Borislav Gerasimov | Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" (original) (raw)
Papers by Borislav Gerasimov
Anti trafficking review, Apr 19, 2022
, conducted this interview with him to better understand his motivations and experiences during t... more , conducted this interview with him to better understand his motivations and experiences during this period of his life as well as his views on countertrafficking. 2 Borislav Gerasimov: Can you tell us about your experience with trafficking? Armand King: My experience started around 1997-98, when I was 16 years old going on 17. I'm from San Diego, California, from an impoverished and marginalised community of primarily Black and brown individuals. When I started, this was the cool thing to do in my peer group. Most of the people I knew, both girls and guys, were merged into this lifestyle together. Before that, there was heavy gang involvement, Bloods and Crips, and before that there was a government-induced Black Plague, we call it the crack epidemic, where drugs were forced on our communities by government officials, by the CIA… The system had pushed drugs which was the beginning of how we got into trafficking. We 1 Technically, Armand was a prostitution facilitator, or a 'pimp'. However, this activity is considered as 'sex trafficking' under the United States Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 and Armand identifies as having been involved in 'domestic urban sex trafficking'. 2 The interview was conducted on 16 July 2021 (15 July in Armand's time zone) over Zoom. It was recorded, transcribed, and edited for brevity and clarity by the Editors. The edited transcript was sent to Mr King for approval before publication. The recording was deleted after this process. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). Under the CC-BY license, the public is free to share, adapt, and make commercial use of the work. Users must always give proper attribution to the authors and the Anti-Trafficking Review.
Anti-Trafficking Review
This article introduces a Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review themed ‘Traffickers’. It descr... more This article introduces a Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review themed ‘Traffickers’. It describes how most of the knowledge about human trafficking is generated from the accounts of victims of trafficking and people working with them, while knowledge of perpetrators of human trafficking remains limited. It further summarises the articles contained in this special issue. These articles describe one or more aspects of traffickers’ characteristics, motivations, modus operandi, relationships with victims, and treatment in the criminal justice system. Overall, the issue shows that in many cases, traffickers’ profiles are similar to those of their victims. It suggests that measures to reduce racial, ethnic and other discrimination and improve socioeconomic and educational opportunities for all would help reduce people’s vulnerability to becoming victims of trafficking as well as perpetrators.
Abordar la trata en la industria del sexo: es hora de reconocer la contribución de las personas trabajadoras sexuales
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
The focus of this issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review—public perceptions and responses to human ... more The focus of this issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review—public perceptions and responses to human trafficking—reflects the growing unease and disagreements among anti-trafficking practitioners and scholars about the current state of public awareness of human trafficking: how and by whom such awareness is produced and manipulated, whom it is targeting, and whether it leads, or can lead, to any meaningful anti-trafficking action. A central assumption in the anti-trafficking field is that the general public still lacks sufficient knowledge about human trafficking, and that creating more knowledge and awareness will lead to its reduction. However, there neither exists a common understanding of who should know what in order to achieve this goal, nor is there sufficient information available about the awareness of the general public or, especially, the impact of this awareness.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-base... more Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-based literature on sex workers’ lives, work, and organising efforts, and on the harmful effects of anti-trafficking discourses, laws, and policies on diverse sex worker communities. Importantly, a significant portion of this work has been produced by sex workers and sex worker organisations.[1] When we decided to devote this Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review to the theme of sex work, we acknowledged this reality. However, we also thought that, given that the discourses, laws, and policies that directly impact sex workers globally are continually changing, the production of new evidence-based research and critical perspectives is constantly needed.
1 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution ... more 1 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). Under the CC-BY license, the public is free to share, adapt, and make commercial use of the work. Users must always give proper attribution to the authors and the Anti-Trafficking Review. Editorial: Trafficking in Minors: Confronting complex realities, structural inequalities, and agency
Anti-Trafficking Review
Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examina... more Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examination of the role of technology as a contributing force to human trafficking and exploitation. Attention has focused on a range of issues from adult services websites and the use of social media to recruit victims and facilitate trafficking to the utilisation of data analytics software to understand trafficking and identify ‘hotspots of risk’. This article introduces the Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review devoted to the role of technology in (anti-)trafficking. It outlines the main assumptions and critiques some of the proposed ‘solutions’ in the field and presents briefly the articles included in the issue. It concludes that the factors that enable and sustain human trafficking are varied and complex and require political will – not tech solutionist fixes.
