OUR WORK | PREVENTION

PREVENTION & RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

Community Education:  We believe that raising awareness about the actual lived experiences of individuals in the sex trade can deter men from purchasing sex.  Research conducted both by the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless and CAASE with men who purchase sex found that a substantial number of interviewees said that if they had known more about of the harms of the sex trade, and common life experiences that lead women into entry, they would not have purchased sex.  Strategic messaging can shift the common conception of the sex trade from an inevitable and relatively harmless part of society to one that recognizes and widely accepts prostitution as harmful and avoidable.

We know that the most effective means of raising community awareness is to utilize a variety of venues and strategies in our education efforts.  Some of CAASE’s ongoing community education work includes:

Curriculum: School age boys are often exposed to a culture where women in prostitution are stigmatized and the harm perpetrated against them trivialized, while at the same time the sex trade industry is glorified. Women in prostitution are often blamed for the violence perpetrated against them and many young men grow up with the belief that women “choose” to be in prostitution. It is imperative that young men are taught about the realities of prostitution and have a safe space to investigate how constructs of masculinity may influence a decision to patronize the sex trade.

CAASE is completing the first curriculum in the country that specifically addresses constructs of masculinity and how pressures to “be a man” can influence one’s decision to patronize the sex trade.  Additionally, we are creating a teacher’s workbook to use with high-school-age men about issues of sexual exploitation. 

 

Resource Development

Research: Before May of 2008, limited research existed in the United States that offered insight into the behavioral and cognitive patterns and belief systems of the demand side of the sex trade.  Without this empirical understanding no successful initiatives could be created to curb demand. To address this problem CAASE lead the Chicago division of an international research study analyzing the behavioral and cognitive patterns and belief systems of men who patronize the sex trade.  The international study was developed and overseen by Dr. Melissa Farley, an internationally renowned psychologist who founded Prostitution Research and Education (PRE) in San Francisco.  CAASE released the preliminary findings from the research in May of 2007.  International groups are now using the findings from the research in their work on demand deterrence. 

Identifying Best Practices Cities throughout the country are implementing innovative ways to curb the demand for the sex trade, such as using public shaming techniques like posting “johns” pictures in the newspaper or on a website, to “John’s Schools” which are educational awareness raising programs for sex trade patrons with the goal of reducing recidivism.  CAASE has recently released a report on the best practices in demand deterrence nation-wide and works with cities through-out the country to consult on effective ways to intervene in sex trade demand.    

Tool Kits: Central to CAASE’s work is providing individuals and communities tool kits to target demand for the sex trade.  Below is a list of these kits.

Demanding Change: 10 Actions X 10 Issues = 100 Steps Towards Ending Sexual Exploitation : This action guide identifies 10 different actions an individual can take to end the harms of the following 10 forms of sexual exploitation: the commercial sex trade industry, demand, international sex trafficking, the commercial sexual exploitation of children, sex tourism, internet exploitation, pornography, rape culture, child sexual abuse, and sexual harm and rape.

Community Response Tool Kit :  CAASE is working with the Mayor’s Office on Domestic Violence to develop tool kits that empower communities to take tangible actions against the demand for sex trade in their neighborhoods.  The tool kit provides both educational materials about why targeting demand is the most effective strategy to reduce prostitution, and offers a variety of concrete actions communities can implement.   

Media Response Tool Kit :  This kit provides talking points to respond to harmful media messages about the sex trade as well as several sample “Letters To The Editor”.

Communities of Faith Tool Kit : This tool kit provides clergy from all different faiths resources to connect issues of sexual exploitation to religious passages and rituals.

“Pimp N’Ho Protest” Tool Kit : This tool kit is geared towards college students and provides ideas and actions to protest “Pimp N’Ho” parties held on campus.