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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 18, 1982)
Page 2 Portland Observer, March 18,1982 No glamour in prostitution P artii by H arris Levon McRae In v e s tig a tin g and re p o rtin g on p ro s titu tio n presents many p ro b lems for a writer. Many o f the wom en that I talk to don’t want to have a n y th in g to do anyone fro m the media fo r fear that the conversation w ill get back to their pim p. Others just don’ t believe that the media w ill tell the truth about prostitution. “ I f I told you some o f the things I have been th ro u g h , you w o u ld n ’ t believe it — and there is no way that it would get printed. I t ’ s unreal out here at times,” one woman told me. A n o th e r said, “ N o — no way am I gonna talk to any reporter.” From a distance m any o f these women do look exotic and very erot ic but when you get up close to them th e ir eyes and faces te ll another story. The life o f a prostitute isn’ t filled w ith glamour, fun and excite ment as many people seem to be lieve. This very belief deflects atten tio n fro m the violence th a t surrounds prostitution and how it is a system used to keep women en slaved. Life is not soft and plush for the street prostitute. " I t ’ s a trip sometimes. There are all kinds o f freaks out here looking for more than sex—they like to beat and h u rt wom en,*’ I was to ld by a woman who sells sex whenever other possibilities for income aren’t avail able. “ Beatings, rape, and even get ting kille d is always at the back o f your m ind,” she added. Some men who do not want to beat and degrade th e ir wives and girlfriends still feel a need to act out their hatred o f women. Prostitution provides that opportunity. This use o f prostitutes to act out one’s con tempt fo r women seems to be one o f the main reasons why many consid er p ro s titu tio n a necessary social service. “ Those fo o ls w o u ld never p u ll some o f the s tu ff they p u ll on me with their old ladies,” I was told by a prostitute. “ They keep it all inside and then take it out on us.” Many o f the women selling their bodies on the streets, seem to have damaged self-images. Living the life o f a p ro s titu te p ro b a b ly makes it hard to relate to people in other than a sexual m anner. I was m is taken fo r a pimp a couple o f times. One woman gave me her prepared speech about already having an “ old m a n " before I h a rd ly had a chance to introduce m yself. Other comments ranged from “ Show me some paper [money] and I ’ ll let you know a ll there is to know about p ro s titu tio n ,’ * to , “ Y o u ’ re a man ain’ t you—what else do you need to know?” One thing is fo r sure. The more I investigate prostitution, the clearer it is to me that in spite o f all its con demning o f prostitution, our society actually condones it. There is a si multaneous existence o f conflicting emotions when dealing w ith prosti tutes. They are subject to legal has sles, im prisonm ent, and fines but these penalties are rarely enforced. Though some women enter in to a life o f p ro s titu tio n fo r heavy psy chological reasons, many enter into “ the life ” because o f drug addic tion, poverty and other social injus tices that serve as recruiting centers for prostitution. Sex is here to stay and we need to deal w ith p ro s titu tio n realistically and not as i f when we tu rn our heads it goes away. As a wise man said, “ You just can’t turn your face from the w orld.” Next Week: Part-time prostitutes. Cracking down on a crime wave that isn't by Frank Browning Pacific News Service There is te rro r in her eyes. Her jaw is clenched tight, her aged hands clenched to her purse. A cold sullenness washes his Black face. His strong right arm is draw n around her n e ck,lo cke d in place w ith his other elbow, “ an el derly v ic tim falls prey to yoke man,” reads the caption, describing the “ yoke h o ld ” as the assault o f choice among young muggers. That is the face o f the scourge o f ju ve n ile crim e as portrayed a year ago in the trendy New York Maga zine. The accom panying statistics were as grim as the illu s tra tio n : In 1980, 44,170 kids under the age o f 20 were arrested fo r m ajor felonies and alm ost a th ird o f them were under 16. That rather d ram atic item was typical o f the stories that have helped fuel a national campaign for a new crackdown on juvenile crime. D uring the last year law-and-order in itia tive s aimed at juvenile crime have proliferated: •In Illinois, the legislature is con sidering a provision that would a l low prosecutors, w ithout a hearing