MetaFilter stops potential human trafficking
One of the most heinous travel-related crimes is the running scam, usually perpetrated upon Russian or Asian young women, of offering them a visa and a waiting job in a tempting country for a small fee (say, $3000 USD in whatever the local currency is)…and then, when they arrive, impressing them into prostitution by holding fear of Immigration authorities over their heads.
Now imagine if you were watching the possibility of this happening, in real-time, on an online message board called MetaFilter. A question-based forum on the board responded immediately to a user called “fake”, who asked for assistance when two young Russian women were nearly drawn into a situation that would have ended up with them meeting the shady “owner” of a nightclub (aka “hostessing” club aka probably prostitution ring run by Russian mafia) in New York City at midnight. Sounds potentially hazardous? Lots of people thought so. The online community pulled together numerous resources to help the girls, and one MetaFilter member picked them up in New York, giving them a place to stay and hugs.
Living in a small apartment and unemployed, the woman now hosting the two Russian girls was struggling to take care of them, and mentioned it offhandedly in another MetaFilter post…and then received upwards of $3500 in donations to a private Paypal account.
It’s important to remember that not all travel ends well…that you should trust you instincts when faced with a shady situation (which these girls didn’t; they insisted on making the NYC meeting, despite being told on numerous occasions that they ran a potentially life-threatening risk)…and that it’s not only online TRAVEL communities that help support you when you need a hand. The world is full of communities that want to help, so long as you ask for it when the problem arises.
(PS Don’t take advantage of this, obviously — don’t go around wishing on a star in every online community for someone to give you a place to stay, a warm meal, $3500, and a pony. Make friends. If you need help, ask for it. But there are loads of places to help you find a bed, a warm shower, and a decent meal, without relying on the natural altruism of strangers)
May 25th, 2010 at 1:35 am
I’m not clear on how this topic is related to travel. It seems as if this non-travel topic was sort of twisted to make it look like one.
August 30th, 2010 at 5:18 am
Frank, it’s more of a warning to be careful about the motives of people who are offering you deals that sound “too good to be true”: visas, accommodations, ready-made jobs, etc. Human trafficking is an all-too-real issue, and some hundreds of thousands of young women are transported all around the world, sometimes starting of their own volition. It’s also good to know that if you have somehow landed yourself in a situation that is negative (as these young ladies did), there are communities that can band together to help you extricate yourself. Not all travel is benign, and not all travel that is malignant has to finish that way.