Over 3,300 California massage parlors are fronts for sex trafficking, report says

A report from the Polaris Project states that there are over 3,300 massage parlors in California posing as fronts for sex trafficking. A report from the Polaris Project states that there are over 3,300 massage parlors in California posing as fronts for sex trafficking. Photo: Silvia Boratti / EyeEm/Getty Images/EyeEm Photo: Silvia Boratti / EyeEm/Getty Images/EyeEm Image 1 of / 44 Caption Close Over 3,300 California massage parlors are fronts for sex trafficking, report says 1 / 44 Back to Gallery

A recent report by the Polaris Project, an anti-human trafficking organization, found that there are over 3,300 massage parlors in California that are posing fronts for sex trafficking.

The report states that there are at least 9,000 "illicit massage businesses" nationwide, meaning that California is home to a third of these establishments. The estimated revenue of these businesses is $2.5 billion annually.

"There may be women who choose to sell sex either along with or under the guise of massage therapy," the report states. "But evidence suggests that many of the thousands of women engaging in commercial sex in massage parlors are victims of human trafficking."

The authors of the report note that women who are forced into the business are usually women who "recently arrived from China or South Korea, carry debts or are otherwise under extreme financial pressure, speak little or no English, have no more than a high school education, are in their mid 30s to late 50s, [and] are mothers."

"While some [businesses] keep a low profile, many others blatantly advertise 'Asian gals,' or bear sexualized names like 'Good Girl Spa,'" the report states.

The Polaris Project states that there are at least 181 illicit massage businesses operating in San Francisco and 244 operating in San Jose. The report names Los Angeles, Orange and Santa Clara counties as the counties with the highest number of illicit massage businesses in the state.

The report also notes that San Francisco had 400 of these businesses just three years ago, but San Francisco's Department of Public Health has helped shut many of them down.

Indicators that a massage parlor may be engaging in commercial sex include low prices, a locked front door where customers can only enter if buzzed in or through a side door, and covered windows.

In addition, if a parlor appears to only have male clientele or if women appear to be living there, the establishment may be an illicit massage business.

The report also answers the question of "why don't the women just leave," stating that traffickers often use coercive methods to frighten the victims.

These coercive methods include telling victims that they will be arrested for prostitution or deported by immigration officials if they try to leave the business as well as threatening to tell victims' family members back home that "they have shamed them by having sex with thousands of men."

The Polaris Project suggests a number of potential legal solutions to end illicit massage businesses in the United States. Some of these solutions include discouraging law enforcement from arresting these women for prostitution and instead connecting them with a network of service providers who offer pathways to economic empowerment.

The authors also list a number of ways individuals can help, including advocating for tighter regulations of the massage business at the local level and "sharing what you know about massage parlor trafficking."