This Week in the Mercury

Bombad Three Dees!

Film

Bombad Three Dees!

Ooo! Da Phantom Menace! Deesa Besto Star Warsie!


<i>Madame Butterfly</i>

Theater

Madame Butterfly

Portland Opera Takes on Puccini's Tale of Love and Betrayal



  |  

Thursday, July 29, 2010

News Portland's First School For Johns

Posted by Camille "the Intern" Pandian on Thu, Jul 29, 2010 at 1:32 PM

prostitution.jpg
  • Evidentia
By the end of this year, Portland hopes to have its first school for Johns up and running. The program is based on the idea that Johns, men who hire prostitutes, can make a significant difference in stopping prostitution. As was recently underscored, the majority of prostitutes do not sell themselves out of choice, but are forced into it by pimps who often keep them in slave-like conditions. Demand dictates supply. If the men stop buying, the pimps will stop selling.

Portland is ranked second in the country for human trafficking and modern-day slavery, and the school is one of the actions the city is taking against such crimes. Similar programs have already been established in over 50 other cities throughout the country, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, and Pittsburgh. (See the full list here.)

First-time offenders will have the option of attending the school, taught by former prostitutes and psychologists, for $1,000. The money would give the county $1 million a year. If they complete the school program and do not offend for another six months, they can walk away with a clean record.

The thinking here is that a slap on the wrist will not solve the underlying problem these men have, and that what they need is to understand how their actions harm another human being. Many Johns are under the impression that prostitutes are enjoying themselves, and have been visibly shocked and embarrassed to discover the prevalence of abuse in the illegal sex trade.

So far the concept appears to be working. In San Francisco, where the program has been established for 13 years, a study showed that fewer men had been re-arrested for soliciting prostitutes since its institution.

For more on prostitution in Portland, see Confessions of a Teenage Prostitute, Raising Awareness to Stop Human Trafficking in Portland, and this article from the Observer: Modern Day Slavery.

 

Comments (7) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment
1
Why does the same county prosecute the slaves and humans that are being trafficked if they really are concenrned about slavery and human trafficking?
Posted by Number Six on July 29, 2010 at 2:37 PM · Report
2
"...fewer men have been re-arrested." I am glad that there is a school that teaches men how not to be caught.
Posted by spartacus on July 29, 2010 at 3:15 PM · Report
3
It seems like we're taking something away from the prostitutes by saying that they had no choice in the matter. They've got free will, just like everyone else, and they can't put ALL the responsibility on the pimps.

A quote in one of the other articles said "I knew my pimp would kill me if I ran away." But...if you ran away he obviously *couldn't* kill you, because you wouldn't be there anymore. So isn't that just an excuse? She chose to do the easy thing and broke the law.

I think one of the articles said something like "You can't understand what it's like to be beaten that far down and convinced that you're worthless," and that's for dang sure true. So I'm trying to understand, really: Why we should agree when they say it's not their fault? They could have left the situation, or called 911, or fought back, but they didn't.
Posted by Reymont on July 29, 2010 at 3:33 PM · Report
4
These pimps seem like they have magical superpowers.
Posted by jake on July 29, 2010 at 3:41 PM · Report
5
Just do like Nevada, and legalize prostitution. Have the girls checked weekly, insist that the men use condoms, and make sure that no one is abused. If you make it legal, guess what, no more pimps, and the girls (and men) are free to come ( not really a pun) and go as they please. It seems to work in Nevada, why would it not work here?
Posted by ujfoyt on July 29, 2010 at 9:48 PM · Report
6
I wonder if the parts of nevada which have legal prostitution have a lower incidence of forced prostitution. Maybe it is the making it illegal that is allowing the forced prostitution to thrive and not the johns/prostitutes.
Posted by econoline on July 29, 2010 at 10:10 PM · Report
7
@uifoyt Because God, and the bible, and babies, and hugs.
Posted by Williams, Jay on July 30, 2010 at 10:16 AM · Report

Add a comment

Our Friends

Our Enemies

/images/adoftheweek.gif

ad of the day

The Handyman Pro - Your Honey-Do Specialist
Don’t let our name fool you. The Handyman Pro, LLC is a repair and remodel service provider with over 25-years experience. We cover all aspects of construction and repairs for residential and commercial clients.go


post an ad

All contents © Index Newspapers, LLC

115 SW Ash St. Suite 600
Portland, OR 97204

Contact Info | Privacy Policy | Production Guidelines | Terms of Use