NCJ Number
129212
Date Published
1990
Length
44 pages
Annotation
This profile of prostitution in Durban, Umlazi, and KwaMashu (South Africa) used participant observation; indepth interviews with police, pimps, and prostitutes; analysis of newspaper and magazine articles; and a survey of Umlazi and KwaMashu residents to determine their perceptions of and attitudes toward prostitution.
Abstract
Commercial sex was found to be common in Durban but limited in Umlazi, KwaMashu, and other suburbs of Durban. The majority of black prostitutes plied their trade in the street, in hotels, and in night clubs. Black prostitutes tended not to defraud their customers. Although they were aware of AIDS, their knowledge of this disease was limited. The most alarming finding was that a substantial number of black prostitutes were young girls who were still at school or who had dropped out of school. Dominant community values in both Umlazi and KwaMashu condemn prostitution to the extent that the women who enter it know that the community considers it deviant and demeaning for a woman. Most prostitutes would leave prostitution if they knew they could survive in another occupation; a small group, however, apparently did not experience any self-condemnation and was generally satisfied with the occupation. The latter group of prostitutes tended to view their behaviors as normal and acceptable within the rationalizations and ideologies of the local prostitution subculture. Interview questionnaire and results as well as 43 references