Monday, November 22, 2010

Exposing the "Lot Lizards"


My dad is a truck driver. He has been a truck driver all of my life and for a while, he was a “long-haul” trucker. I vividly remember riding in the car with him one day when we passed a tractor trailer with a “no lot lizards” sticker displayed very obviously on one of the cab doors. “Dad, what’s a “lot lizard?” “Oh, it just means the hookers at truck stops.”

According to the renowned “urban dictionary,” a “lot lizard” can be defined this way: trashy, street-level, female prostitutes who frequent some truck-stop parking lots and rest areas at night. Most lot lizards openly "advertise" using CB radios; others boldly walk from truck to truck randomly knocking on doors.

Prostitution is not a new issue, not even close… especially prostitution surrounding the trucking industry. But, who are these women – really? Just a few minutes of perusal of the online community of truckers (such as http://roubdtable.truck.net) will give you their answer to this question. Some truckers aren’t shy about posting such opinions as, “…the Lizards are coming out of everywhere and infesting the parkin’ lots lets run over ‘em,” or “I’m envisioning a device modified from a TAZER that ZAPS the SKANK when she touches the mirror mount for instance.” It seems the prevalent opinion among truckers is that these women are simply a dirty nuisance.

It turns out, in fact, that the term “lot lizard” could easily be replaced with the term “victim.” What would happen if a trucker saw someone who was underage, abused, forced, threatened, and enslaved knocking on their window instead of someone who is a dirty, STD infested, smelly hooker just trying to earn a buck? The former is proving to be more and more of the case in our country. Many estimate that around 300,000 U.S. children are forced into sexual slavery in our country every year. They are recruited, manipulated, addicted, and used to meet the demand of buyers and feed the money hungry pimps who enslave them. And it happens every day, probably within a few miles of where you live.

Fortunately, this perception does not have to continue. Many are stepping up and speaking out among their communities about the reality of the lives of these victims. Agencies such as The Defenders USA (defendersusa.org) and Truckers Against Trafficking (truckersagainsttrafficking.com) are focusing on educating truckers and calling them to action. We can also be a part of this change by being aware and being a voice. Most of us know a trucker or know someone who knows a trucker. Talk to them. Educate them. If you suspect there is a situation happening like this near you, you can call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-3737-888. Together we can change the atmosphere.

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