WE KNOW PROSTITUTION HURTS
June, 2020
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2
This information highlights the experiences faced by prostitution survivors. Included is an overview of services offered by Refuge House to help survivors get out. Also, there are two quotes from women who escaped prostitution and now are living free!
HOW DO WE LEAVE?
So how does someone get out? Well, that depends on the unique needs of the individual. At Refuge House, we have found that safety, housing, and counseling are very important to survivors as they start to escape the life. We provide survivors with an in-depth safety plan to help them as they move on to a new and brighter future. We also offer temporary emergency safe shelter and transitional housing to survivors who qualify. The transitional housing program offers low cost housing, and an array of services such as individual counseling, employment assistance, opportunities for achieving educational goals, and immigration assistance, if needed. Refuge House has helped survivors find freedom and happiness by taking a leap of faith and joining others on the same journey.
“I never thought it would get better, but it has!”
“I started being sexually molested when I was just 7 years old. It seems all my life I’ve only mattered for sex. Now, I’m starting to see that I’m worth more. I have a purpose and it ain’t to be used by men.”
This project was supported by Subgrant No. COHK4 awarded by the state administering office for the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice’s STOP Formula Grant Program. The opinions, findings, conclusions and recommendations expressed in this publication/program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the state or the U.S. Department of Justice.
BARRIERS TO ACCESSING SERVICES
-Lack of knowledge about available resources.
-Victims have difficulty identifying as being prostituted.
-Service providers lack knowledge about the dynamics of prostitution and the needs of survivors.
-Shame and guilt experienced by the prostituted person.
-Safety concerns. Fear that they will be hurt or killed by their pimp.
-Chemical dependence issues.
-Hopelessness and despair.
-Physical and mental health concerns.
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Refuge House would like to thank the following community partners for their support of survivors:
Refuge House:
24/7 Sexual Violence Hotline, Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, Individual and Group Counseling.
850-681-2111
Open Doors Outreach Network:
Provides survivor mentors to victims of sex-trafficking. Offers information and referrals to trauma informed
health care providers. 850-425-2621
Going Places Street Outreach:
Comprehensive basic needs care for homeless youth sex-trafficked or at risk of recruitment into sex trafficking.
850-294-6044
Kearney Center:
Housing for individuals experiencing homelessness. 850-792-9000
Neighborhood Medical Center:
Low cost medical care. 850-300-7257
Greater Frenchtown Revitalization Council:
Economic empowerment workshops and group counseling for at-risk youth and adults. 850-224-8404
Refuge House, Inc.
P.O. Box 20910, Tallahassee, FL 32316
Office: 850-765-1877 Ext. 1050 | Fax: 850-765-4432