New York is the first state to establish a court system designed to assist sex workers in escaping prostitution. Pilot courts have been in operation in Manhattan, Queens, and Nassau Counties for several years.
Eighteen states now provide services to children caught in the sex trade, rather than imposing prison sentences on them. Reuters quotes Georgia State University law professor, Jonathan Todres, on this topic saying, “There’s a real urgency here. We need to recognize as a nation that these children are victims and survivors of violent crimes and abuse, and they should not be treated as criminals [1].”
New York’s specialized court system will link defendants with resources such as shelters, drug rehabilitation, medical treatment, education, and job training. Sex trafficking is already a crime in New York.
“And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father’s household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho” (Joshua 6: 25).
Some of you may remember the story of how Joshua conquered Jericho. But before Joshua had the trumpets sound, he sent spies into the city. Because they were shielded from discovery by the prostitute Rahab, she and her family were allowed to live when the city was taken.
That was not all. As Matthew reports at chapter 1, verse 5, Rahab married into the line of David and what would become the lineage of the Messiah.
[1] “New York creates state-wide court system to help prostitutes,” Reuters 9/25/13, http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/25/us-usa-newyork-prostitution-idUSBRE98O14520130925.
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ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 