Concordia University - Portland CU Commons Undergraduate Theses Spring 2018 City of Roses: Sexual Exploitation in Portland, Oregon Olivia Meyer Concordia University - Portland Follow this and additional works at: http://commons.edu/theses Part of the Arts and Humanities Commons CU Commons Citation Meyer, Olivia, "City of Roses: Sexual Exploitation in Portland, Oregon" (2018).edu/theses/163 This Open Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by CU Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Undergraduate Theses by an authorized administrator of CU Commons. For more information, please contact libraryadmin@cu-portland. City of Roses: Sexual Exploitation in Portland, Oregon A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES AND THE COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES By OLIVIA MEYER THESIS DIRECTOR: MICHAEL A.
THOMAS Approved by: ________________________________________ _____________ Thesis Director Date ________________________________________ _____________ Department of Humanities Chair Date ________________________________________ _____________ Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences Date ________________________________________ _____________ Provost Date Concordia University Portland, Oregon 4/16/2018 1 2 ABSTRACT In 2009, the U. Department of Justice funded a report on child trafficking that revealed that Portland, Oregon is one of the national hubs for child sex trafficking. The goals of this thesis are to investigate the web of characteristics of larger Portland metropolitan area that have contributed to the high prevalence of sexual exploitation of women and children. This research is aimed to close the gap in our understanding of the extent and nature of Portland’s local sex trafficking trade.
An exploration of Portland’s location and culture, especially its placement on the I-5 corridor, libertine sex culture, and the prevalence of legal and illegal sex businesses, allows us to start to understand the contributing factors of sexual exploitation in the Portland community. This thesis also investigates methods of recruitment and the sorts of persons who fall victim to sex trafficking and the economic structures that underlay this problem. Finally, possible solutions will be suggested to ameliorate sexual exploitation in the “City of Roses.” 3 4 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………….13 Chapter One: Characteristics of Portland………………………………………………………21 I-5 Corridor………………………………………………………………………………22 Portland International Airport……………………………………….25 Chapter Two: Sex Culture of Portland………….……………………………………………29 Zoning Laws, Licensing, and Fees………………………………………………………31 Strip Clubs……………………………………………………………………………….36 Chapter Three: Victims……………………………………………………………………….39 Methods of Recruitment……………………………………………………………….42 Minors……………………………………………………………………………………43 Homeless Population…………………………………………………………………….47 Chapter Four: Economic Framework of Sex Trafficking…………………………………….50 Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery……………………………….51 Seattle: A Case Study…………………………………………………………………….55 Chapter Five: Solutions……………………………………………………………………….61 Stigmatization of Prostitution in the U.64 Decriminalization of Prostitution in Sweden…………………………………………….72 6 7 For JoAnn Rae 8 9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS R. You always have been and will always be my greatest role model.
You have defined the person I am today. I’ll love you forever; I’ll like you for always. As long as I’m living, my Momma, you'll be. Thank you for being you.
You are my home and greatest adventure. I am grateful to have you in my life. Thank you for your unconditional friendship and support. You have educated me both inside and outside the classroom with fundamental life lessons.
Thank you for your endless encouragement. I would like to express my sincerest thanks to my thesis advisor, Dr. Michael Thomas, whose guidance, patience, and input it has been imperative to accomplishing this project. 10 11 12 City of Roses: Sexual Exploitation in Portland, Oregon “Truths and Roses have thorns about them.” ~ Henry David Thoreau INTRODUCTION In the year 1851 Portland had only eight hundred residents.
Eventually it grew and flourished to become Oregon's largest city, as it was one of the centers of the industrial boom in the Pacific Northwest, specifically connected to the harvesting and processing of timber. In order to keep up with the rate of Portland’s expansion and accelerated growth, trees were cut down rapidly. Their stumps were left in place. This is the origin of one of Portland’s nicknames: “Stumptown.” Today nearly a quarter of a million people reside in the “City of Roses” and up to two million people live in the greater metropolitan area surrounding the city.
