M. Poole, Human Trafficking Institute, Beyond Hospitality: Hotel Liability for Trafficking, https://traffickinginstitute.org/beyond-hospitality-hotel-liability-for-trafficking/
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word ‘hospitality?’ Perhaps something along the lines of vacation, getaway, or even bed and breakfast… Well, Steven Babin from Babin Law in Ohio sees it as an opportunity for traffickers. Babin has been outing large hotel chains as some of the most common human trafficking sites in the United States by filing over forty lawsuits since 2019. In some cases, staff members were aware of the illegal activities taking place and simply turned a blind eye.
A post by The New Yorker details similar instances dating back to 2018 in Marietta, Georgia at a Days Inn where hotel management facilitated sex-trafficking by allegedly accepting Ecstasy and Pot in exchange for discounted hotel rooms. Author Bernice Yeung describes the place as hidden yet accessible — located between a freeway, strip malls, and a maze of offices, the hotel blends into the background while attracting loads of customers. Here, Yeung highlights the interconnectedness of the legitimate economy and human trafficking. Referring to a 2018 Polaris Survivor Survey, over sixty-percent of sex-trafficking victims were forced to sell themselves from hotels (Yeung).
These crimes can be sufficiently summed up as ‘hidden in plain sight,’ much like the recently uncovered tunnels and crawl spaces hotel patrons have shared on Tik Tok. One particular traveler, @real_spill0, shares a shocking discovery at a Days Inn hotel next to Miami international Airport. The video portrays the patron unearthing a tight crawl space under a loosened floor tile concealed by wooden closet doors.
Another traveler, by the name of Diana Albers Ramirez, was vacationing with her husband in Mexico. The two also shared a brief tour of the stunning rental room before a closer look showed what seems to be a hidden passageway. Behind the closet doors lies a thin sliver down the center of the wooden panel. The patron’s husband pries open the small crevice using his key card, exposing a small door with a one-way handle. Upon opening the small door, he revealed a deepening tunnel.
Video goes viral on Reddit
Many of us believe these instances are exclusively fictional, as indicated by Ramirez’ TikTok video, which was conveniently titled “I found a secret ‘Narnia,’ passage in my hotel room closet.” However, for the real victims involved, these tight, unsanitary and concealed spaces are used for purposes antithetical to the world of Narnia. For the real human beings involved, a hotel or resort acts as the middleman who facilitates human-trafficking and forced sex labor. In between innocent family holidays, pimps and traffickers lure young, vulnerable travelers into “the game,” otherwise known as modern human slavery.
The question remains: How do large hotel chains and reputable hospitality establishments stay unaccountable for their upkeep of human-trafficking? Should hotel owners be held accountable at a local level like attorney Zach Klein suggests or is there a fundamental issue with the hospitality industry that persists human captivity and abuse (D’Eon)?
Works Cited
Alban, Jack. “‘Somebody Carved That out’: Days Inn Guest Says He Found Secret Tunnel in Room.” The Daily Dot, 22 May 2023, http://www.dailydot.com/news/days-inn-human-trafficking-tunnel/.
Diaz, Adriana. “I Found a Secret ‘narnia’ Passage in My Hotel Room Closet.” New York Post, New York Post, 26 June 2023, nypost.com/2023/06/26/i-found-a-secret-narnia-passage-in-my-hotel-room-closet/.
D’Eon, Carly. “More than 40 Human Trafficking Lawsuits Filed against Hotel Companies.” 10tv.Com, 28 Apr. 2023, http://www.10tv.com/article/news/local/more-than-40-human-trafficking-lawsuits-filed-hotel-companies/530-b0c54a7c-6fe0-4d5d-800f-a3e8a89d3bba.
Tourism, Walla. “This Traveler Uncovered a Secret Corridor behind Her Hotel Room’s Closet.” The Jerusalem Post | JPost.Com, http://www.jpost.com/omg/article-754004. Accessed 1 Oct. 2023.