- Jalene Lugo, 14, said she regularly encountered sex workers on her way to school.
- Elmhurst residents have compared the neighborhood to a “red light district” of Bangkok
- Businesses complain they are losing money because customers are discouraged from coming.
Schoolchildren in New York complain of being forced to encounter “Venezuelan prostitutes” in broad daylight, their neighborhood being compared to the “red light district” of Bangkok.
High school students described how they encountered sex workers “virtually on every block” of the road along the Jackson Heights-Corona border.
Jalene Lugo, 14, said she passed several women dressed provocatively outside a door on 93rd Street earlier this week and it wasn’t the first time.
“During school hours, they are absent,” the high school freshman said. PIX11 News. “They’ll go out with their pimps and they don’t care.”
Other residents described the scene as a “red light district, similar to Bangkok.”
Sex workers were seen walking the streets during the day, many soliciting aggressively even when children were out of school or during lunchtime.
The mayor said the city has identified two locations of concern: one in East New York and the other on Roosevelt Avenue (pictured above).
Jalene’s mother, Massiel Lugo, a local activist who has previously organized rallies on the issue, is calling for more to be done to keep the area safe for young people.
Elmhurst resident Ramsay Frias told the outlet: “It’s scary that there is no longer a moral compass. Growing up, it was never perfect, but right now, it’s lawless.
Jalene’s mother, Massiel Lugo, a local activist who has previously organized rallies on the issue, is calling for more to be done to keep the area safe for young people.
Lugo said, “We understand that these women need money, but they should not be doing this during school. We are seeing more and more Latin women in prostitution.
She started a petition to “win back” the community, which has so far garnered more than 1,600 signatures.
Meanwhile, companies have warned that the activity is losing them money. A mobile phone shop owner revealed that customers no longer wanted to enter due to the presence of sex workers outside.
But state Assembly member Cataline Cruz, who investigated sex trafficking before her election in the Queens district, opposes criminalizing prostitution.
“However we choose to enforce the law, remember, these are humans,” Cruz said. “They deserve dignity. They deserve protection.
She said she would support decriminalization if the right support was in place.
However, Mayor Eric Adams remained steadfast in his opposition to the decriminalization of prostitution. He said the massive increase in requests is linked to the migrant crisis.
New York’s red light district fueled by migrant crisis, Mayor Eric Adams says
“There are real problems with illegal sex work,” he said. “Not just because of STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) – sex trafficking, young girls are involved in it.”
He confirmed that police said many of the sex workers were Venezuelan.
He added: “This is what happens when you create an atmosphere where people can’t support themselves. »
He also castigated “elected officials who are fighting against us by trying to legalize sex work.”
Elmhurst residents have previously described how brothels in the area are “an open secret”.
In June, a Woodside establishment was closed following a sting operation by police. Two women in their sixties were arrested for prostitution.
Neighbors had been calling for its closure for some time and claimed that there were other brothels operating in the area, the Jackson Heights Post reports.
