SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS OF THE FORMAL ECONOMY
Two significant influences from the formal economy contribute to the functioning of street prostitution. These include the comparative worth of women in the formal economy to that of men, and the stigmatization of selling sex as a profession.
Despite decades of political and social pressure to make gains in both opportunity and equality for women, conceptualization of the female role in America has changed very little. The message was evident from the results of a poll conducted in public schools.
Students believe that males and what males do have more inherent value; this is true in schools, homes, businesses and communities....Students perceived the primary responsibility for women in this society is to attract and impress men and that no other activity, with the possible exception of family, has more importance (Women Matter, 1998-99 p.7).
Although significant gains have been made in education, politics, and history, children are receiving the underlying message that women are worth less than men. This message is heavily rooted in America and is connected to and supported by divisions in gender with regard to status, worth, and economic opportunity. The existence of institutional barriers as a result of gender discrimination is apparent in research on women and economic achievement. The majority of working women work out of economic necessity and have considerable financial responsibilities, as evidenced by the fact that out of all women employed in the formal economy, 70% are either sole wage earners, have partners who earn little, or are single (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). In 1971, women earned 59 cents for every dollar a man earned. In 1991 they averaged 70 cents for every dollar (Sklar, 1997) and in 1996, women earned 74 cents for every dollar a man earned (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). Thus, despite modest gains made, income disparities between men and women still present a large gap. Even those most successful women in our country feel the effects of gender discrimination, reporting they believed the glass ceiling to be a continued reality for them. Indeed only 3-5% of senior management positions are held by women and, as of 1994, only 6.9% of seats on corporate boards were occupied by women, despite the fact that women make up as much as 51% of the population (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). Thus irrespective of those few successful women, movement up the corporate ladder has been slow in coming. However, most women may still find themselves cleaning the board room instead of occupying a seat at the table. By and large, women are disproportionately concentrated in lower wage jobs. As educational levels decrease, the disparity between male earnings and female earnings widen. A high school diploma earned women only 69% of the wages men earned with the same degree. Currently, families where the head of household is a single parent are the lowest paid in our economy (Sklar, 1997) and are generally concentrated in low wage jobs, e.g, domestic workers, childcare, waitresses, and cashiers (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). Low wages are often interpreted to mean no health insurance, no paid vacation or sick days and no unemployment compensation insurance (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). Indeed, of all the workers who earn minimum wage in this country, two out of three are women (Sklar, 1997). Furthermore, it is reported that only 30% of these women received any regular child support payments, yet working single parents still found a way to average approximately 25% of their pay for child care (Coulton & Chow, 1995). Thus, the possession of a job may not provide the opportunity to move from poverty to working class. Indeed, even women who leave welfare generally do not leave poverty (Sklar, 1997).
A woman's educational background is related to the length of time her family will spend on welfare. Level of education is directly correlated with job opportunities and stable income (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999).
Studies have shown that higher education has an empowering effect on women and their children. Studies in several states have found that post- secondary education not only increases women's income, it improves their self esteem, increases their children's educational ambitions, and has a dramatic impact on sufficiency (Women Matter, 1998-99 p. 6).
Since the passage of the welfare reform act and the initiation of work first programs, the number of welfare recipients has decreased. However, to go along with the decrease in welfare programs is a decrease in the number of welfare recipients enrolled in colleges across the country (Equal Rights Advocates, 1999). Albeit the ideal way to leave poverty, without government support it appears that these women cannot afford to spend precious work and family time earning a degree. Therefore, low income urban women are often locked out of high paying jobs because they lack sufficient professional experience and a competitive education.
Women with any previous employment experience fair better than women with no previous employment experience. However, even gaining blue-collar work experience may prove to be a difficult venture for poor women. While most poor families live in the inner city, structural conditions such as de-industrialization, the out-migration of the middle class, and the movement of low skill jobs to outlying areas have created structural barriers to finding blue collar employment (Wilson, 1996). America has shifted from a largely industrialized society to a largely technological society, creating an increased number of high paying jobs for those with professional skills. Those few blue collar industrialized jobs have moved to outlying areas where land is cheaper, but where bus lines do not generally operate. Because of white flight and the availability and location of inexpensive housing located near downtown areas, the poor remain in inner cities. According to Wilson (1996), this has created an increased distance between available jobs and those poor who are qualified and willing to fill those jobs. In addition, Carlson & Theodore (1995) report the ratio of available low skill jobs to those who live below the poverty level and are on public assistance is one to six; six job applicants for every one low paying job (as cited in Wilson, 1996). With the existence of gender discrimination, women with few skills may have an additional problem getting the job over a male applicant.
