“It can go from talking to the wrong person in the streets to literally being taken in their sleep because they don’t have a home. “ excerpt from interview with Daija Martin..
 

I didn’t have much luck finding open events or organizations about youth homelessness or Hawaii’s sex trafficking issues these past few weeks.  I had called and emailed a few places, like IHS (Institute for Human services), being told that it would take a couple of weeks in order to set up an interview/tour with them at their womens and childrens shelter.

 

After not being able to find much awareness events about youth homelessness or sex trafficking, I decided to contact my cousin Daija whom I had interviewed, in hopes of doing an interview and feature story on her friend she had mentioned in the interview who was a sex trafficked survivor.  She seemed to have just gotten done with work and she told me that sadly the friend who was a victim moved to the mainland and has a family of her own.  I also felt my cousin was a bit uncomfortable with that idea as well because it is a super personal topic. I had then asked my cousin if she might have known some type of organizations where I could talk to someone who helps youth who have been endangered and now has some type of safe haven to stay at. I got some great info on some places I could possibly contact.

 

The first place I contacted was the church foundation my cousin suggested to call,  Waipahu Lighthouse Center church, a 24 hour emergency center that housed men/women, single adults and children of all ages. I thought this would be a perfect place to do my interview with at least one person who would be willing to speak to me about their experience. I had contacted them about wanting to visit and do an interview and story on the place for my journalism school project about youth homeless and the dangers they face living on the streets, after explaining, they had told me they had sadly shut down the Homeless shelter.

The next place I had contacted was the YMCA, a staff member said there main shelter was downtown, and that they were not available after hours. This will be one of my main places that I am looking into to plan a visit as I didn’t have the time to make it downtown to the YMCA location that week.

 

I had also looked further into intervention organizations who are helping to prevent the youth from being susceptible to such heinous crimes.  I finally had come across one of the main organizations, Hale Kipa, from one of the researched articles I included in my editorial project and that I wanted to continue to do my feature story on, if they were open to it.

 

Youth homelessness starts at the age of 14 on average on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, based on the first study done since 1980 by the University of Hawaii, Waikiki Health, and youth homeless advocate Hale Kipa. Over half of the 151 homeless youth aged 12-24 interviewed, had a parent with substance abuse problems or had been incarcerated. They live in danger where most tried to kill themselves and 13% said they had engaged in "survival sex," exchanging sexual favors in return for shelter, food, drugs, or money, and 84 % were unsheltered within the year.  (Guarnieri, Grace)

 

            The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) provides state-level estimations of homelessness every year. The highest rates of homelessness among states are in Hawaii (465 per 100,000), followed by New York (399) and California (367).  (Rich, Steven)  Based on the latest data from HUD, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed each state’s unsheltered homeless population, individuals who are homeless but are not staying in emergency shelters, transitional housing programs, or safe havens. California has the largest share of homeless residents who are unsheltered nationwide, at 66.4% versus Hawaii 54.4%. (Frohlich, Thomas & Stebbins, Samuel)  Hawaii is the worst state for per capita homelessness in the country, and ties with California for the second-highest percentage of unsheltered homeless youths, according to data from HUD.  (Guarnieri, Grace)

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How can Hawaii, an island state in the US and California, the second largest state in the US, share the second highest rate of unsheltered youth in America?   

Despite the overwhelming statistics of homeless youth, there are certainly barriers for ensuring these youth find shelter from the dangerous streets, due to the beliefs that they are just runaways looking for trouble and the shelters legal and liability constraints for minors. 

 

According to UNITE Hawaii, 80% of the 200-300 child runaways a month in Hawaii are approached by a pimp or trafficker within the first 48 hours. (Worley, Tesia 1/25/18)

 

We knew it was young, but to actually get the data to affirm it, was ‘Wow, this is a real issue,’ The study also exploded the myth that homeless youth “are just a bunch of kids looking for trouble,”  In fact, it’s kids who are victims of abuse who are making rational decisions to find a safer environment.

