Friday Afternoon Diversion
Jay-Z Announces 2010 Tour Dates. Chicago Not On List.
"Batman" Headline Is a Stretch, But Prison Escape Story Could Be Its Own Movie
Grates To Tear Up Schubas
Chili Cook-Off Countdown
Freakonomics author and University of Chicago Economics Professor Steven Levitt and sociology professor Sudhir Venkatesh presented a draft of their paper, “An Empirical Analysis of Street-Level Prostitution” last week at an economics conference in New Orleans. The paper examines the business of sex work on the streets of Chicago, a draft of which is available on the Web with the disclaimer “extremely preliminary and incomplete.”
Despite the disclaimer, some of the findings are already coming under fire from Chicago service organizations working closely with women trapped in the cycle of prostitution, pointing out the report is flawed because it reduces a complex issue to a business transaction and doesn’t look at the social situation these women are in. Of the findings listed, some are of little surprise: Fridays are busy, Mondays are slow; there are seasons where there is higher demand, which draws more women to the streets; women who work with a pimp make more, despite having to surrender 25% of their earnings.
One surprise finding: 3% of all sexual transactions performed were freebies offered to Chicago police officers to avoid arrest. Bow-Cick-a-Bow-Wow. Chicago police spokesmen have not responded to requests for comment. The report also attaches numbers to the profession, with full-time prostitutes making on average less than $20,000/year.
A final version of the paper is expected in April.
Hooker stance photo by dcvision2006.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
20G a year??? Why bother?
This is all based on self reporting from prostitutes. Self reporting is the least reliable way to gather information and prostitutes might lack credibility. As for freebies for the police how is it differnt from a free cup of coffee at dunkin donuts or 7 elevan. 20k a year is terrible Hookers need a union. It seemed so much more glamouris in pretty woman.
Additionally, the Trib article noted that it's all preliminary data- so rough, in fact, that Stephen Levitt requested that it not be published at this point, and refused to comment for the article. It will be interesting to see what types of conclusions they reach when they feel they are done analyzing the data.
the findings are already coming under fire from Chicago service organizations working closely with women trapped in the cycle of prostitution, pointing out the report is flawed because it reduces a complex issue to a business transaction and doesn’t look at the social situation these women are in.
Samir Goswami must not be very bright, because the point of the study was to study the economics of the issue, i.e. business transaction. If one did a study of only the "social situation" of prostitution, would Goswami complain about reducing a complex issue by ignoring the economics of it? I think not.
As Reason magazine points out, legal brothels in Nevada have 100% condom use, there has not been a single case of HIV infection since 1988, and there is no "protection sex" for crooked cops or gang members. And I am willing to bet the prostitutes there make a bit more than $20k/yr.
I'd like to echo the statement made above about self-reporting being VERY unreliable. Especially when you are dealing with individuals engaged in criminal and/or socially unacceptable behavior, including many individuals with substance abuse problems.
Got that, researchers? Your data is unreliable.
Would it be possible for people to stop using "bow-chicka-bow-wow" in 2008 and beyond? It's irritating in print but it's even more irritating when people attempt to imitate porno music in regular conversation. Yes, 10 or 15 years ago it was funny to marvel at the afros, unkempt pubic hair and sweet funk music of 70s pornos. It's gotten old. Plus stop using "bow-chicka-bow-wow" before it gets added to the Webster's dictionary.
"As for freebies for the police how is it differnt from a free cup of coffee at dunkin donuts or 7 elevan."
Well, for one, it's RAPE.
For all the needling and joking that this story has engendered many of these women we're talking about are drug addicts engaged in little more than sexual slavery. Pimps beat/rape/extort them into submission, cops ignore crimes against prostitutes and a certain percentage of officers are engaging in another kind of violation. Sickening.
Also, it's extortion. The coffee isn't in return for not getting arrested. I'm fairly surprised the number is that low considering the rather shoddy ethics and oversight at the CPD.
I'd question the self-reporting as well, but those numbers make alot of sense with what the Sex Worker Outreach Project and others have found over the years. No, it's not alot of money and a large bulk of it is going to drugs or alcohol or pimps. Street prostitutes aren't the fantasy girl putting herself through college pretty woman bullshit that affluent men like to jack it to. They're impoverished women of color trapped in a degrading cycle of violence and sexual assault.
Can we combine both "Would it be possible for people to stop using "bow-chicka-bow-wow" in 2008 and beyond?"
with simple creature's t shirt winning comment and close this section out before any more Jack a$ses comments? And yea again it’s Mr. Ward (President of the Jon Burge Fan club)Up, again not just ducking any sort of police accountability, but of course making fun of women raped by cops, cause to him, that's o.k
Fed Up, etc.:
They kept a journal to record their activities over time. They weren't reporting to their friends or a church or a state worker and were already identified as prostitutes. The temptation to lie was reduced because of that. Also, self reporting is less reliable when a participant is being asked to recall past activities as opposed to write about their day.
The cops taking advantage and exploiting these women further has got to be the most demoralizing and disgusting example of lawlessness I have ever heard. If that is the level of leadership in this city all police should be ashamed. It is rape as they are making the acts compulsory to stay out of jail.
I am surprised that the Trib even reported the preliminary data. The analysis is far from complete, and I think they are missing the point that the authors are studying the economics of prostitution, not the social, physical or emotional impact of prostitution. Someone else is doing those studies.
And Wardup, have you ever done sociologic or epidemiologic studies? Did you look at their statistics? Are you a researcher? This was a log, not a questionaire of past events. You are also implying because someone has a substance abuse problem, they are unreliable. Maybe you should be hired to do research. Sounds like you know it all.While self-reporting has its limitations in reliability, I am sure that the authors are factoring that into the equation. Got that?
The report says something like 25% of the girls are caucasian. Beyond that oversight, I agree with the gist of Simple Creature's comment.
Eastern European women are exploited through the world, obviously, as are many Aisans... many women of almost every ethnicity, really.
If the reports on human trafficking are to be believed, we live in extremely sick times, and our government's--as well as many countries' government's--apathy toward the crime is disgusting.
A2:
Sadly, I don't think we're any more or less sick than other eras. The media focus and skewed enforcement efforts give false impressions though.
Fair and ethical sex work, in which consenting adults are appropriately compensated and fully informed regarding all aspects of the activity, is sadly lumped in with street prostitution and the sex slave trade in the eyes of law enforcement. Meaning that rather than focusing pimps, slavers and those who frequent them, cops are going after men and women who willingly choose to engage in consensual sex work. That there is a world of difference between a drug-addicted street prostitute who is continually raped and beaten into service and an escort who carefully chooses and screens clients while practicing safer sex and keeping all of her pay is something society often refuses to see. It's not just ignorant, but it endangers both groups for it's lack of focus.
I'm really curious how the Desiree Alliance and SWOP are going to respond to this study.
http://www.desireealliance.org
http://www.swopusa.org/
i'm not exactly sure how else you would get more reliable information about prostitution than from the prostitutes themselves. the johns? hardly.
as far as why bother for $20K or less .... being addicted to crack or heroin would be one good reason, unfortunately. sigh.
"Sadly, I don't think we're any more or less sick than other eras."
Oh I belive you would lose that agruement to lots of new facts