The unintended – and lethal – consequences of California’s Safer Streets for All Act

California passed Senate Bill 357 – the “Safer Streets for All Act” – on July 1st with the stated objective of repealing “a discriminatory law that makes it a crime to loiter with the intent to engage in sex work, given that it fails to prevent street-based sex work and disproportionately results in the criminalization of transgender people and communities of color.”

Everyone should have the right to live freely and express themselves within the confines of the Constitution. Furthermore, no one should be discriminated against based on race or sexual orientation. But these are self-evident truths – that we are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable rights – and the advocates of SB 357 are using the auspices of “reducing discrimination” to advance a dangerous agenda that will only result in more hurt and sorrow for the marginalized.

We need to start with an accurate understanding of the factors that lead people to engage in prostitution. While some argue that “sex work” is voluntary and a sustainable career path, anyone who works with and cares for victims of abuse and human trafficking knows that the overwhelming majority of those on the streets are not there by choice.

A large body of scientific research has found a close connection between prostitution and human trafficking. Even if prostitution begins voluntarily for some, a 2012 report prepared for the National Institute of Justice describes it as the “front door” to sexual slavery and trafficking. Furthermore, numerous scientific studies, including the most comprehensive empirical analysis to date covering 150 countries, found that, “on average, countries that legalized prostitution experience a larger degree of reported human trafficking inflows.” Furthermore, studies have found that legalized prostitution does not lead to better protections, and often leads to worse protections for victims of human trafficking.

These quantitative studies are complemented by countless interviews with survivors and former victims — the natural endpoint is a life characterized by disease, drug addiction and forced sexual activity. Indeed, in 2020 between 100,000 and 300,000 victims of human trafficking were identified in the U.S. alone, and these figures do not include unreported cases of people whose whereabouts are unknown or who are prevented from speaking out.

Others, even if not physically trafficked, are emotionally coerced by their captors because of their lack of economic independence and bargaining power. The National Human Trafficking Hotline notes that unstable housing and mental health are among the top risk factors for human trafficking.

The reality is that everyone has hopes, dreams and aspirations — virtually no one voluntarily chooses a life-long career in prostitution. They are either physically trafficked or told that it’s their only option.

In addition to misunderstanding the root cause of prostitution, SB 357 will further marginalize and deepen the already dreadful situation that victims are in. Research by the Department of State has pointed out that prostitution creates a safe haven for criminals. What’s worse, SB 357 eliminates the legal authority that police officers have to investigate instances of sexual coercion and human trafficking. Such capabilities to investigate a potential crime on the street are important for not only immediate interventions but also broader deterrence. In fact, SB 357 creates liability with the threat of lawsuit for any police officer who stops to investigate a potential crime.

And human traffickers and pimps know it. Human traffickers are not just standing idly; they are looking for new ways to manipulate laws and processes to further exploit their victims. Now, they will take advantage of the additional room they have to operate on the streets and mask their illicit activities under the guise that their prostitutes are on the streets by their own volition.

Finally, SB 357 normalizes sex work as a viable career by pretending that everyone in it is there by their own choosing and that there is no need – or even demand – for a police presence on the streets. Many survivors will readily share that feelings of shame and guilt stopped them from crying out for help, and that it was not until a friend, neighbor, family member or law enforcement personnel intervened that they were rescued.

These stories from survivors are also consistent with empirical research that finds a strong link between prostitution and a wide array of extremely dangerous mental and physical health outcomes, relative to their counterparts.

Proponents of SB 357 are celebrating the bill’s provision for survivors to clean or “vacate” previous or pending charges for loitering for the purpose of prostitution (penal code 653.22). But the irony is that AB 262 was signed into law last year and allowed all survivors to vacate not only 653.22 but all trafficking related charges. SB 357’s vacatur language did nothing for survivors. Instead, it extended the ability to vacate loitering for the purpose of prostitution charges to buyers and exploiters — the very people who are perpetuating dehumanization and trafficking. 

The rationale behind SB 357 is based on lofty virtue signaling and utopian hypothesizing, not logic or even economics. Rather than making the streets safer as advocates hope, the legislation will further entrench the discrimination and racism that is embedded in the flagrant violations of dignity and life by human trafficking. California is already facing some of the highest crime rates and a net outflow of people because of its misguided policies. Now one more such policy has been added to the list.

Christos A. Makridis is an economist, entrepreneur and professor. He holds doctorates in economics and engineering from Stanford University. Vanessa Russell is the founding executive director of Love Never Fails (loveneverfailsus.com), a national anti-trafficking organization and professor of computer science and cybersecurity and a co-founder of Pathways To Safety (pathwaytosafety.org), a viable plan to for survivor exit services.