 

Kent Anderson, Waikiki Health’s chief high-risk services officer, who oversees youth outreach was astonished by the Hale Kipa study results of interviewed youth from Waikiki, downtown and at the homeless encampment next to the Waianae Small Boat Harbor.  Despite a persistent belief that Hawaii’s homeless problem is driven by malihini (a newcomer to Hawaii), the majority of Oahu’s young homeless (56%)  were born in the islands; 59% male, 44% Hawaiian or part Hawaiian, 30% non-Hawaii born, and 22.5% are from military families, the study revealed.  Anderson, who was raised in an Airforce family, didn’t realize that there was such a connection between military families and street youth.  “There’s always the perception that there’s an influx of homeless people moving to Hawaii,” said Ivette Rodriguez Stern, a junior specialist with UH’s Center on the Family. “These are our kids.” (Nakaso).

 

Unlike Hawaii’s adult and family homeless population, there are no shelters specifically for unaccompanied homeless people under the age of 18 because of complex legal and liability issues involving guardianship and parental rights. Up to 600 young homeless people are on their own after the doors close at 6 p.m. while visiting Waikiki Health’s Youth Outreach drop-in center in Waikiki each year. (Nakaso) Alika Campbell, program coordinator at the Youth Outreach, who isn’t surprised by the results, noted;

 

 It's day-to-day survival. Reality is, life on the street anywhere is, 'Where am I going to eat tonight?' 'Where am I going to sleep tonight? How do I protect my stuff tonight? What do I have to do to get by until tomorrow?' (Blair)

           

            While median income in Hawaii is one of the highest, the state is also the most expensive to live, contributing to such hardship. Goods and services cost on average 16.8% more in Hawaii than across the nation, and the median home value of $566,900 is the highest of all states making it a challenge to find affordable housing. (24/7 Wall St.) 

           

            The Street Youth Study by Waikiki Health, Hale Kipa and the University of Hawaii Center on the Family revealed that most homeless youth were victims of domestic abuse or neglect and/or come from impoverished families.  Nearly half 48% experienced homelessness the first time with their families; 40% had been in foster care; 48% had been in juvenile detention; 50% had parents with substance abuse problems; 61% had parents who had been incarcerated; 77 ½% had been emotionally, physically or sexually abused. (Nakaso) 

Living on the streets has negative impacts on physical health, mental health, and overall well-being. Young people experiencing homelessness report exploitation, traumatization, violence and harsh conditions, all of which, impact health and wellness.

While on the streets in Hawaii; 29% had children of their own; 32% performed “self-harming acts” and 58% attempted suicide; 32.5% said they have been diagnosed with a mental illness; 38% have been beaten or physically attacked while homeless; 13% participated in “survival sex,” meaning they had sex in exchange for money, food, drugs or a place to stay.  65% of those who participated in survival sex said they were “forced” to perform sex acts. “They don’t identify it as prostitution,” said Alika Campbell, program coordinator for Hale Kipa. “‘Survival sex’ is, ‘I need a place to stay so I’ll hook up with somebody.’” (Nakaso) 

 

The most alarming facts based on a recent survey by AZ is the large demand for Sex trafficking, a crime that involves minors. Major international military and national sport events create a risk of commercial sexual exploitation to women and girls in Hawaii. The Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women is especially concerned for runaway youth, Native Hawaiian, immigrant, and LGBTQ persons, who are at an elevated risk of the predictive factors for prostitution and sex trafficking. Khara Jabola-Carolus, the Executive Director of the Hawai‘i State Commission on the Status of Women stated,

 

“...a system of prostitution has sexualized and exploited poor, Native, and vulnerable women’s lower social power in Hawai`i. Military, tourist and local men need to adjust their perception of women. No one should have to sell their consent to sex in order to live. No one should get to use their economic power to force consent.” (hawaii.gov)

 