Transportation is an ongoing problem as many poor women cannot afford a car and auto insurance to reach outlying industrialized areas on a daily basis (Wilson, 1996). Even though it is required by law, car insurance is not traditionally been a legitimate expense that warranted an additional allotment of funds in a welfare check. Therefore, lifting oneself up out of poverty may require some illegal ventures or under-the-table work to meet the basic expenses of work.
It is important to understand and communicate the overwhelming obstacles that many ghetto residents have to overcome just to live up to mainstream expectations involving work, the family, and the law. Such expectations are taken for granted in middle class society. Americans in more affluent areas have jobs that offer fringe benefits; they are accustomed to health insurance that covers sick leave and medical care. They do not live in neighborhoods where attempts at normal child-rearing are constantly undermined by social forces that interfere with healthy child development. And their families' prospects for survival do not require at least some participation in the informal economy (Wilson, 1996 p.xviii-xix).
For poor women, the formal economy is in persistent economic depression, forcing them to scratch, scrimp, and sacrifice to be able to meet even basic monthly necessities. Considering the economic constraints placed on low income women, prostitution may appear attractive and may become a viable option.
When we assess the background of the women involved in the study, we find the personal story behind the above statistics. Seventeen of the twenty-one women in the study hadn't earned a high school diploma. Ten of the twenty-one had no previous work history and all of the women were eligible for welfare benefits. All of the women came from families where their parents lived in poverty or fluctuated from poverty to working class throughout their childhood. None of the fourteen women who were parents had consistently collected child support for the thirty-two children they were attempting to raise. With very few skills, a limited education, and minimal, if any, work experience, these women saw prostitution as a way to succeed in otherwise blocked entrances to conventional opportunities.
Researchers have concluded that women enter prostitution for a variety of reasons, negative labeling (James, Davis, & Vitaliano, 1982), the need for independence (N. J. Davis, 1971), and family dysfunctions (Silbert & Pines, 1983), but most agree that poor women enter for financial reasons (Benjamin & Masters, 1964; James, 1978; Jennings, 1976; Pomeroy, 1965; Vanwesenbeeck, 1994). The stressors related to poverty increase the probability that street prostitution will become a viable option for some women.
The reason I got into prostitution was to keep a house for me and my daughter....I wasn't making enough money to pay the house note, my gas & water and take care of her....A friend introduced me to it. She told me that she knew I was having problems with money....So we would drive like three times a month and meet men at conventions....It was flexible and I only had to do it on the weekends when I started (Brenda).
Prostitution is a female dominated profession in which earning potential is not limited by a corporate ceiling. It is an attractive profession to some women because the profession engenders flexible hours, substantial pay, immediate opportunity, no educational barriers, and access for even low income women.
According to James (1976), women entered street prostitution because they saw no other occupational options for individuals with little skill that paid as well, were as adventurous and allowed them the flexibility and independence they desired. The traditional female role, which concentrates on physical appearance, sexuality, and service to men, presented an additional fit. The importance of having money and material possessions appealed to women who, because of their social status, were unlikely to obtain these things by legitimate means (James, 1976).
Because I wasn't making it out there....Because I'm lazy or I don't know. Well it's just harder out there on your own. And see when I first came to Ohio, I didn't have no birth certificate, no social security card, no state I.D., no nothin....We moved a lot and I couldn't keep up. I didn't go to school a lot, so I ended up quitting...then when I seen I could make the kind of money I could make out on the streets, I was out there everyday (Elsie).
The refusal of society to view prostitution as legitimate work leads some women into a profession that is accompanied by "whore stigma." "Prostitution is a highly marginalized activity that negatively affects the way society views a woman involved in this activity." It is viewed as a stain on one's character. It is a soiled identity in which negative assumptions regarding one's morals are presupposed. "Prostitution is the only criminal offense involving mutual consent between two persons, where, in most cases, only the female partner is arrested" (N. J. Davis, 1993 p.3). Therefore, women fear disclosure. Because of the illegality, street prostitution is a profession practiced in the underground economy.