Rhode Island can do better than this Senate bill | Opinion

Tatiana Rothchild
·3 min read

Tatiana Rothchild is a Rhode Island resident and a political science Ph.D. candidate at Northeastern University. Her current research explores state coercion and the role of institutions in the anti-human trafficking movement.

As we approach the third anniversary this March of the murder of six Asian massage workers in a shooting spree, Rhode Island’s legislature is hosting bills that would intentionally exclude Asian massage workers from immunity protections when reporting a crime.

Lawmakers have an opportunity to pass protective laws that include migrant workers and spa workers, but an upcoming Senate hearing for S2441 considers a bill that excludes these groups from immunity when reporting crimes. Immunity laws, like those proposed this year in bills S2441, H7165 and H7307, outline protections from arrest when sex workers, sex trafficking survivors, or their clients report being victim or witness to a crime. Laws like this help focus public safety efforts on crimes against people and violent crimes, including human trafficking, rather than prioritizing moral crimes at the expense of public safety.

More: Rhode Islanders rally against anti-Asian violence and racism

In a survey conducted by COYOTE RI, 88% of Rhode Island sex workers report that they have been the victim or witness of a serious crime that they did not report to police. When they did report, 18% said they were arrested or threatened with arrest and 6% said police wouldn't take their report. Only 6% said that police did take their report.

Activists in Washington, D.C., take part in a rally in response to the Atlanta, Georgia spa shootings that left eight people dead, including six Asian women in March 2021.
Activists in Washington, D.C., take part in a rally in response to the Atlanta, Georgia spa shootings that left eight people dead, including six Asian women in March 2021.

Some 80% of Rhode Island sex workers said they would report crimes to police if there were an immunity law in place. Passing an immunity law would directly increase the number of serious crimes reported.

Two of the bills considered this year, however, S2441 and its sister H7165, offer immunity from prostitution charges only. They do not offer immunity from the most commonly charged prostitution-related misdemeanor, “massage without a license,” for those reporting violent crimes. In recent years, massage without license charges in Rhode Island have made up as much as 81% of prostitution-related misdemeanors and disproportionately target Asian workers.

Testimony for exclusionary bill H7165 has already taken place, while S2441 is being considered by a committee in the coming weeks. During testimony for H7165, an out-of-state interest group testified that protections for Asian spa workers are unnecessary, as they plan to ask the attorney general’s office not to prosecute spa workers for reporting crimes. This demonstrates an incredible ignorance of Rhode Island’s context, where law enforcement can use charges to seize financial assets from workers.

More: Is it time to legalize prostitution in RI? The arguments for and against

In 2021, the Rhode Island attorney general used the state RICO law to seize $650,000 from Grace Kwon, an Asian spa worker who would be excluded from protections under S2441. The money was divided between the Pawtucket Police Department and the attorney general’s office. It is unrealistic to expect law enforcement to voluntarily prioritize investigations into violent crimes over receiving this kind of money.

Asian spa workers are increasingly targeted by local police, Homeland Security and mass shooters. Immunity laws are put in place to standardize and guarantee protections to those targeted by police. The goal of any immunity bill is undermined if the workers most often targeted are excluded from its protection. Supporting public safety with this bill requires including spa workers. Rhode Island sex workers are clearly and loudly calling for any immunity laws passed to include all sex workers and sex trafficking survivors. Legislators should listen to the workers they represent and consider the strong research presented by sex worker-led organizations like COYOTE RI.

You can join Rhode Island’s sex worker community and ask your representatives to vote against S2441. Make it clear to state legislators that excluding migrant workers from basic protections harms all public safety. Rhode Island knows better than to accept legislation that further marginalizes minority workers.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: S2441 excludes migrant workers and spa workers from immunity when reporting crimes.