Hawai`i has one of the worst demand problems in America, according to the Sex Trafficking Intervention and Research at Arizona State University.  Hawaii is a hotspot for sex trafficking, according to the first study ever to include Hawaii to place 1 of 58 sex ads on this website over a 2 week period on March 23, 2018.  “We weren’t expecting what we found in Hawaii,” said Dominique Roe-Sepowitz, director of ASU’s Office of Sex Trafficking Intervention Research. “The number of calls and texts generated in 24 hours by one advertisement we placed for Oahu was simply astronomical.” They received 756 contacts: 396 calls and 364 texts within 24 hours, of which, 70% came from 808 Hawaii area code.  Although this is almost twice the number of responses than Chicago and Denver; Kollar, Kauai’s prosecuting attorney, says it generally goes unreported on the island.  In fact, the study shows 1 of every 11 adult male residents of Hawaii has attempted to buy sex from an online advertisement. (Else). The study also noted that police and prosecutors don't have a strategy for addressing sex trafficking in the islands.  From January 2018 to June 2018, Honolulu police arrested just 50 sex buyers. (HNN staff).

 

More people are penalized for jaywalking and homelessness in Hawaii than for illegally buying sex,” said Khara Jabola-Carolus, “And that demand by buyers is what ultimately drives sex trafficking, a crime that often involves the victimization of minors.” “It is clear that we will not be able to arrest our way out of this problem and traffickers know to bring their victims here because we do little to stop them.

 

           If we define the issues that our minors/ youth are endangered by; drug addiction, sexual exploitation, mental depression and suicide issues while living on the streets, but we’re not willing to understand the factors that contribute to youth homelessness, then we won’t make it our responsibility to protect them with support programs and housing resources.

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As I continued on with my research 2 weeks ago, I came across moving survivor stories of young girls who had gotten involved with the sex trafficking rings.

There was a  survivor's story from 2012 in an article from Hawaii Reporter website titled “Hawaii’s Youngest Sex Trafficking Victims ‘Get Out’ When Rescued by First Responders” which was a story about a young girl who was 16 at the time and the youngest sex trafficking worker in a brothel disguised as a massage parlor.  

When Dee Dee was just 16 years old, a pimp forced her to work on the streets of Chinatown and Waikiki as a prostitute. She remembers the first time she was forced to have sex for money, and how scared and humiliated she felt.
After being beaten and raped repeatedly and threatened by her pimp during her “breaking in period ,” she saw no way to escape.
“I did it because my pimp was threatening to kill my family. Because he found out where my family lived. He threatened to kill them or to kill me. So I did it because I was scared. It was mostly out of fear,” Dee Dee told Hawaii Reporter in an exclusive interview about her experiences.
Dee Dee essentially worked as a sex slave. Keeping any of the money she made – even $2 to buy French Fries after working all night – could earn her a severe beating.
“There were consequences all the time,” she said.
And there was no way to hide because  “there was always eyes” on her when she worked on “the track” in Waikiki.
“We called it the gang. Cause there was always the ‘old G’ at the top. Original Gangster, the original pimp, the top guy, he’s the king. … and if my pimp was not there, somebody else would tell him. There were always eyes on me even when I thought the street was empty,” Dee Dee said.
There were other young girls from Hawaii in the same situation. They are forced to take drugs and then controlled by their addictions.
“If you say ‘I don’t touch drugs, I hate those, they are gross,’ the pimp will hold you down and shoot you up. …A lot of times I would see pimps control girls just because of the drugs,” Dee Dee said.

Dee Dee finally escaped, but only because she was picked up by law enforcement after being misidentified as a runaway youth and not a sex trafficking victim. Her parents met her at the police station.

