Shocking video shows sex workers PIMPING outside elementary school after California guv legalized prostitute loitering
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: A shocking video has emerged which shows women who appear to be sex workers soliciting directly outside a Catholic elementary school in East Oakland, California, raising sex trafficking concerns in the area. Young women, who some police fear may be trafficked, are seen walking around St Anthony's K-8 grade school off East 15th Street in Oakland at all hours of the day.
This information was made available by students' parents and city officials who spoke with ABC News. This comes only 30 days after California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new law decriminalizing loitering for prostitutes. According to the Democratic legislator who proposed the bill, transgender people were unfairly singled out under the previous system because of their appearance.
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Sex workers were seen loitering outside a Catholic Elementary school in Oakland
Rosa Vargas claimed to see them every day as she dropped off her daughter at school. "You have to be very alert in this neighborhood, as I told you, they've followed me a couple times," said Vargas, talking about known pimps in the area.
On Tuesday, January 31, Vargas called the Oakland Police Department and asked for cops to visit the area to check it out while picking up her daughter from school just before 3 pm. A young girl wearing black stilettos was seen crossing the street from the school just outside her car. "My daughter asked if I liked what the girl was wearing," said Vargas. She added, "I told her don't turn around, don't look. It's not OK."
Vargas further stated that the women are barely dressed and sometimes even completely naked. One video, which was taken on Monday, January 30, captured a mother crossing the street with her young child as two woman were soliciting right in front of the school entrance.
"Do you see this every day?" ABC7's Stephanie Sierra asked. "It's every day, during all periods of the day," said Vargas. "Are the women directly in front of the school gate?" Sierra asked. "Yes," said Vargas, adding, "just last week they were blocking the entrance of the parking structure, where they were having basketball games."
Senator Scott Wiener denied claims that the prevalence of sex workers outside the school was caused by his bill
Senator Scott Wiener refuted any suggestions that his bill, which took effect on January 1, was to blame for the sex workers outside of schools. He countered that the issue had existed for many years. "That is absolutely dead wrong, SB 357 has been in effect for 30 days. This problem has existed for far longer," said Weiner. In California, prostitution is still prohibited in general.
"We don't want our students to witness the perils of human trafficking," said Rodney Pierre-Antoine, who oversees various Catholic elementary schools. He further said that the introduction of the new bill had prevented police from conducting effective enforcement. "With the passage of the loitering bill, their hands are somewhat handcuffed," he said. However, Wiener countered him saying, "The police's hands are not tied. They can arrest people for soliciting, they can cite vehicles stopped in the middle of the street, they can arrest johns, they can arrest pimps. If they have cause to believe solicitation is happening, they can arrest for solicitation."