by a judge, to transfer serious ju venile cases autom atically to adult courts. • In New Y ork C ity , D is tric t A t torney Robert M orgenthau has sought Federal money fo r creation o f a ju v e n ile crim e center which w ould treat repeat offenders more like adult “ career crim inals.” •In California, the state assembly is considering legislation under w hich children any age can be locked up in “ secure detention” for 90 days for such offenses as running away fro m home, skipping school or v io la tin g the 10 pm curfew . A n o th e r proposal w ould mandate that any child 16 or over charged w ith com m itting an offense w ith a dangerous weapon be tried in adult court. Reflecting the public fear o f ju venile crime, a major national news paper recently declared flatly: “ The figures are clear: Violence among juveniles is increasing.” Yet if there is any single statement that could be made about crim e “ figures,” it is just the reverse. The trend in juve n ile crim e is one o f steady, consistent decline. That is especially true in cities and states where the juve n ile crim e hysteria has been most heated, especially I l lin o is and C a lifo rn ia , and New York City. Juvenile arrests declined in Chica go from 17,367 in 1974 to 16.829 in 1980. Juvenile arrests in New York C ity dropped fro m 22,518 in 1976/40 14,764 in 1981. Juvenile arrests in the state o f C a lifo rn ia have dropped fro m 185,000 in 1974 to s lig h tly under 100,000 in 1980 Nationwide, juvenile arrests have follow ed the same pattern, declin ing from 2.7 m illion in 1975 to 2.2. m illion in 1980. Everywhere there is a marked decline in the one police statistic that experienced crim in o l ogists regard as the most reliable measure o f c rim in a l a c tiv ity : a r rests. Yet, in spite o f the hard evidence contained in their own files, law en forcem ent o ffic ia ls like New Y ork Police C om m issioner Robert J. M cGuire continue to argue that ju veniles present a growing threat. “ It ebbs and flow s in terms o f population,” he told an interviewer. “ People leave the state or get sent to prison, but always there are the kids. There’ s a farm team out there ready to come up into the system.” C rim inologists and social scien tists across the c o u n try discount such claim s, arguing that the epi demic o f youth crime regularly cited by politicians is m ythical. Says Rut gers U n ive rsity c rim in o lo g is t Richard Sparks, “ You wonder why in the 1980s we claim violent crime is a problem . O ur best evidence shows it is no more a problem than it ever was.” Sparks, like most o f his colleagues, says there is no doubt that juvenile crime is now declining and has been fo r several years. The reason, he says, is simple: “ There are fewer and fewer young people. The population o f youngsters below age 18 has declined 21 per cent in the past decade. I t ’ s hard to get that perception across because the media give so much a tte n tio n to juve n ile crime.” While some analysts are extreme ly cautious about projecting crime trends based upon police date, there is also prelim inary evidence that the much more scientific “ victimization reports” o f the National Crime Sur vey reflect the same trend. The N a tio n a l C rim e Survey is conducted annually by the Census Bureau, and collects data from 135,000 in d ivid u a ls about what crimes they have experienced during the year as victims. A c c o rd in g to R utgers’ R ichard Sparks, early analysis o f reports be tween 1973 and 1979 shows a steady decline in the number o f victim s who have been attacked by groups, as opposed to lone individuals in d i cating that there is less crim inal as sault by juveniles who norm ally act in small groups or gangs. At the same tim e, he says, there has been an increase in older, solo offenders, as reported by the victims o f crime. Why is there such a gap between public perceptions about juve n ile crime and the actual threat? "W h a t else is new?” asks Eugene Doleschal, director o f the Inform a tion Center o f the National Council on Crime and Delinquency. “ I t ’ s al- a year when the press or the p o liti cians have not contended that j u venile crime is on the upswing.” “ The whole issue o f crime is hot to d a y,” says Donald Jensen, a ju venile justice specialist at Chicago's John Howard Association. “ Juven ile crim e just comes along w ith it. There’ s also more media hype about juveniles. When a youngster com mits a serious crime, people react to it in a much stronger way. I f a 14 year-old kid stabs another 14-year- old, it makes headlines, but people forget that in large m e