Cities of Sin

Bright lights. Large advertisements. Beautiful women. Half naked women. Slavery.

Its stuff like this that fuels the sex industry in major cities here in the United States. What two states am I talking about in particular? Vegas and Atlanta. Money, women and booze. Its a seemingly fun time! Or so it would seem.

But behind all the glam and lights there is an industry that is secretly thriving. What is this industry you may ask? The sex industry.

I drove through Vegas on the way to a family members funeral. I was a junior in high school. What do I remember most about this city? The Trump Tower, the large casinos and bright signs that had images of barely clothed women.

In the book that I am reading, God in a Brothel an Undercover Journey into Sex Trafficking and Rescue, the author Daniel Walker talks about operations that he had conducted in both cities.

Lets talk about Atlanta first. With Atlanta having such a huge airport and so many places of business it makes it a target place for sex trafficking. Women from any age and ethnicity can be found. One issue that helps this is the large gang movements that are in the area. It helps trafficking thrive in the area.

In the book Daniel even talks about when a sting operation was being conducted, it was quickly shut down because when further information was gathered it was found out that, "male clients were members of the Atlanta city counsel and U.S. Senators," and the, "officers involved were reassigned."

Daniel continues on with an undercover operation he did where he met with a 16 year old girl, gathering enough information and then made a set up to meet with Steve, the young girls pimp. They had met and Daniel got enough information to get the man in trouble for some time. It turns out he had younger girls then the 16 year old Emily. But, when Daniel took the information to the police he was met with disappointment. "While they were grateful for the information, the officers explained that they did not have the political support of the city behind them to proactively pursue those involved in the sex industry. They went on to explain that Atlanta was an entrenched area for those advocating for the rights of women to prostitute themselves and that the scrutiny of law enforcement was generally viewed as an unwelcomed and unnecessary intrusion."

Here in the United States we say that we are the Land of the Free. But as I look around, I am seeing more and more people who are enslaved, and very little is seemingly being done about it, this must be changed.

Now on to Las Vegas.

The sex industry in Vegas is huge! What fuels the industry here is, "organized crime, along with an international network of pimps, escort agencies and Internet businesses." What really gets Vegas is the fact that, to get many people there, sex is being advertised everywhere, it is part of Vegas' key advertisement.

High end prostitutes can be found patrolling the casinos looking for high rollers. How do they get in? They pay off the security guards. "One security guard admitted that he typically went home each night with between $2,000 to $4,000 in tips alone, all from prostitutes." Another security guard, "admitted that he regularly let in under aged girls into his club to sell themselves, because they tipped well."

Another person who plays a key role in the sex trade in Vegas would be the taxi driver. These men, "earn many thousands of dollars in additional profit by agreeing to take their lonely male customers to prearranged brothels." These different car services that partake in this injustice make more then $100,000 a year because they are acting as a pimp.  And though there are high end brothels in Vegas there are also lower level ones that compare to the brothels in other countries.

Even though some of the girls choose to join into this industry on their own accord, they cant always get out the same way. The sex industry in Vegas may look glamorous and like an easy and fast way to get money from the outside. But once on the inside, it doesn't stay that way.


So, here is a little sum up, law enforcement all around the world would rather focus on the women who are selling themselves rather on the men who are, generally, forcing them to do so. Let me put it this way. People aren't focusing on the root of the issue. Its like you have a dead corpse in the chair next to you. (I hope this isn't the case, but pretend with me for a minute) This corpse has been dead for a little over a day and it is in the heat of the summer. The body is starting to STINK! So, to cover up the smell you take out your nice smelling perfume, cologne, after shave or what ever you use, and you spray it on the corpse. After half the bottle is gone the smell is a little better. No matter what, till you dispose of the body  properly, you are still going to have that foul smell lingering around.

People let me just say one thing. Sex trafficking is everywhere. It is in the United States and the sex industry spans the whole globe. We need this injustice to be stopped. Corrupt government officials down to young, 13 year old pimps, cover the globe. Sex trafficking in the past has been a hidden issue. We need to bring it out and into the open. This injustice needs to be stopped.

Your informers,

Nicole and Janice

P.S. Know of any other good books on sex trafficking? Let Janice and I know we would love to check them out! Email us at askmeaboutsextrafficking@gmail.com


All quotes in this post were used from Daniel Walker's Book God in a Brothel

Walker, Daniel. God in a Brothel An Undercover Journey into Sex Trafficking and Rescue. Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 2011. Print.