Portland sits geographically in a spectacular setting. Travel an hour outside of the metropolitan area and Mount Hood offers year-round skiing while the Oregon coast presents 350 miles of largely undeveloped, publicly accessible coastline. It is thriving city with a liberal reputation that embraces progressive values. Portland has earned a spot on many “best cities” lists in several major magazines including Travel + Leisure,1Forbes,2 and TIME magazine.3 For this reason in part, Portland has become a desired place to live, as it features all the cultural advantages of a major city.
Streets throughout the city have recently become home to a variety of food carts. It is possible to eat at a Portland food 1 Jacqueline Gifford, "The Top 15 Cities in the United States" last modified July 12, 2017.com/worlds-best/cities-in-us#portland-oregon 2 Kurt Badenhausen, "Portland, Ore., Leads the Best Places for Business and Careers 2017" last modified October 30, 2017.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2017/10/24/portland-ore-rates-as-the- best-place-for-business-and-careers-2017/#8f3c7a5143ee 3 "The 6 Best Big Cities," Time, last modified September 17, 2016, http://time.com/money/collection- post/4490477/the-best-big-cities/. 13 cart every night for two years before one would be forced to eat at the same place twice.4 One can find craft breweries or local coffee roasters on just about every block. The Portland metropolitan area proudly holds the title of the largest craft beer capital of the world due to its density of breweries.5 The city recently was the subject of its own hit comedy television show: Portlandia.
This comedy introduced Portland’s quirkiness to the nation.6 This trendy city is home to many emerging artists, eccentric shops, beautiful parks, bridges, bikes and more bikes. Portland is the leading city in bicycle commuting in the U.7 Other cultural icons include the Bagdad Theater, the world-famous Voodoo Doughnuts, and Powell’s Books on Burnside. Not only is the city a prime cultural destination, Portland has attracted multi- million-dollar companies as a world-class destination to set up shop with its emerging creative energy, phenomenal outdoor arena, and dynamic workforce. Portland and the surrounding suburbs have become breeding grounds for leading industries such as technology, manufacturing, healthcare, athletic and outdoor apparel.
The area’s popularity has attracted companies to headquarter in or near Portland’s city center. Nike, Intel, Boeing, Columbia Sportswear, Adidas, and others have headquarters or have major divisions in the greater Portland area. Within the next year, Airbnb,8 Amazon,9 and 4 Spencer McKee, "52 Facts About Portland You Probably Didn't Know - Movoto" last modified February 24, 2018.com/guide/portland-or/portland-facts/ 5 John Foyston, "World's best beer city is Portland, Oregon; 23 reasons why" last modified November 19, 2014.com/travel/article/portland-best-beer-city/index.html 6 Greg Braxton, "Last chance to put a bird on it: 'Portlandia' closes up its painfully hip artisanal shop this season" last modified January 18, 2018.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-portlandia-final- season-20180118-story.html 7 Jennings Brown, "Most bike-friendly cities in the U.S" last modified July 12, 2017.com/travel/article/america-most-bike-friendly-cities/index.html 8 Mike Rogoway, "Airbnb confirms plans for Portland hub, plans to hire 160 this year" last modified March 14, 2014.com/siliconforest/index.ssf/2014/03/airbnb_confirms_plans_for_port.html 9 John Bell, "Amazon to nearly double Portland footprint with big lease in Broadway Tower" last modified January 16, 2018.com/article/money/business/amazon-to-nearly-double-portland- footprint-with-big-lease-in-broadway-tower/283-508561879 14 Google10 plan to expand further into the area. The tech corridor, anchored by Intel, is located in the western suburbs of Portland.
This has led to the moniker of the “Silicon Forest” for its high-tech employment.11 It is no wonder Portland was ranked third of the 200 best U. metropolitan areas for business and careers in Forbes magazine.12 Portland's popularity and success however has exacerbated many problems, some of which have a long and dark history. Portland's commercial and industrial growth has forced rapid expansion and construction which in turn has increased the cost of living greatly. Consequently, the Portland metro area was recently declared to be in a state of emergency for housing by the Portland City Council.13 As a result, crime and the homeless population are climbing at an alarming rate.14 Over the past two years, the homeless population in Multnomah County has increased by nearly 10 percent.15 It has been estimated that about three-fourths of Portland’s homeless are addicted to drugs or alcohol, and roughly half struggle with mental illness.16 Homelessness in Portland is caused in part by rising rents, lack of low-income affordable housing, few employment opportunities for unskilled workers, low availability of affordable health, mental health and addiction care, and is exacerbated by the mild climate.