tro p o lita n areas that kind o f crim e has occurred forever. It's hard to get people to look at trends instead o f gory headlines ” What is more w orrisom e to Jen sen than public misperception is the eagerness o f ostensibly w e ll-in formed public officials to pay more attention to public anxiety than to evidence gathered by th e ir own agencies. “ T hrough Novem ber, 1981,” Jensen said, “ there have been 967 juvenile commitments to the Cook County Department o f Corrections, as opposed to 441 the previous year, and 440 the year before that. In the last 11 m onths com m itm ents have jumped 119 per cent— though over all crime declined in the firs t three quarters o f last year.” C rim e date for the final quarter, normally a low period, has not yet been computed.” N ationally the Reagan A dm inis tra tio n ’ s task force on violent crime has also recommended harsher treatment o f juvenile offenders, that juvenile records be made public and that juvenile fingerprints and rec ords be merged w ith adult records and fed in to the F B I's crim e data bank. Last summer judges, prosecutors and some scholars from across the nation met for the first time in a spe cial conference on juvenile recidi vism which also called fo r tougher handling o f young offenders. Among the conference conclusions: young repeat offenders should be sent to prison and treated as career crim inals—even at age 14— and ju veniles accused o f serious crimes shoud be prosecuted in adult court. The ju s tific a tio n fo r more severe punishment, the conferees said, was a general belief that juvenile crime is on the rise. Said one delegate, “ The problem has become that serious.” Scholars like Jensen and Richard Sparks see the trend toward s tiff ju venile punishment more as a reflec tio n o f governm ent ideology and "m edia panic” than as a means o f fig h tin g a real crim e wave. “ I find the current adm inistration singular ly impervious to what is really going on,” says Sparks. “ They have belief in wickedness and fo r them the wicked are mostly Black and Brown and under 18.” GOTA MINUTE? -------- Better yet, how about an evening? We'd really like to tell you about our plans tor billing credits Because - whether you re a bullrlder or a banker or a ballerina - as a Northwest resident and electricity user you have a stake in this and other Bonneville Power Administration programs. Just how billing credits affect you, your region and your electric bill will depend largely on the policy under which they are granted That's why we want to tell you about our propo sal. and why we urge you to take part in the public review and comment process It you can. attend one of six public infor mation meetings We'll outline our plans and answer your questions Take a few minutes to call or write for information Later, we II ask you to comment, either orally at a subsequent meet ing or in writing Billing credits are paym ents to Bonneville customers - either e le c tric utilities or industries - for in d e p e n d e n t actions that reduce Bonneville's o b lig a tio n to acq u ire pow er resources Examples of such actions inclu d e energy conservation program s, construction of generating fa cilitie s, and a d o p tio n of retail rate struc tures that cause consumers to conserve or install their own renew able resources Billing credits are required by the Northwest Power Act. the same law that obligates Bon neville to acquire resources as ne cessary to meet customers needs To request a copy of the proposed policy or to ask questions, contact Public Involvement Coordinator, BPA Post Office Box 12999 Portland. Oregon 97212 Telephone 503-230-4261. Toll-free numbers for persons outside the Portland calling area in Oregon, 800-452-8429. in Washington. Idaho, Montana. Wyoming, California. Nevada and Utah. 800-547 6048 Remember What you say counts. Bonneville Power Administration K j A) Meeting Schedule All meetings begin at 7 30 p m Registration begins at 7 p m Portland Richland Tuesday, March 23 Federal Building Room 223 1220 S W Third Avenue Tuesday March 30 Federal Building Auditorium 825 Jadwin Avenue Seattle Boise Wednesday March 24 Seattle Center, Room H, Conference Center First Avenue N and Republican Street Wednesday March 31 The Hall 01 Mirrors East Conference Room 700 W State Street Eugene Thursday April 1 Missoula County Courthouse Annex, Room 201 200 W Pine Street Missoula Thursday March 25 Federal Building Room 227 2 11 E Seventh Avenue ★★★★★★★★★★ from: Paris London Los Angeles ★★★★★★★★★★ ★★★★★★★★★★ FOR THE BEST STYLING IN TOWN S E E ... 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