Sex trade survivors at Maxwell panel express support for policy reform

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Syracuse University’s Department of Sociology hosted a “Policy for Women in the Sex Trade: A Human Trafficking Awareness Month Panel” Monday evening in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. The panel featured sex trade survivors who spoke about their advocacy work for equality model policies.

The four panelists — Mary Speta, Melanie Thompson, Ryann Whitaker and Audrey Morrissey — came from various Massachusetts-based organizations dedicated to ending human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Each panelist expressed their support for the equality model and discussed their work in helping survivors, as well as their research and sexual exploitation prevention.

The equality model, or partial decriminalization, aims to protect victims of sexual exploitation by decriminalizing them while holding their exploiters and “sex buyers” accountable. A partial decriminalization bill, the “Sex Trade Survivors Justice and Equality Act,” is on the table in New York state as of 2021.

Speta, a survivor and executive director of Amirah, Inc., said this model is the answer to mitigating the problem of human trafficking and getting services to the people who need them as opposed to full decriminalization.

“Full decriminalization and legalization are sort of an open door for traffickers to come in and go ahead and use prostitution in the commercial sex trade to make a whole lot of money because then you’re able to legitimize the commercial sex trade,” Speta said.

Thompson, outreach and advocacy coordinator at the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, said Black younger females and LGBTQ individuals are more susceptible to sex trafficking, especially those in foster care. Being a survivor herself, Thompson has lived in 11 different foster care locations in NY state.

Thompson said LGBTQ children are at risk of being kicked out of their households or foster care institutions, therefore being more at risk of being trafficked. She also said being homeless presents a significant risk as homelessness is an issue prominent in New York state and can lead people into the commercial sex industry.

Thompson also said sex traffickers will often stand outside of foster care homes and wait for an opportunity to pick up children, as they are more susceptible to sex trafficking. The Covenant House NY in Manhattan is a common place for traffickers to target, she said.

“When you’ve coupled that with society already hyper-sexualizing you and then adding a commodifying dollar amount to that hyper-sexualization and commodification, it makes it three times harder leaving or trying to leave,” Thompson said.

Thompson said some of the “barriers” that prevent people from leaving their situation include psychological intimidation, hooking the victim on substances, threatening to expose the victim, trauma bonding relationships, having children with the trafficker, lack of exit services and fear of not being believed.

Whitaker, a survivor and board member at the Safe Exit Initiative, works to help women leave the commercial sex industry. When a victim becomes an adult, they may still have a criminal record from previous sex buyers, making it difficult to build a life outside of the industry and making it easier to get back into it, she said.

“This is how they make money. This is how they survive,” Whitaker said. “Now, they have a barrier to employment. If you’re going to try to go get a job at 20 years old, and you have either psychotherapy, or prostitution charge or substance use charge, that’s going to prevent you from having viable employment.”

Wenjing Zhu | Staff Photographer

Whitaker said the “complex trauma” that manifests as a result of sexual exploitation often leads to substance abuse. When the victims become clean, this “stigma” around substance abuse stays with them, and many are still denied housing due to their history, she said. She also said the “criminalization” of these victims makes it harder for them to leave the commercial sex industry and seek help services.

The equality model has already been implemented internationally, Whitaker said, causing a decrease in sexual exploitation in several countries, such as France, Sweden and Canada. All three panelists said society in the United States needs to adjust its mentality to implement these changes in the commercial sex industry and prevent the exploitation of victims.

Speta claimed that it is difficult to pass these bills because of the number of sex buyers in government. She also said not only do services have to offer help, but the men have to stop buying sex for the trade to end.

“You have power and privilege at play here because the people who have their policies and our laws are the same demographic that are buying those bodies,” Speta said. “That absolutely is the problem here.”