Today, Portland has one of the highest percentage of homeless youth in the nation. 10 Mike Rogoway, “Google opens new, $600 million Oregon data center” last modified August 28, 2017.com/silicon-forest/index.ssf/2015/04/google_opens_new_oregon_data_c.html 11 Joseph Cortright, “Growing the Silicon Forest” (thesis, Portland State University, 2000), 7-12. 12 Badenhausen, "Portland, Ore., Leads the Best Places for Business and Careers 2017." 13 Jessica Floum, "Portland 'housing emergency' and renter protections up for extension at Portland City Council" last modified October 04, 2017.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/10/portland_housing_emergency_and. 16 Michael J Totten, "Portland's Homeless Challenge" last modified March 08, 2016.org/html/portland%E2%80%99s-homeless-challenge-14185.html 15 Along with the housing crisis and rise of homelessness, the Portland community, like many large cities in the United States, combats violence.
It is not uncommon to hear of altercations, shootings, stabbings, and other violent crimes when tuning in to the local news. Some of this violence is caused by high racial tensions in local neighborhoods.17 Gentrification of local neighborhoods due to rapidly increasing property values in the city has led to landlords evicting tenants so they can remodel and raise rents.18 Recent audits found leasing agents and landlords discriminating against people of color by citing higher deposits, rent rates, and additional fees.19 Racism in Portland persists today, but it is often hidden in rent hikes, eviction notices, and even violence. In the aftermath of the Great Depression, Portland became increasingly racist. At the time, Portland was one of the most openly racist cities outside of the south.
Oregon openly enacted racial laws that legally excluded African American and minority populations from employment, residence in certain areas of the city, exclusion from restaurants and theaters, and some laws even prohibited interracial marriages.20 At the height of WWII, the Oregon Shipbuilding Company was established in Portland for the construction of ships used during the war. Minority laborers from across the nation flooded into the area to lend their efforts which created a severe housing shortage. In order to accommodate the workers of the shipyards, a temporary housing project was constructed in less than a year. In 1942, Vanport was established.
17 Alana Semuels, "The Racist History of Portland, the Whitest City in America," last modified July 22, 2016.com/business/archive/2016/07/racist-history-portland/492035/ 18 Melanie Sevcenko, "Soaring rents in Portland lead to more evictions and homelessness" last modified February 11, 2016.com/us-news/2016/feb/11/portland-oregon-housing-rent- homelessness 19 Floum, "Portland 'housing emergency' and renter protections up for extension at Portland City Council." 20 Kirk Johnson, "Portland Killings Dredge Up Legacy of Racist Laws in Oregon" last modified June 04, 2017.com/2017/06/04/us/portland-killings-racist-laws-oregon.html 16 Vanport was never meant to become an established community. It was built as a temporary solution to house temporary workers. The cheap and rushed construction of Vanport was made up of “cracker-box houses” that lacked solid foundations.21 At its height, the 40,000 residents of Vanport made it Oregon's second largest city.22 African Americans and minorities made up a large part of the migratory population, therefore Portland's racial profile began to change.23 On May 30th of 1948, the makeshift railroad dike holding back the Columbia River broke, flooding the Vanport community. Within ten minutes the second largest city in Oregon was demolished.
The flood took the lives of fifteen people and displaced the majority of African American and minority populations of Oregon.24 The line of racial discrimination hardened as it was impossible for families of color to find housing in only the areas they were legally allowed to reside in.25 The legacy of Vanport sheds an uncomfortable light on Portland's racist history and discriminatory housing policies. Issues of affordability, entrenched racism, gentrification, and homelessness may seem at odds with the reputation of this city known for its progressivism. Before Portland was known as a progressive city, it was known as a western port town. Home to mainly men during its settlement period, laws were lax and lawlessness reigned.