(HorizonPost.com) – New York City Mayor Eric Adams this week suggested that the increase in prostitution in Queens was due to the influx of Venezuelan migrants in the area, the New York Post reported.
Roosevelt Avenue in the Queens neighborhood of Corona has been dubbed the “Market of Sweethearts” as the area has become something of an open-air market for prostitution.
In a press conference on Tuesday, the mayor told reporters that the illegal activity in Corona is just another example of how the ongoing border crisis is impacting New York City. He said people who can’t work or get a job have turned to “illegal activities” to provide for themselves.
Adams said “generational problems” are being created due to the “failure” of the federal government.
In addition to the increased prostitution in Queens, Adams told reporters that another red-light district has cropped up in the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York, where he said the prostitution is even “overt during the day.”
Adams blasted city officials who have described prostitution as a “victimless crime” and are seeking to legalize it, saying that their “idealism” is colliding with reality. He said the real issues surrounding prostitution include the transmission of STDs, the trafficking of young girls, and violence.
He said the city officials seeking to legalize prostitution “don’t understand how serious this is” and have been “impeding” the city’s progress in tackling the problem.
Adams called for a “real partnership” to target the “johns” for prosecution while providing assistance to prostitutes to ensure that they aren’t being forced into prostitution and are not engaging in illegal activity.
In New York State, prostitution is a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to three months in jail and/or a fine of up to $500. It is a Class A misdemeanor to solicit a prostitute and is punishable by up to a year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
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