by Megan Lux
for Literature, Culture, and Power
Girls have been sexualized since learning to walk and talk and nobody has a problem with it until they begin profiting off it, then suddenly everyone has an issue. The lines are blurred in our present society between sex work, sex trafficking, and prostitution, and it is furthering a debate that has been had for decades. In A Moment In The Sun, John Sayles focuses on the story of Lan Mei, a girl who was sold at a young age to work for men because her father owed a debt to someone. Lan Mei was required to serve these men in whatever way they wanted; usually this led to her being sexualized and used as toy by the men she worked for. Her story touches on a conversation currently going on in society about sex trafficking, sex workers, and the sex industry as a whole. Sex trafficking and prostitution are issues that reach more countries than just the United States; they are global issues that have been of concern for more than one thousand years. The history of these problems allows us to be educated in dealing with them as we progress as a nation and world. By addressing the problems within the sex industry, we will be able to change the social objectification women face when working with their sexuality and put a larger focus on preventing sex trafficking.
Lan Mei’s story in A Moment In The Sun shows the realities of sex trafficking. She was sold to pay off a debt and forced to be a sex slave to men among other women. This was taking place in the Philippines during the 1800’s, a time of hardship due to it being under control of the Spanish. Lan Mei was sold off to men in Hong Kong and was forced to leave her home and family at a young age in order to protect herself and family. This would of course affect the rest of her life, a matter she had no choice in and no freedom to fight. Lan Mei is left destroyed because of being sex trafficked and must learn to carry on regardless of what she faced. She was forced to dress and portray herself in a manner that pleased the men she would be seeing; she was not able to have any sense of self. That was taken away from her when she was sold. Lan Mei was forced to learn a world she had never seen before, she had to learn how to live to please men. By the time she was being sent back to Manila, the only words she had left to say about her life were ‘My life is nothing,’ until she was able to have her baby: her saving grace. During this time, there was little to care about with victims of sex trafficking because the men doing it were also the one’s in charge, oppressing women so no intervention was made; the men Lan Mei was forced to be with were ones of power and statute who could claim it never happened and use their power to come out of any allegations unharmed.
In today’s society, it is still very difficult for women to come out with their stories about how men treated them and forced them into sexual acts. This is because it is common in society to claim the woman is lying, common for men to deny any and all accusations simply because in a white America, they will get away with it. Time after time men continue to get away with things such as rape because women aren’t respected and men continue to oppress those they believe they have power over, and, unfortunately, men hold more power in the government. A current case that America is focused on is the story of Cyntoia Brown, a 16 year old who at a young age was forced into prostitution by Johnny Allen and who killed him in defense from his abuse. Her case was recently settled and the courts decided she would serve 51 years before being eligible for release after she had been sentenced to life in prison for killing her attacker. This case gained attention in the media by strong female figures, aligning on social media with the hashtag #FreeCyntoiaBrown. It is important that cases such as hers be brought to the public’s attention in order for citizens to realize the problem of sex trafficking and how exactly it is taking place in the country as well as to fix a justice system that is not equal.
Sex trafficking is “human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, including sexual slavery.” It happens when an offender uses manipulation, threats, lies, and other forms of coercion to convince both adults and children to partake in sexual acts against their right to say no. There are target demographics for sex traffickers, according to End Slavery Now, “Indigenous populations and those who live in abject poverty are typically economically and politically marginalized; thus, most lack rights and access to basic services such as education which make them particularly vulnerable to sex trafficking.” What that means is lower income minorities are most commonly victims to sex trafficking; due to their class status, they are made easier targets and normally have less protection in governments such as the United States. We see this in Lan Mei’s story as she comes from a family facing poverty with few options left to continue surviving. The trend dates back so long ago that it’s hard to say when the first case of it happened; sex trafficking wasn’t punishable by governments until the 1700’s. Now, with Cyntoia Brown, she is a non-white female who grew up in the foster system, placing her in impoverished situations. She was forced into sexual acts by a pimp who abused and drugged her frequently at the age of 16. Commonly, this would be looked at as prostitution, but the reality is, it is modern sex trafficking that takes place frequently throughout the United States.
In the United States, sex trafficking does not need to mean that one is being moved across borders, and most cases of sex trafficking involve forcing individuals into prostitution. Prostitution is the business of engaging in sexual activities in exchange for payment and is considered ‘the world’s oldest profession.’ While prostitution can be a profession for some, it is forced, unwanted labor for many. It is used by men who have the money to pay for sexual services; this gives men a feeling of power and control, so even if a women is engaging by choice, men are likely to abuse the power they feel they have over the person they are paying. The main issue is the cruel, abusive treatment individuals must endure when forced into sexual activities and the trauma many must learn to live with. Many factors contribute to sex trafficking, from race and gender to social instability and poverty. The male sexual demand is the primary force that drives sex trafficking. Not only do the men feel they are benefited, but the traffickers are able to complete their job fairly easily due to lack of enforcement of punishment by governments. Sex trafficking is very profitable for traffickers, and there is little risk included with current law enforcement making it a persistent issue society must face.
