Prostitution, Human Slavery, Child Abuse In Your Neighborhood—What's Happening-See What You Can Do
Posted: Saturday, November 21, 2009
by Steve Kovacs
The Kovacs Perspective
Some people believe prostitution is immoral. Others feel whatever happens between two consenting adults is no ones business and this is pretty much how I feel. However, the fact of the matter is that some prostitutes in the United States as well as across the globe are slaves and there is nothing consenting about what they do. In America, this is a fact most people do not know much about. Those who know about sex slavery in the US believe it only occurs in remote rural areas or in a hidden urban locale. Not true. Sex slavery in the "nice" suburbs is alive and well and every now and then, the authorities make an arrest that shocks many people.
Through common sense or my training, I knew this most likely was not a therapeutic massage parlor and was probably a front for prostitution. I could not understand why the local police never closed it up. I remember telling one of the towns residents that the authorities should close up the parlors. He told me if they were indeed houses of prostitution, authorities should just let it go because no one gets hurt from prostitution.
These two businesses operated for years up until about a year ago. One morning I opened up the local paper and read that the police raided the parlors and arrested prostitutes, and some managers. I chuckled that it was about time. A few days later, I read that the women arrested for prostitution were Asian and were not there on their own accord. They were sex slaves, forced to be there! They had been working against their will for years. What a revelation to the resident who said, "Just let it go". What a revelation to the many people who never thought that in a tiny suburb, slavery was alive and well. If you think this may be an isolated occurrence read these sobering statistics:
- The FBI estimates that 100,000 minors in America now live in forced prostitution.
- The United States State Department estimates that each year 50,000 to 100,000 new women and girls are trafficked in the United States .
- According to police sources: Some criminals promise women from Asia, the former Soviet Union and other countries well paying jobs in the US . When they arrive in the States, they find they have been lied to. In addition, they find they are in the grasp of strong-armed criminals.
- According to an Associated Press report from 1998, girls, as young as 13, were trafficked from Mexico via Texas, into Florida for prostitution and held under $2,000 debt bondage for smuggling fees.
- June 2008: The FBI arrested 345 people and rescued 21 young victims in a round up of child prostitution suspects. The Justice Department said it targeted 16 cities as part of its "Operation Cross Country" that caped off five years of similar stings nationwide regarding forced prostitution. This child abuse at its worst occurred in towns across the country mostly in rural poor areas and truck stops.
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Top-level comments on this article: (9 total)Great article. Well done.I have read about human trafficking and it never fails to shock me.This sex slave thing is a little like the old Southern slave days where some masters/overseers would rape their slaves often.Absolutely amazes me that people deal in people--nuts!--thanks for the comment.
Very informative article. I'm always amazed at the statistics. Thanks for sharing.Hi Linda,Thanks for writing and commenting, I appreciate it.
Steve
Very eye-opening article, sir. It never ceases to amaze me what some will do to others, and also what some will do to themselves. I am shocked at the level this abuse has reached, and yet we all know the reported number is never as high as the actual number. Thanks for sharing this.I agree the reported number always seems to be less--good point. I also agree that it is amazing what people do to other people!Thanks,Steve
Steve,A story like this pops up on a Law and Order or NCIS type of show, but most of us aren't aware that it is happening around the corner. As I sit here, I wonder where it is in my locale -- since crime, drugs, and the like, are rampant in NJ -- (especially in the level of the government!).It breaks my heart to think about these girls. You are correct, however, we should report anything suspicious.Excellent job and thanks for a good read,Government corruption is happening where I live too--Ohio--it seems to be all over the place! What's that saying, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely? . Anyway, people forcing people into prostitution is a sign of the cruelty and over abusive over-control of some people.Glad it was interesting to you and thanks for the commentsSteve
This is shocking and you have written a good, eyeopening article. Thank you! Marijo
Thank you for writing and yes it certainly is shocking!Steve
Read any Sunday sports page, from any city, and listed in black and white under the sports stats are the advertisements for a half dozen or more oriental massage parlors. I am not a trained police officer but I know the pretty employees want to sell rubs to other parts of my body other than my back; along with the extras. I even heard my 6 year old nephew once say "Uncle Mikey, I heard they really do bad things at oriental health spas." If I'm aware of this and my 6 year old nephew is aware of this, then I hope our trained police officers; many who also read the Sunday newspaper sports sections; are also aware of this. I have faith in our law enforcement system so I believe they are. But something or someone(s) in our legal system keeps the parlors running or every Sunday afternoon police raids can shut down these establishments. Either payoffs to the right people or the attitude that "let the guys have a little fun, it ain't hurtin noone." In reality, prostitution really is a healthy way for men to relieve their sexual tensions without having to rape somebody. So prostitution is beneficial as long as the girls are doing it on their own free will and get tested for disease. If they are slaves and/or diseased then the party should be and is often stopped. The real way to control the industry is to legalize it. The tax dollars would significantly improve our economy. Just study the economic statistics in Reno.Hi Mike,Thanks for your view--you bring up valid points and I appreciate you took the time to write em down. By the way, you have a smart nephew there and furthermore, you made a good point with that example.Thanks,Steve
It is happening everywhere. We live in a small city and there have been several massage parlours come and go. It seems to me they close, but they don't stop. They just move to another nearby city and start over. I don't know what the answer is, but I think your advice for people to be aware of their neighbours and report any suspicious activity is at least a start.Yeah Brianna awareness and reporting something we feel may be a problem is a great start. Thanks again Brianna for taking the time to read and offer a comment.Steve
Where are these people?# The FBI estimates that 100,000 minors in America now live in forced prostitution.# The United States State Department estimates that each year 50,000 to 100,000 new women and girls are trafficked in the United States .Let's do a little math. 50,000 a year is 25 million over 50 years. That's 1/6 of our female population.Where are those women?Then you note "The FBI arrested 345 people and rescued 21 young victims in a round up of child prostitution suspects."So where are the other 24,999,979 women? Why are they at all invisible?Now there were of course other raids, but they also represent such small handfuls.The explanation just has to be that the numbers are wildly exaggerated. We are talking about a problem that involves hundreds a year, not hundreds of thousands.I disagree with the way you calculate the numbers, e.g., in 50 years it would be 25 million people. 25 million perhaps if they would be kept in forced service for 50 years. The numbers must take into account many other factors than just what you mention...in my opinion, however, I appreciate you reading and offering your viewpoint. Everyones different viewpoints and opinions helps makes the truth come out--thanks.Steve
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