First of two parts
Dateline Compton – Driving south in dense dinner-hour traffic on Long Beach Boulevard, a visitor does not need signage to determine when he is leaving the city of Lynwood and entering Compton.
Suddenly on the eastern side of the median, the architecture morphs from mom-and-pop businesses to a necklace of unpainted, decidedly uncharming motels.
Magically, as if school has just let out, clusters of teenage girls, all clad in short shorts, instantly appear. They are strolling and trolling, as if they inextricably chained to the drab nearest motel. Lurking nearby, you can be sure, but out of pedestrian view, are the girls’ ever-vigilant pimps. Not far from them are eager but desperate, not-to-be-noticed johns.
The same cast takes the stage every evening, as if they were SAG members grateful for a gig just as their stomachs resumed growling.
The scenario is so familiar, so ho-humly etched into the hard-to-impress psyches of the thousands of Compton residents and daily drive-throughs on Long Beach Boulevard that no one took notice.
Until last evening when the NAACP was shocked into action.
Galvanized by a horrendous recent act – when law enforcement found an 8-year-old prostitute with a customer – the NAACP was motivated to demand closure of the Hub Motel, where the child was found.
[img]2072|right|Paulette Simpson-Gipson||no_popup[/img]Paulette Simpson-Gipson, president of the NAACP’s Compton chapter, assembled an array of civic and religious leaders who made three significant pronouncements while gathered for a press conference in front of the imposing Muhammad Mosque of Compton, across the street from the notorious Hub:
• To seek the fulltime help of the County Sheriff’s Dept. in arresting and prosecuting what they said is the root of the problem, the pimps and johns rather than the girls, whom they called mostly “manipulated” innocent pawns.
• Leaders and motivated residents would “regularly” patrol the sidewalks in front of the seedy motels, hoping to discourage or shame customers into returning to the shadows while giving the girls more time to think about what they are doing.
• On a much smaller basis, church leaders spoke of directly dealing with the girls themselves, offering them safe, unthreatened paths to permanent shelter.
Is There a Will?
The looming, still dangling, most critical question remains:
Does sufficient will exist within the city of Compton’s decision-makers and law enforcement to reverse an entrenched tragedy?
The answer, in the short term, is unclear.
Ms. Simpson-Gipson thanked one Minister Roberts of the mosque “for bringing this problem to our attention.
“Starting tonight,” she vowed, “we are in this for the long haul. We are going to be taking to the streets. We are going to be in front of the motels on a regular basis. We are going to let them know these girls, who are babies, are not going to be treated as if they were meat on the market.
“This has to stop. And it has to stop now. Sometimes we turn a blind eye, but these kids belong to all of us. This has to be a thing of the past.”
They Will Be Noticed
The crowd of leaders was eye-catching as it traveled from the west side of Long Beach Boulevard, at a peak traffic hour, to the slummier side of the street, largely because the numerous members of the mosque present were immaculately attired in smart suits, crisp white shirts, and a mixture of bow ties and standard neckties. They were the only persons along the lengthy urban stretch so dressed.
“When we heard an 8-year-old got picked up, that did it,” Ms. Simpson-Gipson said.
“Even though any minor is unacceptable, an 8-year-old! Any pervert who sleeps with an 8-year-old needs to be dealt with.
“No longer can we allow the Sheriff or anybody else to allow our babies to walk the streets and think it is okay.”
The NAACP leader said the under-age prostitution crisis “has been at this level for a long time. It is so common that people think it is okay, and nothing can be done about it.
[img]1797|right|Isaac Galvan||no_popup[/img]City Hall was represented by a determined young City Councilman Isaac Galvan, who just took office six weeks ago.
Not accustomed to public speaking, he made an impressive presentation in declaring that he was archly committed to subtracting a what undeniably soils his community’s reputation.
In tomorrow’s final installment Mr. Galvan will discuss his strategy for eliminating the human and architectural blight.
(To be continued)
