In Chicago, Amnesty International to Debate Legalizing Sex Trade - Chicago Sun-Times
The issue pivots on that notion of consent. Is Madigan right, that prostitution is invariably the result of sex abuse and coercion? Or can it be a choice, a business transaction among consenting adults?
“We believe all policies regarding prostitution should be based on realities, not theories,” said Kaethe Morris Hoffer, executive director of the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, who called the idea of prostitutes choosing that life “a myth.”
“The overwhelming majority were first prostituted before they turned 18,” she said, “The research makes it clear: Child sexual abuse is boot camp for prostitution.”
She said that not only do movies put a false, bright spin on prostitution, but often the prostitutes must do so themselves.
“A lot of girls and women in the sex trade, if you ask them, ‘Do you have a pimp?’ they’ll say no,” said Morris Hoffer. “But if you ask, ‘Do you have a boyfriend to whom you give all the money you make?’ they say yes.”
More: In Chicago, Amnesty International to Debate Legalizing Sex Trade - Chicago Sun-Times