The STOPLight

Author enlightened by research

I knew it was a concern but didn't know its magnitude or the extent of child prostitution. Information about child prostitution was very difficult to know. I was aware of a problem in Asia but didn't know much about the United States except that it was around, that it wasn't pretty, and that a high percentage of prostituted women are sexual abuse survivors. What I found most surprising was how undifferent the U.S. is from Asian countries; in many ways the problems are parallel.

Sue and I are both feminist activists interested in similar issues. When Sue tackles a social issue, it's "get on your white horse, fight the demons, win the battle" - fix the problem. I feel social problems are more entrenched; that direct strategies may be least effective. Finding a common voice for the book was difficult but our partnership worked well.

It's not as easy for me not to see prostitution. For example, when the American Academy of Religion met in New Orleans five years ago, I went to the French Quarter and did all the things tourists do there. I didn't notice the prostitutes. Last year it was very obvious to me. In fact, at the panel discussion for our book, a woman from the audience said, "I'd like to bring this home. I'd like to talk about the hookers in the lobby and outside the hotel. What are we doing about this?" Five years ago, I didn't have a clue but this time I knew exactly what she was talking about.

Researching and writing the book has made me a bad tourist. Once you see things, you can't not see them anymore. For me, one of the hallmarks of being a religious person is that things just can't be ignored. The world makes a claim on you. It makes the way I am in the world different.

I certainly don't let remarks like "the world's oldest profession" go by. I'm more willing to talk about things that make people uncomfortable. I find myself having the kinds of conversations that upset people; it's not what they want to hear.

I try to break stereotypes and explain why the person being prostituted is not the guilty party; that prostitution wouldn't be around without the consumers' demand that there be sexually exploitable human beings available. These are not loose, immoral children who get money for sex because they feel like it. I tell them the average age of entry into prostitution in United States is 14. And about 85% to 95% of people in the sex industry were sexually abused or seriously abused in other ways as children. We're not talking about a fun, victimless crime but about the sexual abuse of children.

When I talk to clergy and church groups, I tell them there are many complex factors that cause prostitution - and I don't recommend rash action. It seems to me that some of the deeper root causes have to do with how uncomfortable we are talking about sex, especially in church.

Churches can do their best to minimize the kinds of abuse and violence in families that cause kids to run away (which feeds prostitution). There is a lot of education churches can do to protect kids from recruiters. Pimps recruit kids from difficult family situations. They could teach parenting skills; how to raise kids without abusing them.

Sex education is highly politicized right now and schools are doing less and less of it. Churches really need to take this on. People who teach sex education in public schools aren't well-trained and certainly can't talk about it in a values context. Responsible sex education by the churches seems to be a mandate.

One woman got a church to give their parsonage as a shelter for women who wanted to get out of prostitution. Other churches located in downtown areas could have drop-in centers; places for women to come in, warm up, get something to drink or eat, and so forth.

The worst thing a person can do is try to work it out alone. It's best to find a support group of other people who are traumatized, who have been through it - and set up a support system so you can really talk it through. I don't think it's helpful to hit people with really devastating information and then not help them process it.

The levels of horror and abuse in prostitution are as horrifying as what you hear happened to people in the holocaust. A lot of people didn't want to believe the holocaust was that bad because in some way they are implicated.

I am glad two of us worked on the book together. It would have been emotionally paralyzing for me to do it alone. There's so much horror and so much that makes me blind with fury. Being able to talk with someone about my emotional reactions to what I saw and heard was very important.

We hope the book will get reviewed in enough places that people will want to read it. Conversations are difficult to have with the level of ignorance there is. It seems to me the conversation needs to start with educating people. And grassroots education is always the most effective - the media is not. They aren't interested in long-term educational efforts. The news goes by so fast it doesn't sink in; and most is pretty awful and not very complete. The media don't give the context of why prostitution is happening when they focus on the glamour aspect of it.

Sue and I want to put together an international conference on decriminalization. The current laws are unfair - the victim gets punished. We need laws that protect the victims and go after the perpetrators. There are other serious ethical issues around international monetary policy and Western lifestyle issues that need to be addressed.

Educating them about how and where recruitment happens. I think it's important to demystify the glamour aspects of prostitution and give honest information about what is really involved. We need to provide places where kids can talk honestly about their own sexual feelings and find out about their own bodies in a way that is healthy and non-judgmental - to just learn what integrity and self-respect mean. There are a lot of things that people use sex to get, but sex isn't the only way to get them. We need to teach kids about that, and that sex isn't the only way to find emotional intimacy.

It's selling pretty well. Last I heard, Augsburg Fortress was having trouble keeping up with book orders. I heard from the Society for Christian Ethics that it was selling very, very well as it has through the American Academy of Religion.

It's too early for reviews; it usually takes a year or two before a book is reviewed. Word of mouth reviews we've heard from people who have read it have been positive. People who teach ethics or are concerned about social issues find it helpful; some are using it as a textbook.

It kept me informed about what is going on both locally and nationally. The interviews of people who have been on the street were especially helpful. As a scholar, it's helpful to have something in print to cite. A printed citation carries more weight than just saying "personal interview."

I'm trying to get involved locally and am working with a new organization in St. Paul, Minnesota called Breaking Free. Sue and I will be funneling any royalty money to organizations working on prostitution. I sent my book advance to Asia; I have no interest in making personal money from this issue.