“With the young girls, you promise them heaven, they’ll follow you to hell.” – Harvey Washington, Convicted Pimp
Those chilling words were spoken to a New York Times reporter by a man serving a four-year sentence in Arizona for pandering (a polite way to say “pimping”).
According to a New York Times series that’s running this week, the number of underage teenagers having sex for money or basic necessities is on the rise. The series traces the increase back to a growing number of runaways who are forced to leave home as the recession puts more pressure on American households.
“Over the past two years, government officials and experts have seen an increasing number of children leave home for life on the streets, including many under 13. Foreclosures, layoffs, rising food and fuel prices and inadequate supplies of low-cost housing have stretched families to the extreme, and those pressures have trickled down to teenagers and preteens.” —New York Times
Survival in the Shadows
The National Runaway Switchboard told the New York Times an increasing number are surviving by selling drugs, panhandling, or engaging in prostitution. And once they take a step into an underworld of crime, it’s extremely difficult to get them off the streets.
“’These kids enter prostitution and they literally disappear,’ said Bradley Myles, deputy director of the Polaris Project, a nonprofit organization based in Washington [DC] that directly serves children involved in prostitution and other trafficking victims.” — New York Times
Close to Home
Solid statistics on just how many young runaways end up involved in prostitution or trafficking don’t exist yet, but according to the FBI, DC is one of the top 14 sites in the country for the sex trafficking of U.S. children. To help combat the problem, DC Councilmember Phil Mendelson introduced anti-trafficking legislation nearly a year ago, but the bill hasn’t been passed yet.
Take Action
That’s why the DC Women’s Agenda and Sasha Bruce Youthwork are giving you an opportunity to learn more about the “Prohibition Against Trafficking Act of 2009.”
“Trafficking is an often overlooked problem in DC, but it’s one that affects countless women and girls,” says Debbie Billet- Roumell, coordinator of the DC Women’s Agenda. “This bill is a step towards changing their situations and ending this tragedy of human trafficking in DC.”
This “lunch and learn” event will be Friday, October 30, 2009 from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. at Sasha Bruce Youthwork, located at 741 8th St. SE, Washington, DC. Karen Stauss, Managing Policy and Legal Counsel from the Polaris Project, will speak about the problem of trafficking in the District, the proposed legislation, and what concerned citizens can do to advocate for strong provisions in the proposed bill.
If you’d like more information about the event or the DC Women’s Agenda, please contact Debbie Billet-Roumell at DBRoumell@wowonline.org.