Female Teenage Prostitution
Prostitution is the practice of engaging in aimless sexual business in exchange for money or other forms of payment. It is can be referred to as sexual services, commercial sex, or hooking. Prostitution may be practiced by both genders, but we will focus on female prostitution given that it is the most common and popular among teenagers. Legality and opinion on prostitution vary in different societies or countries. In some societies, they are recognized as professionals making a living like any other person e.g. Denmark and Brazil. We will focus on prostitution in the United States where the prostitution policy is illegal except for a few states like Nevada. The legality of prostitution is entirely controlled by the respective States and is not by the Federal government (Decker, 2009).
There are many cases in the United States involving prostitution by underage teenagers. Many youths have been exposed to prostitution either through exploitation or voluntary. Juvenile prostitution has been rampant in the recent past and has become an area of concern for authorities and parents. A vast number of juveniles involved in juvenile prostitution are girls who venture into the business as early as 14 years of age. Kids offer themselves sexually in exchange for money, drugs, or other valuables that they may not afford. However, it is safe to say that since these teenagers are not mature enough to make informed decisions and have little experience of the outside world apart from schoolwork, they are under threat of exploitation from the rich and other mature men in the society. Most of the girls though have been showing shocking sexual behaviors when they get to the adolescent period. Even with the threat of vulnerability, these teenagers know and have a wide idea of what prostitution is. Behaviors like running away to live with a boyfriend or getting carried away in a night out or party and picked up by a strange man after intoxication. They receive payments with full knowledge that they are being paid for sex (Gibbens, 2007). After the action most chose to remain silent feeling bad and guilty that they were involved in prostitution. The silent beginning graduates to more and more acts of commercial sex and with time they are deep in it that they can not pull themselves out and take it as a lifestyle not only as a means of earning money but as a routine as well. Unfortunately, in some area’s prostitution has been normalized and seems to be a familiar thing. Especially in the lower class where prostitution does not astonish or upset them. They look for compelling reasons to justify their involvement in the vice. There is also the tendency of older girls misleading their younger ones into prostitution. It seems to be a thriving business and when the young girls see the success of their older neighbors and peers they immediately get attracted and join (R, 2000).
The dimensions of prostitution in the recent past have been quite alarming. It is of the leading cases in arrests in the United States. The problem is no longer a responsibility of the family or the state but rather is a responsibility of everyone in the society as it affects every single member of any affected society. Prostitution leads to other crimes if not the dead road for the victims and clients. Many young girls in prostitution are subject to drug abuse as some can not stand the idea and may want to be under the influence before engaging. They are also likely to fall into depression from the mistreatment and ridicule they receive from clients and other members of their community. The government has tried to control the vice, but it has proven hard for it is hard in this modern time to establish and accurately point out a prostitute. Changes in body size and structure make it even difficult to tell whether a lady is underage or not. Some look mature enough and lie to clients about their age to get the call and earn money. This growth in prostitution has paved the way for ‘survival’ sex where young girls are willing to offer sexual pleasures to clients for basic needs such as shelter, food, or money to sustain themselves. Most being uneducated young girls from poor families have no other means of surviving and so opt to take this dangerous root (D’cunha, 2002).
Prostitution is a social issue and it affects it directly and indirectly. From a society context, most prostitutes are deemed to come from poor families that have little or no means of having a meaningful living and these encourage young girls to practice prostitution. Home is not a haven since there is only misery and schools are filled with tiresome work and peer pressure. When social issues like unemployment are present people must look for other forms of making money and in the easiest way. Unemployed parents would not question their girls when they show up in the evening with cash to help clear the bills. Social institutions like marriage and family which were respected are no longer important and sacred. Young women fall into early pregnancies, divorce cases increase, and domestic violence increases because sex is no longer an intimate thing to be shared in love rather it has been commercialized for material gain. Prostitution affects schools where several girls drop out of schools to make money creating a society of ignorant uneducated young people who can not get meaningful employment. Sexual diseases were a problem even though there are decreased cases of HIV infections due to awareness and use of protection, other sexual related problems like abortions are on the increase. Due to prostitution, society has lost many children due to trauma and deaths some girls being killed by clients who would not pay for the services. Arrests made due to prostitution leave families of the victims devastated. Low-class families tend to readily accept prostitution as part of the ways to survive, but this creates a rotten immoral society where respect and rational are thrown out the window (Lim, 1998).
