Finally! The Hartford Police Department busted several men for patronizing prostitutes.
If you’re just tuning in, you might not be aware that the track record on this has been exceptionally poor, so much so that one can only conclude rampant sexism — the women who are selling a service are typically the ones arrested and getting their names splashed all over the news, but the men buying the service rarely face the same consequence.
Yesterday, ten men were arrested. They reside in Hartford, Enfield, East Hartford, and Manchester. They range in age; the oldest was born in 1954 and the youngest,was born in 1996. Those patronizing prostitutes were described as white, black, and Hispanic. All arrests happened in the South Green and Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhoods.
Why does it matter? If you are a woman who walks alone — or even, sometimes, with another person — in areas known for being prostitution pick-up spots, you may receive harassment from men who think all women are for sale. This means having dudes pull over and start talking to you from their cars. It can mean feeling like you’re being followed. It matters not what you wear. Unsexy jeans and a t-shirt draws unwanted attention as much as booty shorts and tank tops. There is something deeply wrong when women are treated as commodities.
So, yes, Hartford Police Department — do more of this. If you decide you’re going to arrest ten women for selling sex, then we should see a crackdown on johns happen within the week.
(Whether or not prostitution should be treated as a crime is a different conversation)