Coming back from the lowest point in her life, she had many emotional, physical and spiritual wounds to heal.
She was put into rehabilitation. But the road to recovery was long and difficult. Having a tough time dealing with terrible flashbacks and severe depression, she tried to kill herself by overdosing on pills.
Kathryn Xian, head of the Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, rescues girls like Dee Dee who are victims of sex trafficking and assists law enforcement to get the pimps prosecuted.
The City & County of Honolulu’s EMS department contacted Xian to ask her to teach paramedics how to identify trafficking victims, how to talk to them in language they will understand, how to keep them out of danger while they are being treated, and ensure they get the help they need.
Honolulu’s emergency responders, especially those who work the overnight shift, encounter girls like Dee Dee after they are beaten by their pimps or when they are strung out on drugs and left in the streets in a bad state.
“We started training all the paramedics on island at the end of June at the request of their Supervisors. It took about two months and we trained over 160 of them in identifying the problem, who may be at risk, identifying the signs, and what to do if they encounter a victim– what to do, what not to do (best practices). We also gave them resources to call for help such as the national hotline number and our local hotline at PASS. We aim to train all health care professionals on island so that they may develop a protocol for responding to these victims. We also covered signs to id labor trafficking victims,” Xian said.
Dr. James Ireland, director of Honolulu’s Department of Emergency Services, said city paramedics save lives daily, but this is an opportunity to save lives in a different way.
“All the credit goes to our EMS Chief Patty Dukes (she is currently on the Mainland at an EMS meeting).  She went to a lunch conference and learned about this issue, and brought the PASS team back to our Department to educate our EMS personnel,” Ireland said.
It makes perfect sense to have the City EMS paramedics educated and helping to “combat this horrendous problem,” he said.
“First of all, the paramedics know the streets well.  Second, their profession is one that is giving; and taking care of others is part of what they do everyday.  Lastly, the back of an ambulance provides a private and secure place to have a heartfelt talk with patients, whatever their problems may be,” Ireland said. “It is during this paramedic-patient interaction, we hope to offer the resources  available in the community for individuals that may be affected by trafficking.  Once at the Emergency Room, it is our hope that they will be able to reach out and get assistance.”
Next steps for PASS will be to coordinate protocols between hospital Emergency Rooms and the paramedics themselves, Xian said, as well as more training for psychiatrists and med students. Her group also trained JABSOM medical students a few months ago as well as residents at Kapiolani Medical Center.

The PASS training program runs about 90 minutes and has already saved at least one young woman. Just last Monday, a woman deemed “high risk” because she was homeless after being abandoned by her family two weeks earlier, was beaten, struck in the face, robbed and left lying on the street.
An EMS paramedic who took the training class called the PASS Hotline to get help for the victim when the she would not accept assistance from first responders. Xian happened to be on call.
The EMS paramedic we spoke to who did not want to be named said she is grateful for the training that helps identify those who might be in trouble, and gives the “town” paramedics the tools they need to reach out to trafficking victims. She believes the training will help save more children.
Dee Dee said she was lucky to get out alive. “The longer you stay and the less hope you have,” she said.
Jana, another young sex trafficking victim we interviewed who also worked the streets of Waikiki, Chinatown and at Rappongi Relaxation in 350 Ward Avenue, agreed Hawaii’s streets are a “very dangerous place to be” … and “scary too.” She was also rescued by law enforcement.
“Cause if you stay in the game, you will never come home. Unless somebody comes and rescues you … like the the cops, or somebody,” Jana said. (Zimmerman) 

 

            I thought this was a big awareness to what really happens to the youth who get trapped into this life threatening and shattering modern day slave trade.  I also wanted to see if the location was still there partly because I did start on a video showing different homeless camps I have already passed by riding downtown in my car.  I plan to include these pictures and videos in my feature story and I so strongly want to find out if this place from this one survivors story is still there after they had exposed the location to the media, and or what is it now, or if it is not torn down by now or changed I wanted to make this apart of my argument of what’s not being done and why this is still an issue.  

 

The stories of these youth survivors coincides with the interview of my cousin Daija who also discussed the fears and dangers of escaping the sex trafficking rings..