Some of the trends in prostitution include social media prostitution. People look for young girls and boys on social media platforms and lure them into practicing sexual acts online like masturbation posting photos of their private parts. This cyber prostitution has been a big problem as it also encourages human trafficking. other forms of juvenile trends are teen pool parties where young men and women meet up to drink themselves silly and engage in group sex. Some even high escorts to perform for them (Flagg, 2004).
Why Prostitution Occurs
One of the main reasons for prostitution is basic and down to the unit of the family. Low income and less privileged families are the most affected by prostitution. In the quest to make ends meet, and with parents earning little or no cash at all, young girls are left vulnerable to go and look for money in the outside world. Many times, since they do not have skills for meaningful employment, they end up selling the only thing they think is valuable, sex. Men know how to spot desperate girls looking for survival. They offer them money and cheat them into prostitution. Parents play a part when they do not guide their children away from these kinds of evil. Some girls in prostitution learn from their parents and older siblings and follow in the trend. Being physically abused as a child has a psychological effect and more often such girls end up being prostitutes as a result of the trauma experienced in childhood.
Being sexually abused as a child causes the child to change how they view the world. It also gives them a different perspective of themselves. It affects their self-esteem negatively, they experience anxiety attacks, maybe depressed, and may get involved in substance abuse. It increases the chances of re-victimization when they reach adulthood and leads to involvement in sexual immorality and prostitution. Their brains have a bias and uninformed opinion on sex. Alcoholism and substance abuse push people into prostitution. These substances affect the brain and girls do not think straight enough to make informed decisions leaving them vulnerable to the hands of sexually craved prey. Substance abuse also comes with the need for money to get more drugs, girls would go the full length to get the substance even if it means selling their bodies. There are many reasons why juvenile girls get into prostitution, but it is true to say that some are forced by circumstances beyond their control. Some of the girls are forced into prostitution by their parents who leave them no choice but to abide. Some are trafficked and sold for sex and must follow as instructed by their boss which means sleeping with people for them to get paid. Others are left on the streets with no means of survival and must take the difficult decision of selling their bodies or die hungry (Virtue, 2008).
Policy Implications
Despite the notion of ‘once bad, always bad’ people tend to make efforts to move out of prostitution. But they need help from the general public, especially the government. For young girls to stay away from prostitution, policies will have to be established to help them understand the effects and to know the legal and social consequences in their lives and their loved ones. Governments must come up with a rough measure of child trafficking as a start. Those responsible should be given maximum punishment for them to stop. Human trafficking is a huge contributor to many crimes in the world, and if it is dealt with or at least reduced then young girls will be safe from the streets and prostitution. This should follow with the maximum sentence for sex offenders especially those involved with underage girls.
Employment is also key as a policy. The less fortunate families should have a means of at least getting basic needs for them to take care of their children. The young juveniles would not have to roam the streets to get money if they can get basic needs at home. Awareness to parents about the situation on prostitution, its effect, and consequences will give them a clear view of how to protect their daughters for the vice.
Support groups for the girls in prostitution and help them psychologically. Most can make better decisions if they are strong mentally and share their past experiences with others who may offer techniques for them to shun the vice and make meaningful careers. These support groups could also extend to parents and teach them how to handle such matters.
Substance abuse can be controlled by admitting these victims into rehabilitation centers that will help them recover and free from substance influence. Not stereotyping prostitutes and inviting them back to society for help would be beneficial. Treating juvenile prostitutes as victims rather than criminals would greatly help their recovery and progress.
Prostitution has been a problem for as long as we can remember, it is even a much bigger problem when children are involved. It is everyone’s responsibility to protect them and keep them safe from selfish predators that would want to take advantage of them. It also our duty to create a perfect environment for young teenagers to achieve their dreams, keep them engaged in meaningful endeavors that will keep them away from the streets.
References
D’cunha, J. (2002). Prostitution laws: Ideological dimensions and enforcement practices. Economic and Political Weekly, 1-11.
Decker, J. F. 2nd Ed(2009). Prostitution – Regulation, and Control. New York: Rothman & Co.
Flagg, B. J. (2004). Paradigm For Race Discrimination Analysis. Berkeley Women Law Journal, 47-80.
Gibbens, N. (2007). Juvenile Prostitution. The British Journal of Delinquency, 3-10.
Lim, L. L. (1998). The sex Sector. Geneva: International Labour Office.
R, J. (2000). Prostitution and Victorian Society. New York: Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge.
Virtue, U. (2008). Working Girls: Prostitutes, Their Life, and Social Control. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.