Rethink Resources

I have a letter in the Sunday letters to the editor section.

Resources, enforcement needed for sex assaults

I work with teens involved in prostitution in Milwaukee, and I’m relieved to see more attention being given to this reality (”Craigs-list child sex ads lead to arrests,” April 9). Indeed, some youth become involved by running away and being forced to perform sex acts by a pimp. Some children are pimped out by their own family members. Some teens start through the fast cash of strip clubs. I know most people would be shocked by the experiences that teens have shared with me.

Basically, this is another example of adults sexually abusing kids. We all know that the people who are paying for sex with kids are adults. And that makes it sexual assault.

However, law enforcement is just one approach to tackle this problem. In addition to enforcing sexual assault laws, we need resources like specialized counseling and health care for youth who have been sexually exploited. They have experienced serious trauma, such as sexual assault and being threatened with a gun, like the 16-year-old girl in the article. And we need more jobs for youth and more community activities to keep youth connected to positive adults.

Claudine O’Leary
Milwaukee

The article I referenced is here.

A 15-year-old girl who ran away from home in western Wisconsin sold sex acts in Milwaukee to men who found her ad and photo on Craigslist, according to court documents. The girl, who said she took a Greyhound bus from her home in Onalaska to Milwaukee in the fall, told detectives she had sex with 10 men in 14 days, earning $1,500, according to a search warrant unsealed this week.

Later in the article another recent case is cited:

In another Milwaukee case, a man was sentenced last month to four years in prison for prostituting a 16-year-old girl, also on Craigslist. Rufus Jackson, 28, also was charged with having sex with the girl. In that case, Jackson took in the girl, also a runaway whose hometown was not listed. He began having sex with her and later forced her into prostitution, according to the criminal complaint. Jackson took nude photos of the girl and posted them on Craigslist, it says. Jackson beat the girl and threatened her by putting a gun to her head, demanding she make more money in prostitution…

Actually the editorial section of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel today was an important read with a substantial piece on sexual abuse and teen pregnancy.