Dukes:
This might be the last question. Okay. if you were placed in their shoes, how would you find a way out of it, whether it be living on the streets or potentially victimized by sex trafficking?

Daija:
You know, when it comes to that type of situation. I think for your life’s sake, the best way to get out is being patient, like cause this is your life at stake, however it happens, if there’s an open door you can’t just run for it.  You really have to wait in patience for that right moment, analyze the whole situation to make sure that you can get out safe, you can’t tell nobody, you can’t make no notes of when you do it, you have to think smart, quick and fast, you have to know how to get out.  If the pimps are sleeping, well it’s just so hard because I know that they always watch... so my thing is just it takes a lot of patience because the easiest way to get out for a child is if they are out in broad daylight and there are many witnesses around and just yell. With many people around at least one person will know somethings wrong.  They have to be careful how they yell, that can’t just yell help me they need to be more specific like, “I’m held hostage”, “I’m kidnapped” don't just say, “I’m lost” because they have to be specific in the short amount of time they have.  They might even just be able to get out 2 words and they don’t have time to get out this person isn’t my parent because they might get there mouth covered or something.  They just need to wait for that right moment when they are exposed in front of enough people and just yell for help, somebody’s going to be there to answer because the odds, most likely, of escaping at night or something and where they are taken, there’s always someone watching them so that’s not a possibility.

           

         Hawaii’s sex trafficking issue has been ignored due to lack of public awareness which has caused the exploitation of juveniles to be the worst in the nation.  Daija did a report in 2013 while in High School when the reality of Hawaii’s sex trafficking was not known, possibly because Hawaii didn’t want it exposed to affect its tourism economy.  She noted in her report that there are hundreds of homeless young adults, teens, and even children as young as 10 years old on the streets of Honolulu today. It is estimated that one child every other day in Waikiki is engaged in Prostitution.(Schaefers)  Hawaii received an F in 2012 and 2011 for lack of protections for victims of commercial sexual exploitation, from a nonprofit organization to end sexual slavery called Shared Hope International.   Hawaii only passed house bills: HB 1187 - Protects minor victims of sex and labor trafficking under the state's Child Protective Act, HB 1068 - requires certain employers to display a poster that provides specific information relating to human trafficking and the Natl. Human Trafficking Hotline, but yet the only punishment for sex trafficking criminals was as follows: Senate Bill 192 - establishes solicitation of a minor for prostitution as a Class C felony that carries a minimum $2,000 fine.(Zoellick)  Hawaii only deemed Sex trafficking a class A felony crime (the most severe punishment) with a signed bill in 2016 being the last state in the nation to do so.  The bill also provided funds for law enforcement agencies to test untested sex assault evidence kits. The Honolulu Police Department had about 1,500 rape kits that had not been tested earlier that year. (AP – Star Bulletin)

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          No youth should be homeless with no place to go and forced to make sacrifices to deal with the dangers of the street. For as long as we ignore and foster this era of silence about the domestic abuse/negligence and economic instabilities that cause youth homelessness in Hawaii, we will not be able to address the real dangers that unsheltered homeless youth sacrifice while living on the streets.  

 

“This is an issue that no one was really talking about just a few years ago,” Anderson said. “It’s really been under the radar. We’re hoping that we, as a community, gain a much deeper understanding of what factors contribute to youth getting on the streets, what issues youth face and what can help get youth off of the streets.” (Nakaso)

 

The most disturbing issue to be made aware of was Hawaii’s sex trafficking victimizing minors.  We need to continue to create an awareness for our communities, state and nation to create and fund programs that protect and support versus blame and criminalize these victims as trouble makers going through a phase.  There should be more shelter options, counseling and support centers dedicated to getting minors and young adults off the streets.  Although Hawaii has a drop in support day shelter center, there needs to be more 24 hour youth shelters that have resources to support the youth and create more shelters for both women and minors.

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Academy of Art University Journalism Feature Story by Zhane' Dukes

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