Anti-Trafficking Review
Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examina... more Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examination of the role of technology as a contributing force to human trafficking and exploitation. Attention has focused on a range of issues from adult services websites and the use of social media to recruit victims and facilitate trafficking to the utilisation of data analytics software to understand trafficking and identify ‘hotspots of risk’. This article introduces the Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review devoted to the role of technology in (anti-)trafficking. It outlines the main assumptions and critiques some of the proposed ‘solutions’ in the field and presents briefly the articles included in the issue. It concludes that the factors that enable and sustain human trafficking are varied and complex and require political will – not tech solutionist fixes.
Forced Migration Review, 2020
Efforts to combat trafficking in the sex industry must respect sex workers’ decisions and agency,... more Efforts to combat trafficking in the sex industry must respect sex workers’ decisions and agency, and recognise them and their organisations as legitimate stakeholders in the anti-trafficking movement.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
'Scientia potentia est', or 'knowledge is power', a quote commonly attributed to sixteenth-centur... more 'Scientia potentia est', or 'knowledge is power', a quote commonly attributed to sixteenth-century English philosopher and statesman Francis Bacon, has become a popular axiom for the transformative power of learning and knowledge. In his address to the 1997 World Bank Conference 'Global Knowledge 97', Kofi Annan, the then Secretary-General of the United Nations, proclaimed that knowledge was, indeed, power, and that information was liberating. 1 However, a more critical stance on what constitutes knowledge (including the questions of what we know and how we know it) by some of the key philosophers of the twentieth century, including Althusser, Foucault and Bourdieu, and, recently, scholars focussing on the study of ignorance, have highlighted the complexities of power relations that underpin both the spatialities and temporalities of knowledge production, distribution and manipulation. One of the key questions for agnotology-a study of manufactured and productive ignorance-is not just 'how we know' but 'why don't we know what we don't know?'. 2 It suggests that power sits not with those in possession of knowledge, but with those in control of its production and distribution. These questions are equally important in the field of human trafficking as academic, political and public interest in the issue has grown exponentially over the past two decades.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-base... more Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-based literature on sex workers’ lives, work, and organising efforts, and on the harmful effects of anti-trafficking discourses, laws, and policies on diverse sex worker communities. Importantly, a significant portion of this work has been produced by sex workers and sex worker organisations. When we decided to devote this Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review to the theme of sex work, we acknowledged this reality. However, we also thought that, given that the discourses, laws, and policies that directly impact sex workers globally are continually changing, the production of new evidence-based research and critical perspectives is constantly needed.
Anti trafficking review, Apr 19, 2022
, conducted this interview with him to better understand his motivations and experiences during t... more , conducted this interview with him to better understand his motivations and experiences during this period of his life as well as his views on countertrafficking. 2 Borislav Gerasimov: Can you tell us about your experience with trafficking? Armand King: My experience started around 1997-98, when I was 16 years old going on 17. I'm from San Diego, California, from an impoverished and marginalised community of primarily Black and brown individuals. When I started, this was the cool thing to do in my peer group. Most of the people I knew, both girls and guys, were merged into this lifestyle together. Before that, there was heavy gang involvement, Bloods and Crips, and before that there was a government-induced Black Plague, we call it the crack epidemic, where drugs were forced on our communities by government officials, by the CIA… The system had pushed drugs which was the beginning of how we got into trafficking. We 1 Technically, Armand was a prostitution facilitator, or a 'pimp'. However, this activity is considered as 'sex trafficking' under the United States Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 and Armand identifies as having been involved in 'domestic urban sex trafficking'. 2 The interview was conducted on 16 July 2021 (15 July in Armand's time zone) over Zoom. It was recorded, transcribed, and edited for brevity and clarity by the Editors. The edited transcript was sent to Mr King for approval before publication. The recording was deleted after this process. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). Under the CC-BY license, the public is free to share, adapt, and make commercial use of the work. Users must always give proper attribution to the authors and the Anti-Trafficking Review.
Anti-Trafficking Review
This article introduces a Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review themed ‘Traffickers’. It descr... more This article introduces a Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review themed ‘Traffickers’. It describes how most of the knowledge about human trafficking is generated from the accounts of victims of trafficking and people working with them, while knowledge of perpetrators of human trafficking remains limited. It further summarises the articles contained in this special issue. These articles describe one or more aspects of traffickers’ characteristics, motivations, modus operandi, relationships with victims, and treatment in the criminal justice system. Overall, the issue shows that in many cases, traffickers’ profiles are similar to those of their victims. It suggests that measures to reduce racial, ethnic and other discrimination and improve socioeconomic and educational opportunities for all would help reduce people’s vulnerability to becoming victims of trafficking as well as perpetrators.
