Dirty Girl Things
Friday, April 13, 2007
Number Fifty-Nine
T H I N K.
This is an occasional feature focusing on writers who will capture both your soul and your mind with their message. And when you read them, you’ll stop what you’re doing . . . . and think.
After Hours was started after its author, Amanda Brooks, realized she had things she wanted to discuss but they did not readily fit into a publishable, marketable form. Nor was she going to spend the time posting her thoughts on various discussion boards. Although she had been aware of blogging for a couple years before she started this blog, she hadn’t seen much purpose in it for her. Now she has.
The name of the blog is based on Amanda’s experiences working night jobs. It was always after work (after hours, if you will), that everyone dropped their “work” face and the most interesting discussions ensued. Anyone who has worked night jobs knows that such discussions are rarely linear and the topics discussed very random.
“After Hours” is not a news blog, a daily journal or an overly intimate look at Amanda. It is her ongoing, after-work discussion where random thoughts become essays.
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Collateral Damage From The War On Sex
by Amanda Brooks - April 12th, 2007
This is not the first time this has happened, but it’s the first incident I’m aware of.
A young woman was arrested on prostitution charges in February. She was mentioned by name in the article (both printed and online) and apparently was lucky enough to get featured on the local evening news. Two weeks ago, she killed herself.
I don’t know her or anything about her. I heard this through the Internet grapevine. Yes, it really happened. Her obit was published online with little fanfare. The details are few and far between. It has been made clear that her family doesn’t want the story to get out, so the few details I know will not be repeated here.
I wonder if the fallout has been brought to the attention of the arresting officers to see if they feel they’ve done their job in protecting society. I’ve no doubt they would be glad her recidivism rate has dropped.
In a search for prostitution-related suicides, I found little useful information. One study by a rabid anti-prostitution activist claims that 75% of all “escort prostitutes” (her words) have attempted suicide. Possibly true. As is the possibility that 75% of all Nine Inch Nail fans have attempted suicide. Or how about comparing the prostitution-suicide study to the percentage of attempted suicide among teenagers? Or dentists?
I have yet to find studies on the rate of suicide after arrest or after being “saved” by an anti-prostitution organization. Those are the numbers I’d like to see. (If there are credible numbers on this, please send me the info!)
This young woman is not an isolated incident. I’ve since found out that another woman, a professor, committed suicide shortly before her trial for four counts of prostitution was to begin. I found an article about a young man who was arrested for solicitation, got his name published in his local paper and killed himself shortly after. I have no doubt there are others whose families keep the silence. I wish they didn’t. Society needs to know that prostitutes aren’t scary in any way, but are simply the women next door. Their clients are no different.
I understand why these families wish for silence. There’s the shame of prostitution and the shame of suicide. Yet silence is what feeds the needless shame.
Prostitution-arrest articles always include quotes by police in which an officer will state that they feel they’re doing some good in cleaning up the city and in restoring some order to these poor women’s lives. They feel the only way to “save” some of these women is to arrest them – giving prostitutes a permanent record, possibly brutalizing them and emotionally scarring them. Deeply traumatizing arrests — that’s really helping someone who may already be in desperate straits.
I’m outraged that the police who arrested the young girl in February have gotten away with murder (in my opinion). Worse, it’s likely they will never even know.
Continue with the rest of the article here.
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Sincerely.
Eve and JW3 and Mélisande
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