LGBTQ Rights and Human Trafficking

LGBTQ rights advocates and allies are marching for equality this month, but a fierce debate rages within the community over how to best combat human trafficking and support survivors and those affected through the sex trade.

Many queer and trans people seek to legitimize their participation in the sex trade by fully decriminalizing prostitution in New York State, advocating for the removal of the crimes of selling, purchasing, and promoting sex from the penal code. Progressives support them, believing that distinctions can be made between consensual participants and those who are trafficked or coerced.

While I respect the autonomy of consenting adults to do what they want with their bodies, my story is neither one of free will nor consent. At age 24, I was a victim of international and domestic human trafficking. As a survivor, a queer Mexican immigrant, and a person living with HIV, I understand the complex trauma of being forced and coerced into the sex trade against one's will.

Our laws do not clearly distinguish between trafficking survivors and consensual participants. These industries are intrinsically linked, and everyone finds themselves in the same money-for-sex market. It is almost impossible for buyers of sex to distinguish between willing participants and those who pretend to be willing to avoid being beaten by a pimp. Even if they knew, it would be difficult to prove in court, resulting in no legal repercussions for purchasing sex.

Decriminalization increases demand and expands markets. LGBTQ youth are already twice as likely to be victims of sex trafficking as their non-LGBTQ peers. In a fully decriminalized world, pimps and traffickers will capitalize on this increased demand, intensifying their recruitment outside of mental health treatment centers, homeless youth shelters, and anywhere vulnerable people congregate.

Trafficked minors would be more difficult to discover since law enforcement would have no reason to investigate prostitution, reducing the incentive to inspect these markets for trafficking.

Full decriminalization endangers marginalized communities, including youth living in poverty and LGBTQ youth, who are overrepresented in systems serving homeless youth. The main beneficiaries would be a consensual minority of the sex trade and “empowered” sex buyers who would trade on our bodies.

It's hard to see any progressive argument, given that most buyers of sex are white men buying the bodies of poor trans and cisgender women of color.

Exiting the sex trade is already very difficult, compounded by mental health issues, economic instability, prejudice and abuse that hinder stable employment. Should we be telling our LGBTQ youth that “sex work” is a viable path out of poverty instead of aspiring to become social workers, doctors, or teachers? Work involves choice. Is selling my body because I have no other choice a choice?

Presenting total decriminalization as emancipation is misleading and dangerous. It exploits the most vulnerable in the LGBTQ community under the guise of progressivism and silences the concerns of queer survivors who have suffered trauma related to the sex trade.

The solution to addressing the harms of the sex trade and supporting survivors is simple: empower those who buy sex and stop arresting those who are bought and sold. End the request. If there were no buyers, sex trafficking would not exist. Let's stop arresting those who sell sex, often survivors of trafficking, and focus on holding buyers and pimps accountable.

Proponents of full decriminalization claim it ensures the safety of those who are sold, but this is a desensitized argument that overlooks the need for vital social services to support survivors and those who have no choice can free themselves from exploitation.

The Sex Trade Survivors Justice and Equality Act (STSJEA), sponsored by State Senator Liz Krueger and Assemblymember Pamela Hunter, is the answer. This bill is based on a model that has been proven to reduce the sex trade and significantly reduce human trafficking in several countries. It helps survivors exit the trade by accessing housing placement, health care, legal services, and mental health services.

Our legislative leaders in Albany face a crucial decision: protect survivors and prevent human trafficking, or turn New York into a brothel state, dramatically increasing the number of vulnerable young people bought and sold.

This Pride Month, let's truly honor the spirit of equality and protection of all members of our LGBTQ community by rejecting policies that endanger our most vulnerable. Normalizing the buying and selling of queer bodies is not queer liberation, it is condemning our queer communities to oppression.

Eduardo is a surviving leader of New Yorkers for the Equality Model (NYFEM) and Mujeres en Resistencia.