In Girls Like Us, Rachel Lloyd, a former sex trafficking victim and activist, argues in favor of girls and women involved in sex trafficking being considered victims or survivors, rather than criminals. Of these girls and women she states,
"Their pathway into the commercial sex industry is facilitated through seduction, promises, and the belief that the abuser is actually their boyfriend. Statistics show that the majority of commercially sexually exploited children are homeless, runaways, or the distastefully termed 'throwaways.' These girls and young women have a tougher time in the court of public opinion and in the real courts of the criminal and juvenile justice systems. It is presumed that somewhere along the line they 'chose' this life, and this damns them to be seen as willing participants in their own abuse" (Lloyd 74).
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 82.8% of human trafficking in the United States between 2007 and 2008 was forced prostitution, 31.8% of which involved minors (Kyckelhahn, Beck, and Cohen). With these figures available to us, it is inaccurate to assume that these girls and women are somehow "choosing" to be trafficked, whether they are American 'throwaways' or the girl next door.
A recent Vanity Fair article, titled "Sex Trafficking in America: the Girls Next Door" claims that influences such as video games and reality TV have played a role in the normalization of sexual harm and drastically declining age of sex trafficking victims. The article also gives a detailed account of Gwen and Alicia, two "pale, blonde, docile" girls who were sold as prostitutes in the affluent West Hartford, Connecticut area. Their pimp took Visa and Mastercard in payment, and they were often sold to upper-class white businessmen (Collins). This certainly doesn't fit the description of "typical" in global trafficking discourses, but does that make these girls more or less victims than their poorer, inner-city peers who are also trafficked by pimps? Rachel Lloyd argues that "discussions about true 'choice' are erroneous and unhelpful" to the larger discussion of trafficked girls and women being prosecuted (Lloyd 78).
Works Cited:
Lloyd, Rachel. Girls Like Us: Fighting for a world where girls are not for sale, an activist finds her calling and heals herself. New York: HarperCollins, 2011. 74. Print.
Kyckelhahn, Tracey, Allen Beck, and Thomas Cohen. United States. Department of Justice. Characteristics of Suspected Human Trafficking Incidents, 2007-08. 2009. Print.
Collins, Amy. "Sex Trafficking of Americans: The Girls Next Door." Vanity Fair. 24 May 2011: n. page. Web. 8 Apr. 2012.
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Lindsay:
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your allusion to Rachel Lloyd's stance on choice, or lack thereof, but I'm not sure where you personally stand on this issue. It's unclear to me where you see women's agency existing or being compromised, which is okay, but I am curious what your opinion on the matter is, beyond cursory commentary. Clearly, it is unproductive to assume that the girls and women are always choosing the lives they end up with, but it is equally unproductive to see sex work as a singular choice made that is unable to be taken back, reevaluated, contested, or constantly reiterated mindfully and in a fashion that serves the individual's highest and most immediate good.
Furthermore, your acknowledgement of white sex trafficking victims is particularly apropos to today's discussion about the enforced homogeny of Lloyd's racial commentary. In my view, white privilege allows Lloyd to assume a state of artificial colorblindness and in the process, victims such as the ones you discussed are ignored or erased from the conveniently racialized record. In short, while Lloyd means well, her patent inability to see beyond her own negative experiences and to acknowledge sex workers as anything but exploited causes her to assume universality, as with her matter-of-fact statements that the pathway "IS facilitated" with no caveat about how this is not ALWAYS the case (74). Another issue with Lloyd's commentary is that it fails to recognize that even if the choice to engage in sex work is socially stigmatized, it is still a valid choice if made by a consenting, informed adult, and as such, the woman in question should be entitled to our respect, affirmation, and unrestrained support, regardless of whether or not she is making a decision we believe is wholly desirable.
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