Abordar la trata en la industria del sexo: es hora de reconocer la contribución de las personas trabajadoras sexuales
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
The focus of this issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review—public perceptions and responses to human ... more The focus of this issue of the Anti-Trafficking Review—public perceptions and responses to human trafficking—reflects the growing unease and disagreements among anti-trafficking practitioners and scholars about the current state of public awareness of human trafficking: how and by whom such awareness is produced and manipulated, whom it is targeting, and whether it leads, or can lead, to any meaningful anti-trafficking action. A central assumption in the anti-trafficking field is that the general public still lacks sufficient knowledge about human trafficking, and that creating more knowledge and awareness will lead to its reduction. However, there neither exists a common understanding of who should know what in order to achieve this goal, nor is there sufficient information available about the awareness of the general public or, especially, the impact of this awareness.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-base... more Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-based literature on sex workers’ lives, work, and organising efforts, and on the harmful effects of anti-trafficking discourses, laws, and policies on diverse sex worker communities. Importantly, a significant portion of this work has been produced by sex workers and sex worker organisations.[1] When we decided to devote this Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review to the theme of sex work, we acknowledged this reality. However, we also thought that, given that the discourses, laws, and policies that directly impact sex workers globally are continually changing, the production of new evidence-based research and critical perspectives is constantly needed.
1 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution ... more 1 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). Under the CC-BY license, the public is free to share, adapt, and make commercial use of the work. Users must always give proper attribution to the authors and the Anti-Trafficking Review. Editorial: Trafficking in Minors: Confronting complex realities, structural inequalities, and agency
Anti-Trafficking Review
Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examina... more Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examination of the role of technology as a contributing force to human trafficking and exploitation. Attention has focused on a range of issues from adult services websites and the use of social media to recruit victims and facilitate trafficking to the utilisation of data analytics software to understand trafficking and identify ‘hotspots of risk’. This article introduces the Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review devoted to the role of technology in (anti-)trafficking. It outlines the main assumptions and critiques some of the proposed ‘solutions’ in the field and presents briefly the articles included in the issue. It concludes that the factors that enable and sustain human trafficking are varied and complex and require political will – not tech solutionist fixes.
Anti-Trafficking Review
Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examina... more Over the past decade, scholars, activists, and policymakers have repeatedly called for an examination of the role of technology as a contributing force to human trafficking and exploitation. Attention has focused on a range of issues from adult services websites and the use of social media to recruit victims and facilitate trafficking to the utilisation of data analytics software to understand trafficking and identify ‘hotspots of risk’. This article introduces the Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review devoted to the role of technology in (anti-)trafficking. It outlines the main assumptions and critiques some of the proposed ‘solutions’ in the field and presents briefly the articles included in the issue. It concludes that the factors that enable and sustain human trafficking are varied and complex and require political will – not tech solutionist fixes.
Forced Migration Review, 2020
Efforts to combat trafficking in the sex industry must respect sex workers’ decisions and agency,... more Efforts to combat trafficking in the sex industry must respect sex workers’ decisions and agency, and recognise them and their organisations as legitimate stakeholders in the anti-trafficking movement.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
'Scientia potentia est', or 'knowledge is power', a quote commonly attributed to sixteenth-centur... more 'Scientia potentia est', or 'knowledge is power', a quote commonly attributed to sixteenth-century English philosopher and statesman Francis Bacon, has become a popular axiom for the transformative power of learning and knowledge. In his address to the 1997 World Bank Conference 'Global Knowledge 97', Kofi Annan, the then Secretary-General of the United Nations, proclaimed that knowledge was, indeed, power, and that information was liberating. 1 However, a more critical stance on what constitutes knowledge (including the questions of what we know and how we know it) by some of the key philosophers of the twentieth century, including Althusser, Foucault and Bourdieu, and, recently, scholars focussing on the study of ignorance, have highlighted the complexities of power relations that underpin both the spatialities and temporalities of knowledge production, distribution and manipulation. One of the key questions for agnotology-a study of manufactured and productive ignorance-is not just 'how we know' but 'why don't we know what we don't know?'. 2 It suggests that power sits not with those in possession of knowledge, but with those in control of its production and distribution. These questions are equally important in the field of human trafficking as academic, political and public interest in the issue has grown exponentially over the past two decades.
Anti-Trafficking Review, 2019
Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-base... more Over the past two decades, there has been a growing body of excellent academic and community-based literature on sex workers’ lives, work, and organising efforts, and on the harmful effects of anti-trafficking discourses, laws, and policies on diverse sex worker communities. Importantly, a significant portion of this work has been produced by sex workers and sex worker organisations. When we decided to devote this Special Issue of Anti-Trafficking Review to the theme of sex work, we acknowledged this reality. However, we also thought that, given that the discourses, laws, and policies that directly impact sex workers globally are continually changing, the production of new evidence-based research and critical perspectives is constantly needed.