Fight Child Prostitution
In the past twelve months, immigration agents have raided a number of suspected brothels in quiet San Francisco neighborhoods, unfolding a quiet tragedy that was previously unseen by most. Despite the shock of neighbors, this type of illegal activity is sadly all too common in our community and, in fact, often involves children as young as 9 years old.
When I was first elected to the State Legislature in 2002 I vowed to fight in Sacramento for mental health services, to protect our children, and assist the most vulnerable in our community. The most troubling issues are those that combine all of these needs.
Child prostitution is a devastating problem that few people want to talk about. The fact remains that rarely do child prostitutes begin selling their bodies of their own volition. Many are coerced into the lifestyle and forced into virtual slavery by traffickers and pimps. Eighty-five percent of child prostitutes previously suffered incest, rape or abuse at home, and are often singled out by pimps because they are runaways.
According to the advocacy organization Standing Against Global Exploitation (SAGE), 200,000 to 300,000 children are involved in prostitution nationwide and an estimated 10 million children worldwide are involved in the $20 billion-a-year sex industry. At an age when most children are riding bikes and playing with toys, juvenile prostitutes will confront sexually transmitted diseases and suicide attempts as the two greatest risks to their health.
To make matters worse, child prostitutes are not only abandoned by their parents, but by the social services system as well. Currently, there are no comprehensive government programs and few social and health services for these children.
As a child psychologist, I understand that child victims require specialized care for effective intervention. As a legislator, it is my responsibility to make sure laws protect our children and punish the adults who sexually abuse them.
Therefore, last year I introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 3042, which overwhelmingly passed the Legislature and became law in January of this year. The bill brings greater penalties for those who sexually abuse children through prostitution. Specifically, AB 3042 provides that a person convicted for any offense where the crime was committed with a minor for money or other consideration is punishable with an additional one year of imprisonment.
In addition to aiding the children who are already enmeshed in prostitution, it is also vital to curb the problem at its source.
Many women and young children in the Bay Area are coerced, particularly from China or other Asian countries, to the United States with the promise of a better life. These individuals are then ensnared into an inescapable life of prostitution and abuse. Over 20,000 people, mostly women and children, are the victims of this modern-day form of slavery each year in the United States, with no sign of these numbers decreasing. In fact, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services, trafficking is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world.
This year, I have introduced a bill to reduce intrastate human trafficking. Currently, trafficking is only prosecuted as a federal offense when victims cross state boundaries. As a result, some of these traffickers avoid federal authority by forcing women and children simply across county lines. AB 41 will close this loophole and find a person guilty of trafficking anytime such a person recruits, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains by any means another person, knowing that force, fraud, or coercion will be used to engage in involuntary servitude, labor, or commercial sex acts. As a result, AB 41 will allow state and local prosecutors to render a charge far greater than that of kidnapping.
I am proud to author this legislation that will help put a stop to the cycle of victimization and abuse that ruins the lives of so many women and children in California. It is simply unacceptable for this type of exploitation to exist anywhere in the world, but especially here in a community that prides itself on embracing our diversity and protecting our children.
We all want what is best for the next generation, but we often forget about those who are the most vulnerable – the young people that are regularly cast off in our society. My commitment in Sacramento has always been to protect our children and the future of California. Fighting for the voiceless child victims of prostitution and trafficking is a challenge that requires all of our support. Please join me in moving this important and necessary bill through the Legislature.
Leland Y. Yee, Ph.D.
Speaker pro Tempore
California State Assembly
Speaker pro Tempore Leland Yee represents the 12th Assembly District, which includes San Francisco and San Mateo Counties.
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