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Prostitution the Oldest Profession in the World

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Submitted By topaz45
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Kier McCall-Ward
English 201B
Ms. Wilson
November 20, 2013

Prostitution the World’s Oldest Profession

In the article “From the Streets to the ‘World’s Best Mom’” written by Nicholas D. Kristof the issue of prostitution is discussed. His article features a woman named Sheila Faye Simpkins and her experience. The article focused on three specific things needed for these women to get out of that life: 1) Residential Recovery Programs, 2) Employment, and 3) Cracking down on pimps and johns. In my essay I will focus on these three points, but I will also include some of my own opinions and personal experiences of being a former prostitute. Sheila Simpkins started prostituting at the age of fourteen years old and has been arrested over 200 times. In the article Ms. Simpkins discussed her life as a prostitute and the role her pimp played in her life. The program that was eventually able to begin to change her life was a two year program called Magdalene residential recovery. In this program she was able to take her life back and learn skills to start over. The services offered at Magdalene are substance abuse, employment training, medical and dental, therapy, and various other services.
In San Francisco there is a program called the Sage project that has been around since 2002 helping victims of human trafficking. When I was involved in this lifestyle I did not know about these kinds of programs, maybe if I had I would have gotten out sooner. These types of programs are greatly needed because the ages of these young women being forced into this type of lifestyle are getting younger and younger. Once you become involved in the lifestyle of prostitution you do not feel you can ever do anything else. Being able to learn a skill so that you are able to support yourself is very important. One of the things that Magdalene and the Sage project offers these women

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