Every woman screened for participation in the Mary Magdalene Project has been a victim of child abuse or neglect. There is no exception. As many as 85 to 90 percent have been victims of sexual molestation.

Most prostitutes are/were runaway or “throwaway” youths.

The prostitute-trick relationship is based on power, degradation and violence.

A prostitute’s history of victimization results in no other perceived options.

There are more prostitutes arrested annually in Los Angeles and Orange Counties than in any other state in the U.S.

In California, prostitution is a misdemeanor, but carries a mandatory sentence of 10 days
(first arrest/conviction), 45 days (second arrest/conviction), and 90 days (third arrest/conviction).

Even in states where prostitution is legal and zoned or contained (Nevada is an example), it still exists in illegal forms.

Prostitution is not a criminal or legal issue, but a sociological one.

Street prostitution is only about 10 percent of all prostitution.

Prostitutes working for a pimp give him all their income.

The Mary Magdalene Project believes:

Neglect, oppression and victimization during childhood can render some women incapable of protecting themselves from harm and fulfilling their potential.

Some women make survival-based decisions, choosing prostitution as an available option; women would not be street prostitutes if they had viable options.

Fragile, vulnerable women need to see, experience, and practice honesty, integrity, reliability and forthrightness in a variety of relationships.

A cycle of violence and neglect can be broken, but it is difficult to get out of prostitution on one’s own; long-term intervention by an effective organization works.

Children of prostitutes become/are victims. Effective services must take this into consideration.

All women are entitled to unconditional respect for their intrinsic dignity and value.