After a few years, she had three children and an addiction to methamphetamine. Not for eight years. What followed were years of prostitution in Las Vegas and Hollywood, stints in jail and in and out of addiction, violence and abuse from a series of pimps. She entered the program on Sept. Pimps feed off of that. A lot of time is spent in outreach. The average woman who enters prostitution, like Aimee, is 13 years old.
Staff members also visit Estrella Jail twice a week looking for women interested in leaving the life of prostitution. The program, which can support 15 women at a time, also receives referrals from halfway houses, mental illness institutions and the Phoenix Police Department. The residential program, which Aimee went through, is a structured, one-year commitment. During the first 30 days, the women are not allowed to leave the house.
During the first month, women do not receive phone calls. Throughout the year, the women adhere to a 5 p. Every night, the women take part in a group event, sometimes with a psychologist, that helps them work on the issues of trauma and abuse that come with prostitution.
During the last three months, women make plans for the future. But perhaps most importantly to her, she has her children with her again. Two staff members go out several times a week to spread word to women on the streets. Prev Next. Lori on Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day β January 19,
