- Dec 22, 2017
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These are pictures I took in downtown Chicago, just off Van Buren St., fairly close to Millennium Park. A sign like this screams "Prostitution!", but far more concerning is the amount of prostitutes who aren't there by choice**.
[UPDATE: I was informed by a user who knows this particular hotel that it is for men who are one step away from homelessness. I will still leave everything about this post here, because this still includes information that people need to know, but near as I can tell, this is not a case of trafficking. I suppose this also highlights the importance to communicate; by sharing these pictures online, I was able to find out that it is likely benign.]
Finding this to be suspicious, I took the pictures & sent them to the National Human Trafficking Hotline* ("human trafficking" being the fancy way to say "slavery"). I didn't have any evidence of forced commercial sex, just a suspicion, although it certainly was active, with a man walking in, 2 men walking out, and a man walking in, all within the few minutes I was there. (This sort of information has no conclusive information in itself, but a large database like the National Human Trafficking Hotline could piece together enough information to investigate; an alert that the place is active may help them get a fuller idea of the place).
I share this to show an example of things to be suspicious of; this hotel likely rents out rooms by the hour, and with the only people coming in & out being men who seemed to know nothing of each other, they were likely "Johns", people who buy prostitutes. Any indicator that someone was under the control of someone else would have been worthy of reporting to the Hotline as well; airline workers & hospital staff in particular are being trained to look for someone who seems to be controlled by another, especially a young woman with an older man, although women can be traffickers, as well**.
Please share any tips & experiences you may have regarding these situations.
Also, please pray for everyone involved in this wicked industry; for the vast amount of people who just don't realize that prostitutes (and strippers and inappropriate content actors) are rarely there by choice; for those who walk by, scared to do anything; for a change of heart in those who exploit others; for those who want to/already do fight against this crime on the front lines; and for the safety, hope, and recovery of the victims. Lord, have mercy!
*Report Trafficking ; any information can also be e-mailed to them at help@humantraffickinghotline.org.
**More information: Data on Human Trafficking
And if you (understandably) feel confused about how something like this could happen in a high-population, high-traffic area, this short video really helps show how slaves can be moved all around us, without being seen:
Please never lose hope, never stop praying, and never get so caught up in the fight against evil that you lose sight of the good! May God bless us all!
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