The Solution To Human Trafficking Is Hiding In Plain Sight

An estimated 4.5 million People Worldwide, victims of forced sexual exploitation are numerous.

One in six teenage boys is a teen runaways Be made sex-trafficking victims. Children make up most of the victims of sextrafficking. 20% All trafficking victims

These statistics are both tragic and staggering. These statistics are however motivating factors and January was recognized as such. “Human Trafficking Awareness Month.”

And while awareness is appreciated, it’s only the first step on the road to reform for a problem whose solution is hiding in plain sight.

It is simple and deceptively easy to stop sex trafficking. No buyers, no business. We can reduce the number of victims being sex peddlers by creating strong deterrents.

Nevada has legal brothels that have been operating in some counties for 48+ years. However, they were allowed to continue for well over 100 years. Thus, instead of creating strong deterrents, the state does precisely the opposite: it encourages sex buyers, and thus sex trafficking — a form of slavery prohibited under the 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution — through legalized prostitution in rural locales.

Nevada’s government acts as the trafficker. It makes millions of dollars from taxes and licensing fees. Prostitution tourism state When girls or women are sold, it is paid. Other traffickers claim that Nevada’s laws make it easy to recruit because they already do half the work.

Women such as three survivors of Nevada’s legal prostitution marketplace, who with the help of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) Law Center, are now Suing the state to bring this abuse profiteering to an end, citing the 13th Amendment’s absolute prohibition on all forms of slavery, and on governments enabling it.

Nevada treats women as human sexual chattel, with young women especially in demand. As in all other markets, supply and need drive the prices. Those who make more from their bodies may charge higher prices. As one Study Creighton University has noted that “phrases like ‘fresh meat,’ ‘brand new,’ and ‘daddy’s little girl’ are all used to connote the youth of those being sold for sex … The higher profit margins create incentives for traffickers to recruit younger individuals.”

Therefore, it’s not surprising that Nevada is among the top 10 states for young people ages 20 and younger (including possibly underage). engaged In the sex industry. In her Book, “Prostitution and Trafficking in Nevada, Making the Connections,” Melissa Farley refers to a survey of 45 women who were prostitution in Nevada legal brothels. 23% of them reported that they were child prostitutes. This survey also found that 57% gave their entire income to their trafficker or pimp.

A world in which other women are available for sale is not safe for women. Nevada’s women who are not prostitution victims also face violence from men. Nevada is consistently ranked First In the country in domestic violence fatalities Seventh As of 2020, the following applies to rape/sexual assault: Fourth For women killed by men, it is only the 32nd most populous country in the country.

And to refute the oft-used argument that legalized prostitution in certain areas reduces its presence elsewhere — at least 90% Prostitution in Nevada occurs outside the legal brothel system. Although prostitution is illegal in Las Vegas, Reno and elsewhere in Nevada, it is common in legal strip clubs or legal escort agencies. Per-capita Rates for commercial sex, both legal and illegal, are 63% higher in Nevada than the next highest state — New York.

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said, “January is human trafficking month and there’s no better time to remind Nevadans victimized by human trafficking that my office is here to help.” We appreciate his commitment. However, so long as there is legal brothel in Nevada, all efforts to combat human trafficking are futile. 

This one decision could end human trafficking in Silver State and free hundreds of girls and women from its ravages. It would also restore dignity to the human race. If the state continues to dig in, I hope that the NCOSE lawsuits and federal courts will stop this. Corrupt and dehumanizing system that — with state backing — presumes women exist for male use.

Christen Price serves as senior legal counsel to The National Center on Sexual Exploitation, the largest national non-partisan education group exposing all forms of sexual abuse such as child sexual assault, prostitution, and the public health hazards of pornography. Twitter: @NCOSE

The opinions expressed in this piece are solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect those of The Daily Wire.