The other side of prostitution is when individuals willingly enter into the industry and become sex workers. This is important to consider when thinking about the implications of the sex industry and its role in society today because the industry is a valid, necessary choice for many. While prostitution is illegal in the United States currently, that doesn’t stop a large amount of workers from entering the industry. The United States recognizes that people do willingly enter into prostitution, but it remains an illegal activity in all states but Nevada. This directly affects society and views formed around sex work. Sex work is seen by society as dirty work. Society deems those involved in it as less than others and categorizes individuals as desperate, weak, or misguided, claiming their choices to enter are wrong. Who is to tell someone what they can or cannot do with their body, and if men are willing to pay for the service, why should a women feel bad for denying it? Our society places high value on commitment; sleeping around is called ‘slutty’ and terms such as ‘whore’ are placed on those who openly express their very human desires. Our society also expects the man to pay for dinner; the expectation is that a guy will take you out, buy you a nice dinner maybe you see a movie and by the end of it or as it progresses, if one is willing, they are expected to have sex. Prostitution doesn't fall very far from those expectations, the main difference is just skipping the dinner and small talk. Sex work should not be judged by society. Going back to the quote I opened with, females are sexualized persistently. Whether it be in film, music, the workplace, and even school, girls must face the reality that society looks on them as sexualized figures. Giving a girl a dress code violation for showing a shoulder in class goes to say that even a blank piece of skin on a girl is much too revealing yet the same school will show movies that may have a kissing scene - much more intimate than a shoulder. Society needs to alter their view on sex workers because the relationship is hypocritical and judgmental; by understanding the difference in sex trafficking and sex work, society will be able to better accept the valid work decision.
Other countries handle sex work differently than the US, decriminalizing it and verifying it as an industry. Australia has implemented a system that has made it safer for sex workers and improved the quality of the workspace and environment. Condoms are implemented better, the risk of HIV and other sexual transmitted disease has decreased, and prevention of rape have all been positively impacted in Australia since decriminalizing sex work. The perfect scenario would be a world where no one had to lean on sex work as their career but the reality is that some people do; without sex work many would be left in situations even more unsafe than the current sex industry. So if it is a way of life for some, the government has a responsibility to those individuals to make the quality of life at work higher and safer. Decriminalizing prostitution would also work to alter society’s perspective of the industry, making it more accepting and normalized, and maybe we could finally stop over sexualizing women and instead accept that women can be sexual without being called ‘slutty.’ It would also distinguish the difference it has between sex trafficking so society could focus more on preventing sex trafficking and less on slut shaming women.
Government’s deal with sex trafficking and prostitution in many different ways. Sayles is able to take us to the Philippines and Hong Kong to understand that the problem is widespread and similar across nations in a way that informs readers to be more conscious of an issue that has a long history worldwide. Some countries may be very progressive in their work to prevent sex trafficking while others are very behind, not even addressing the issue yet. In the United States, the first federal law addressing sex trafficking was not made until 2000. A problem that has been around for thousands of years and the US has only addressed within the past 18 years. It is clear that progress is being made, the rate however is very slow, which is rather concerning due to the severity of sex trafficking and how it affects our society. The ‘Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act’ is the current law that governs sex trafficking, it works toward preventing and protecting the citizens of the US. State by state, governments enforce their own laws to prevent sex trafficking. A notable state is Massachusetts, which has a task force devoted to prevention and protection, the state even makes trafficking done through the internet punishable through the law. Some states, however, have been slow to enforce any type of sex trafficking laws. The United States government needs to do more to bring attention to the problem and address it with solutions.
The United Nations has a branch devoted to the prevention of sex trafficking. As a way to identify the problem and attempt to control it, the UN Protocol to prevent, suppress, and punish trafficking in persons does not efficiently prevent it in every country. Due to differing cultures, government corruption, economics, and religions, the sex industry and sex trafficking becomes something very difficult to identify and enforce laws against. In countries such as India and Cambodia, the United States has tried giving recommendations as to how to solve much of their trafficking problems. By encouraging anti-trafficking courts and moves to raise awareness about human trafficking, the US hopes that developing countries are able to implement more prevention tactics that will eventually lead to cases being prosecuted on local levels in order to target any sex trafficker anywhere. After researching laws in various countries, it was made clear to me that not enough is being done in government systems in terms of addressing the issues based in sex trafficking as well as sex work. Denmark decriminalized prostitution in 1999 but made sure to keep clear laws against sex trafficking to let the public know it is a severe offense, but we know it is a severe issue already, so why are more laws not being put into place that will directly prevent sex trafficking? A main issue is lack of education about the subject. Many people don’t know much about the issue or aren’t exposed to it till later in life. Prevention starts with educating the public on what is going on. There are not enough open conversations happening involving sex trafficking just as there was not a lot of conversation around it during Lan Mei’s time; she was not able to talk about her experience and it was easier for the people in charge to not deal with it. Not much has changed since then. We still live in a society that needs to be more aware of the widespread sex trafficking taking place around the world in order to build a safer environment. The United Nations should continue bringing nations together to stop the problem as sex trafficking does result in the movement of individuals through various countries making it hard to find victims unless more can be done to keep communication and prevention cohesive between different counties.
A Moment in The Sun by John Sayles is a novel that confronted many issues during a time period that America tends to skip over in history class. Sayles is able to address issues of racism, sexism, and power struggle in America when segregation and discrimination were enforced by those in power. By writing on these topics and educating readers, we are able to open our eyes to what is going on in society now and it’s connections to our past as a nation. I focused on Sayles story of a girl named Lan Mei, someone who had a first hand account of harsh sex trafficking, oppression, and poverty overseas because her story connects to a conversation being had in society about sex trafficking, prostitution, and sex work. It is important as a society that we address the overwhelming issue of sex trafficking by taking steps to prevent it, which include being more educated on it’s past as well as how it is currently being noticed and handled in government systems. “That is called Ling-Ling, the Brave Dog, who once saved a little girl from a wolf, and tried to save another from drowning” - Lan Mei, A Moment In The Sun
Sources
https://everydayfeminism.com/2015/01/women-pressured-sexy-punished-sexual/ https://humantraffickingsearch.org/2017725sex-trafficking-vs-sex-work-what-you-need-to-know/ https://mdp.berkeley.edu/tara-roach-why-does-sex-trafficking-persist/ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/08/magazine/should-prostitution-be-a-crime.html