical perspectives on addressing human trafficking - Sarah Elliott and Megan Denise Smith
Part I: Everything you should know (or un-know) about anti-trafficking
1. The life of ‘Candy’: surviving human trafficking
and anti-trafficking – Shandra Woworuntu
2. Everything, everywhere, all at once: a status check of contemporary human exploitation – Tuesday Reitano and Giulia D'Amico
3. A step in the right direction: could human
trafficking be in decline? – Claire Healy
4. The estrangement of the trafficking protocol from its parent treaty against transnational organized crime – Marika McAdam
5. Deadly digital borders: surveillance and artificial intelligence as a driver of human trafficking – Petra Molnar
Part II: Anti-trafficking at the crossroads: the future of human trafficking interventions
6. From the ashes of the desert: a survivor’s call for reckoning and reimagination – David Joseph
7. Embracing complexity in counter- trafficking policy and practice – Sarah Elliott and Megan Denise Smith
8. State as refugee trafficker? Reflections from the margins – Tesfalem Habte Yemane and Hyab Teklehaimanot Yohannes
9. From risk scores to rights: governing artificial intelligence in anti-trafficking through a human rights-based approach – Do Ngoc Thao
10. Justice against power: marshalling a credible response for slavery eradication – Aidan McQuade