It’s no secret that prostitution has been a plague in our country for centuries. As a society, we continue to turn a blind eye to the industry that treats and sells women like property, as cash is exchanged for sexual favors and erotic services. In many cases, women are prayed on by pimps who act as their masters, and who have no bouts with morals, and as a result, threaten them by violence and even death to stay in a business that continuously places women in harm’s way at the hands of sick perverts with black cards, and even lower tier customers who can’t even afford to pay all of their bills.
While we may have some knowledge of the dark dealings of the prostitution industry, most of us have no clue that the statistics paint a different type of picture. The epidemic hits closer to home than we originally believed, since most prostitutes are young black women. There are young black prostitutes as young as 13 years old, working the streets, and forsaking a normal life of education and family due to empty promises of love and protection at the hands of misleading pimps who start off as loving boyfriends.
In most instances, prostitutes come from broken homes, are usually fatherless, and eventually become runaways in search for the things that she was not able to get from home. Vulture type pimps see the lost young women as meal tickets, and decide to woo them with false claims of romantic bliss and shelter.
A romantic relationship soon develops once the runaway has let down her guard, and she allows herself to love a stranger in a way that is unhealthy, and extremely dependent. The relationship soon becomes abusive, and the young woman is told that she must work the corners, or lose her life. Afraid of death, she chooses the street corners, and becomes a slave to a game that doesn’t play fair, and usually leaves women abused and discarded like trash.
Many wonder how does any young woman get to this point of vulnerability?
When we discuss the father factor, many women who are fatherless state that the absence of their fathers has not greatly affected them in any way, but for every lucky woman, there are several unlucky runaways.
A father’s role in a young woman’s life must never be minimized.
There’s a role that a father plays that is essential to the development of a woman. With many women, a protector is crucial to her loving environment. When most women don’t have that, they seek that and love in another man. This other man is usually a lover, and this eventually leads a woman to a life of prostitution.
It is devastating to see so many young women affected by such an endangering lifestyle, that was forced, and hard to escape. As we ache for those affected, we also may wonder what we ourselves can do to battle this epidemic, and save the little black girls who may be lost, but now found on the street corners.
Be a mentor.
Life is insane, and we’re all struggling to make ends meet, as the economy continues to dwindle. We have our own set of issues, and because of all of this, we aren’t always motivated to think of others, or even offer assistance to those in worst conditions. But in between school, the 9 to 5, or running your own business; set aside time in your schedule to mentor someone.
In many cases, all these young girls needed was someone and anyone to care about them. You can do that every week and provide insight to a young woman who lacks encouragement. You could save her life, and keep her from heading down a path that ultimately leads to destruction.
Dedicate Yourself to Preserving the Family
You can make a difference and join the battle against prostitution by making sure that your children have a strong family unit around them that is loving, protective, and encouraging. Make sure that they have both a mother and a father in their life, or make sure that they have role models that can lead them in the right direction if one parent must be absent. Every child needs some one to look up to and guide them. When they lack those things, they will look for them in the most dangerous of places.