The news article I read
about was about completely getting rid of the institution of prostitution. One
of the main reasons that the people involved in the article wanted to get rid
of prostitution is because it is harmful to women, i.e. through violence, and
receiving criminal records for selling sex. The article highlighted that it is
mainly the woman who gets arrested or serves time for selling sex instead of
the “John” for soliciting sex. Normal Hataling, who had previous dealings with
prostitution, created an organization called SAGE (Standing Against Global
Exploitation) to help women involved in prostitution. The program provides job
training and rehabilitation services for prostitutes as well as options to make
“Johns” more aware of the realities of prostitution. The arrest rate for repeat
“Johns” who attended the SAGE programs and community service was shockingly low.
The program makes sure to keep its doors open for women even in need, even if
they have turned to prostitution again. The article then goes onto detail the
author’s personal crusade against prostitution throughout the 80s, 90s, and up
to the present day.
I would say that I
agree with the author of this article. I feel as if most women who voluntarily enter
into prostitution do it to make quick cash and then plan to quit once they
reach a pre-established personal goal. The problem with that is some of these
women often don’t have job experience/skills required to get a regular job and
therefore they are trapped in the cycle of hooking on the streets. This article
reminded me of a documentary I once watched on HBO called Hookers At the Point.
In the first documentary some of the women had vowed to be done with
prostitution by the end of the year but in the follow up documentary some of
them were still walking the same track. There is more to the prostitution
lifestyle than just having sex for money. Some women get raped, abused, or hooked
on drugs. These three factors can severely damage their self-esteem making it
harder for them to quit prostitution, or make them so dependent on their drug
that the only way they can support their habit is by prostituting. Prostitution
is an age old profession that may never go away but perhaps in the near future
we can make it easier for women who want to leave that lifestyle behind and
give them more options for a brighter, less damaging future.
I agree completely. This brings to mind a music video that I saw recently, entitled "The A Team" by Ed Sheeran. It gives the story of a homeless British prostitute who dies of a drug overdose. When I was on my gap year living in Rio de Janeiro for three months, I didn't understand this institution as much as I do now and on weekends when I would go out with the other volunteers, we would sometimes see prostitutes standing around in the street and smirk at each other. You can see how I regret it now that I understand what their lives might be like. This really is a global problem that deserves attention and abolition.
ReplyDeleteThis is obviously an organization that is trying to eliminate prostitution globally. Try to make that more clear in your analysis and summary. Good summary, try to talk a little more about how it is a problem women's rights issue, as well as how it affects women globally.
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