Thursday, November 21, 2002 TODAY
Faculty of Religion news
Faculty of Religion associate professor writes book on child prostitution
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| The book Child Prostitution: Listening to Rahab is available through Haworth Press, Inc. |
Siroj Sorajjakool, PhD, associate professor, Faculty of Religion, has written a book detailing the dangerous and degrading lifestyle of child prostitution in Thailand.
The book, Child Prostitution in Thailand: Listening to Rahab, looks into the lives of ten Thai prostitutes. In their own words, they describe who they are, what a child prostitute goes through, and why.
“There is a thriving sex industry in Thailand that makes its money exploiting the young,” says Dr. Sorajjakool. “Some children are coerced into prostitution and some have been sold into sexual slavery by their own families, but just as tragically there is no shortage of young girls (and boys) willing to work as prostitutes.”
The young prostitutes featured in this book describe and discuss what brought them into this life. Some have come from a tragic home situation, but not all are impoverished, orphaned, or abused.
“They have entered into a lifestyle that often leads to violence, sickness, and early death,” adds Dr. Sorajjakool. “Of these ten prostitutes, one has already passed away and four more are dying with AIDS.”
According to Dr. Sorajjakool, the book was designed to help the reader understand how Thailand’s child prostitution industry developed; the impact upon girls and young women of Thailand’s evolution from an agriculturally based economy to an industrial one; the changing forms of child prostitution; who the customers are; the role of tourism and its impact on child prostitution in Thailand; and how poverty, poor education, a sexually focused mass media, lack of religious emphasis, disability, and the lack of a clear policy on child prostitution help the sex industry to thrive.
The head of the U.S. State Department’s office for international women’s issues estimates that traffickers bring 50,000 women and children into the United States illegally each year.
“The lessons Listening to Rahab teaches can help us to better understand the situation here at home as well as overseas,” says Dr. Sorajjakool.
A helpful appendix assessing incidents of child prostitution around the globe brings the information even more clearly into focus.
The book is available from Haworth Press, Inc. at <www.haworthpressinc.com>.
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East Campus urgent care serves community
On September 1, 2002, Loma Linda University Community Medical Center and Loma Linda University Medical Center consolidated their emergency department services onto one campus at Loma Linda University Medical Center. The Community Medical Center emergency room was restructured as an urgent care facility for non-traumatic injuries. Since its opening, more than 100 patients are seen a day.
The consolidation of services was decided upon to better manage expenses and increase efficiency of services. The dedication of the Community Medical Center to urgent care and the new capacity of the Medical Center emergency department means less waiting time for patients.
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Thursday, November 21, 2002 TODAY
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