Here s Wanda, who tried to do whatever she could to report a crime, and nothing happened, Baer says. To some extent, Baer adds, it s a credibility issue. Police are wary of being caught in disputes between criminals, particularly prostitutes and dealers. While this does happen, Baer says a larger problem is the belief that prostitutes don t have the same claim to sexual protection that ordinary women do. A large segment of our society will tell you, You can t rape a prostitute they deserve what they get, says Baer.
Most people don t care.
This belief is complicated by a strong societal apathy when it comes to sexual violence against certain classes of women. Poor women, women who live in high-crime areas and minority women all suffer from perceptions that they bear some blame for associating with the wrong people. This bias is even stronger when it comes to prostitutes who, by definition, associate with the wrong people. The fact that the women are themselves engaged in a criminal activity seems to absolve the rapist or at least erase the crime. If selling sex is illegal, the thinking goes, then stealing it is merely shrewd.