NEW YORK STATE HAS A BUSTLING BUT UNSEEN WORLD OF CHILD SEX TRAFFICKING

AN ALL TOO COMMON STORY

Alexis was only 14 when she was trafficked by a neighborhood pimp. Alexis was in high school when she was lured into “the life” that led her into enduring the monstrous life of being at the behest of her pimp. She was attracted into a conversation about an upscale event which was to be attended by a famous celebrity. He asked her to come back in the night dressed sexy. At that point, her mother and sister were facing trouble paying off the rent and she reluctantly agreed to “slide into the loop” (euphemism for prostitution). As many as 90% of kids who are sexually trafficked were already victims of sexual abuse, according to the National Institute of Justice. Alexis too was juggled in and out of foster care at the age of 2, and soon enough was repeatedly raped by her biological father. Today, Alexis is 22 and has a full-time job at a Bronx counseling center and a 2-year-old daughter.

Nikki was a little girl of 16 when she was first paid to have sex with an unknown man. Her mother had recently died and she became excessively dependent on drugs and alcohol. That life had her spiral into the hands of a pimp. Nikki, now 37, has been rescued and tells people that she was paid to be sexually assaulted multiple times a day and that, most people enter into prostitution because they are at an economic disadvantage. Thousands of sex slaves are trafficked under the noses of New York City residents every day. The shoddy situation has become increasingly difficult for law enforcement to curb.