Zona Norte (officially ''Colonia Zona Norte'', "North Zone (neighborhood)") is an official neighborhood, as well as a

red light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are partic ...

located in

Tijuana, Mexico Tijuana ( ,"Tijuana"
(US) and < ...

. It is among the largest red-light districts in North America known for its

brothels A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub pa ...

, which present themselves in public as strip clubs and bars, similar to gentlemen's clubs in the United States. Many bars and strip clubs in Tijuana's red light district in which women are the feature entertainment also operate as brothels, which offer attached hotel rooms for short intervals of time. Many other bars, styled "lady bars", function as less explicit social clubs where prostitutes and nude sex shows are not accommodated on site, but ''fichas'' (drinks for the working ladies) are offered at elevated prices, and freelance prostitutes look for clients. Tropical_Bar_and_Hotel_Rizo_de_Oro

These compare in most respects to the hostess bars in Japan. The red light district in Tijuana is also known for

street prostitution Street prostitution is a form of sex work in which a sex worker solicits customers from a public place, most commonly a street, while waiting at street corners or walking alongside a street, but also other public places such as parks, benches, e ...

, particularly behind the main strip clubs on Calle Coahuila, in a large high-traffic alley named "Primer Callejón Coahuila". Illicit drug sales are also common to the red light district, which happens night and day in plain view because the local police tolerates it in the form of collecting their commission. The dealer's selling phrase is "¿Cuantos?" meaning "How much?" in Spanish. Heroin use and theft, not common elsewhere in Mexico, are rampant here. Bar_La_Carreta_2018

Due to its proximity to

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, it is frequented by

US citizens Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constitu ...

, as well as locals. The district is also known as La Coahuila for the name of the primary avenue that runs through it.

Location

Zona Norte is bordered by

Downtown Tijuana Downtown Tijuana, officially ''Colonia Zona Centro'', is an official neighborhood of Tijuana, Mexico. It is located within the Centro (Borough), Central Borough ("Delegación Centro") of the city, immediately southwest of the San Ysidro Port of En ...

(Zona Centro) on the south,

Zona Río Zona Río (English: "River Zone") is an official zone, and the main modern business district, of the city of Tijuana, Mexico. Zona Río is located at a strategic point, in the north of the city, about from the U.S.-Mexico border and from Downto ...

on the east, San Diego and the

Mexico–United States border The Mexico–United States border ( es, frontera Estados Unidos–México) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traver ...

on the north, and colonia Castillo on the west. Politically, the Zona Norte neighborhood is part of the Delegación Centro (Central Borough). Tijuana's red light district itself encompasses just a couple of blocks within Zona Norte. The unofficial boundaries of the red light district extend from Avenida Revolución to Av. Miguel F. Martinez, east to west, and from Baja California to Calle Primera, north to south. The focal point of the red light district, however, is the core block bordered by Calle Coahuila on the north and Primer Callejón Coahuila on the south between Constitucion and Niños Heroes.

Prostitution

Prostitution is permitted in Tijuana's red light district, designated a ''zona de tolerancia'', or "tolerance zone." Legal prostitution within the city requires sex workers to obtain a permit and be subjected to monthly health checkups.

Brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

s in Tijuana, many of them modeled on

strip clubs Strip or Stripping may refer to: Places * Aouzou Strip, a strip of land following the northern border of Chad that had been claimed and occupied by Libya * Caprivi Strip, narrow strip of land extending from the Okavango Region of Namibia to ...

and

hostess club A hostess club is a type of night club found primarily in Japan. They employ primarily female staff and cater to men seeking drinks and attentive conversation. The modern host club is a similar type of establishment where primarily male staff atte ...

s, must also conform to certain health regulations, such as standards of cleanliness, fixed operating hours, and be placed a regulated distance from schools or day care centers. In addition to established brothels, there are prostitutes who work outside on the ''callejones'' or alleys and are referred to as ''paraditas'',

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

for "the standing girls", for their practice of standing on the street to advertise their services. Paraditas have been regarded as part of Tijuana's cultural history, and attempts to force the women off the streets to curb such public advertising have proven unpopular and unsuccessful. These street workers are legal prostitutes who simply prefer the relatively quiet environment of the street to the loud music and smoky atmosphere of the bars.

Problems

Illegal drug sales occur in Zona Norte.

Substance abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

is not uncommon. 10% of hospitalizations in Tijuana are for

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

Michael Hemmingson Michael Hemmingson (July 12, 1966 – January 9, 2014) was a novelist, short story writer, literary critic, cultural anthropologist, qualitative researcher, playwright, music critic and screenwriter. He died in Tijuana, Mexico on 9 January 2 ...

's ethnographic study, ''Zona Norte: The Post-Structural Body of Erotic Dancers and Sex Workers in Tijuana, San Diego, and Los Angeles'', found that many of these girls lie about their age, saying they are 19–22, and do not work the streets, but special brothels. The study suggests much of trafficking claims are exaggerated by organizations with political,

moral A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader, or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim. A ...

, and religious agendas.

References

{{San Diego–Tijuana Border, state=expanded Neighborhoods in Tijuana Red-light districts in Mexico Red-light districts Prostitution

Location

Prostitution

Problems

See also

References