Because of a police pullback in response to COVID-19 and policy changes by District Attorney Larry Krasner, prosecutors have almost stopped bringing prostitution cases in Philadelphia.
and some sex workers themselves say the de facto legalization hasn’t gone far enough and that more services should be made available without arrests, court oversight, or coercion.
Since 2019, police have piloted a special program in which women taken into custody for prostitution are immediately offered social services in lieu of criminal charges. The program,, or PAD, connects willing participants with the Salvation Army’s New Day to Stop Trafficking program. Through New Day, women receive help from finding housing to guidance on how to get protection-from-abuse orders from partners who exploit them.
When the city was racking up hundreds of prostitution arrests each year — more than 1,100 cases were brought in 2014 under Williams — Lee said that the stigma around sex work was “driving women into the dark.” This opened them up to violence and abuse, victimizations they were reluctant to report given their involvement in sex work.
“A ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach doesn’t work when we’re trying to solve social issues,” Lee said. “The more options we have the better, because I think there are a number of people who would benefit, for example, from addressing substance-use first.” The pandemic hasn’t slowed sex work in Hunting Park, according to Lanier. And in fielding calls from residents, he frequently hears complaints about the drug sales and violence often associated with sex work. He cited the murder of Kiesha Jenkins,“The police do their best, but I don’t know that there is a permanent solution to the problem to help these women,” Lanier said.
“What is happening with these laws is that people are being harassed for being poor and trying to survive their acute poverty,” she said. “They’re not helping anyone.”
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