What is the difference between human trafficking and human smuggling?
Human trafficking is often confused with the smuggling of illegal migrants across the border. However, smuggling where a fee is paid to a smuggler (i.e. “coyote” or “pollero”) involves the consent of the migrants who are knowingly and willingly entering the country in search of work. While trafficking victims in the United States may have consented to be smuggled illegally in the country, their consent has been rendered meaningless by the coercive, deceptive or abusive actions of the traffickers. Even if they contractually ‘consented’ to these conditions, their consent would be legally void, as under U.S. law one cannot consent to such abuses. Smuggling ends with the arrival of the migrants at their destination, while human trafficking continues with the exploitation of victims at their destination. In smuggling, migrants are violating the law against the state. In trafficking, traffickers are violating the law against the migrants, who are the victims. Finally, smuggling requires the
