Massage Parlor Human Trafficking: Why Children Are At High Risk

January 13, 2020 | Human Trafficking

Human trafficking continues to be a growing concern among lawmakers, especially when it comes to massage parlors and the role they play in this ongoing crime. Commonly what is called illicit massage businesses (IMBs), have unfortunately become all too common in America, as Polaris reports there are more than 9,000 currently in operation. Approximately 700 of them are in Texas.

Disconcertingly, the vulnerability of children causes them to be particularly at risk of falling victim to recruitment into an IMB, in addition to the guided offer of employment. Especially since traffickers often first target children or teens online, and build a relationship before meeting them in person. They typically prey on children who are either foster kids, runaways, insecure and looking for approval, “outcasts” or “loners,” or those suffering from addiction.

Signs of Human Trafficking in Massage Parlors

These businesses are often hidden in plain sight and in affluent areas, but visible only to those who know the signs:

• Advertised prices are significantly lower than normal prices in the area. (i.e. $40 instead of the typical $80 for a one-hour massage)
• Customers enter through a back door, side door, or are buzzed in through the front door.
• Clientele seems to be primarily males.
• The windows are covered, or there are no windows at all.
• Workers seem fearful, anxious, tense, depressed, nervous, and/or submissive.
• Workers look underage.
• Employees are rarely seen leaving the location, and seem to live there.
• Online advertisements for the location are sexually suggestive.

According to Children at Risk, IMBs typically lease commercial space, and can be found next to veterinary offices, craft stores, or even daycare centers. Due to their prevalence, Children at Risk also estimate that are around 35,000 children attend school within 1,000 feet of an IMB in Texas, as well as more than 900,000 who attend school within a mile of one.

How Underage Trafficking in IMBs is Being Addressed

Lawmakers in every state and in Congress have enacted laws that criminalize human trafficking and impose serious penalties. Additionally, 43 states have laws in place to specifically address underage trafficking. However, stronger business regulations at the municipal level are needed to rid cities of IMBs. Oftentimes, local law enforcement agencies do not have the resources to target and prosecute the hundreds or thousands of trafficking businesses in the area. As a result, traffickers find a way to continue operating through loopholes, and simply move locations if necessary.

Out of 46 states, only 12 percent of counties and 12 percent of cities regulate massage business operations. Examples of strong regulations that are needed across the country and have been implemented in certain cities, counties, or states, include:

• Hours of Operation: IMBs frequently operate late into the night when legitimate establishments are not open. The city of San Francisco has successfully implemented a provision on hours of operation, and as a result 100 massage parlors have closed over a period of two years.
• Requiring a State License: Municipalities have the ability to require qualifying massage establishments to possess a state license to operate and display them. In Texas, for example, such a provision would then give local governments the authority to inspect and cite any violations under the Texas Occupations Code and the Texas Administrative Code. The state of Delaware has begun to regulate massage businesses similarly to other business with commercial licenses, categorizing them as health businesses.
• Licensed Practitioners: Human trafficking victims are typically not licensed to perform massage. Municipalities can require that massage business owners/operators must only hire licensed massage therapists. North Carolina passed a law in 2017, mandating licensed therapists to apply for an establishment license in order to operate a legitimate massage business.
• Structure Provisions: Forcing customers to enter through an unlocked front door, as opposed to a side or hidden entrance, can drive away trafficker’s business. Santa Clara County in California enacted a similar law, and within a year, all massage parlors in its unincorporated areas were closed.

The Dunken Law Firm Can Help

When you suspect that a massage parlor is actually an IMB, contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1-888-373-7888 immediately. If you are a surviving victim or know someone who is, please contact our mass tort litigation lawyer if you’d like to discuss your legal options and pursue a civil lawsuit against the trafficking parties. Call (713) 554-6780 and schedule a free consultation today.