Introduction
Case studies refer to an account about a problem or challenge and measures for it to be rectified. The researchers are helpful in identifying and solving problems in various organizations by providing concrete proof that the difficulties are real. Sex Trafficking is the use of underage or young women as sexual objects. The practice is seen as a business opportunity for many greedy individuals who in target “raw” girls thus altering the course of their lives. I was inspired by an article I read online about The Dreamcatcher Foundation. Two women have dedicated their lives to help girls who have been introduced to prostitution as well as create awareness for vulnerable women. During the summer holidays, I applied for an internship as a psychologist because that’s what I studied for my degree at the University. I was happy my application was accepted. My objective is to conduct a case study on sex trafficking in Chicago and how to stop it based on my experiences and observations as an intern in the agency ( Thomas, 2015).
The Participant Observation Method
In my case study, I have decided to use the participant observation method. The data collection technique is one of those used in qualitative research ( Spradley, 2016). It’s among the commonly used methodologies employed in many studies to carry out research in different disciplines such as anthropology, culture and ethnology. However, it’s less used in other studies such as human geography and social psychology.
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The investigator gets information about the operations, attitudes in a community or organization by living and integrating with the people for an extended period. Usually, the researcher is a ‘player ’because he or she takes on the role of being studied for example living or working in the area where the research is based. Therefore, the researcher can get an ‘insider’ viewpoint, and the information may be rich than that obtained through observations only. Thus, the participant observer gets much more detailed information as well as enabling him to identify the specific issues affecting the people and help them address them by aiding in the development of mutually agreed on practices and principles.
The research involves various well-defined methods for example interviews, observations, participation in the group, collective discussions, reading and analyzing personal documents of individuals under study, life histories, and online information. Although it has been categorized as qualitative investigation, it frequently includes quantifiable dimensions ( Thomas, 2015). Traditional participant observation is carried over an extended period such as months or even years. In this method, a researcher’s discipline based interests and commitment determine the events he or she considers to be important and relevant in his or her line of study.
There are four stages that a researcher uses to do a case study and discussed. The first is creating a connection with the people (rapport). This involves knowing the members or visiting the place before the study for familiarity purposes. The second is immersing oneself in the field, or area of the survey. Here, the researcher needs to exhibit a real understanding of the population to be accepted as a new member. Hence, he or she needs to work hard to blend with the individuals as well as observe and experience events personally ( Spradley, 2016)
Observing and recording are other critical stages. This involves taking field notes, conducting interviews, reading journals and other related material on the case study. For instance, he or she can write reflexive journals which talk about their personal feelings and thoughts of the case study ( Spradley, 2016). He or she can express about how their sexual orientation, color, ethnicity, gender, sex, and additional issues influence their investigation. All the facts acquired then need to be recorded for future use.
The last is phase analysis of the data collected. Under this, we have the thematic analysis which encompasses organizing the data. On the other hand, the investigator has to use historical analysis which involves classifying data gathered from discussions, finding mutual subjects talked about and construct a rational story from the facts ( Spradley, 2016).
The Participant Observation method does not entail the researcher just showing up in a place and start recording or writing down anything. Rather, it’s a complicated procedure which has many constituents. After the researcher decides on what method to use, he or she has to choose the type of observer they will be. The non-participatory researcher has no interaction with the populace or the area of study Passive participation encompasses the researcher being the spectator; moderate involvement ensures that the researcher maintains a balance between the outside and inside roles. Lastly, full participation involves the researcher being part of the population of study beforehand.
By participating in the research, the researcher’s behavior is likely to be influenced. Hence, a researcher must be responsive that the contributors may act otherwise or cover up to what they believe is under study. Therefore, it’s important for the investigator to exercise objectivity in any qualitative research. Triangulation is the best way to ensure that a researcher does not carry out a research based in his or her personal bias or preference ( Spradley, 2016). This simply means that the researcher works with several enquiry team participants collecting data about the similar event. This guarantees different documented observations and data because of the differing theoretical perspectives of each research members.
Similarly, member checking involves the researcher asking for the participants’ opinion on his or her chronicled opinions to make sure that the investigator is correctly representing the contributors’ experiences and the precision of deductions drawn from the info. Such can be used in Participant Observation researches or when carrying out interviews. The two methods intensify data and investigations’ supposition reliability and transferability.
Study methods have limitations, and participant observation is no exception. For instance, the detailed observations on a group of individuals or event cannot be in the full description ( Spradley, 2016). This is as a result of the choosy nature of any recordable procedure which is predictably influenced by the investigators’ individual beliefs of what is appropriate and significant. Also, the examination of data is affected by the investigator's worldview inspirations on how he or she interprets data.
Background of the Case Study
The Dreamcatcher Foundation is a non-profit, community-based organization founded in Chicago in the year 2007 by Stephanie Daniels and Brenda Myers-Powell. Both are survivors from the sex occupation industry, and their experiences motivated them to start the project. It’s designed to help young girls and women who have been subject to various forms of abuse ranging from physical, emotional and psychological abuse ( Boyle, 2015). This is because they are the highest vulnerability to early pregnancies, poverty, addiction and terminable diseases. Hence, the foundation identifies such young girls and offers them all the help they need to become better people in the society.
The Dreamcatcher Foundation focuses on girls and young adult women at the ages of 18-25 years. It aims to make them confident, independent, courageous, and motivated. It pursues to recover the lives of disadvantaged and poor young females in Chicago by providing them with education, empowerment and preventing them from sexual exploitations.
Dreamcatcher offers different services for example. Mentorship, therapeutic and educational field trips, arts and craft, STD, HIV/AIDS and HPV testing, medical referrals, healthy relationship building general health checkups and Drug use prevention education. Similarly, it provides individual and collective counseling, anger management and stress reduction, assertive and self-defense training, character and relationship building, after school training and GED and HS certificate readiness ( Smith, 2014).
It has come up with two functional programs to enhance the provision of its services. The first is The Youth Empowerment Project which offers an education which enlightens the young women to avoid being victims of sexual exploitation (Boyle, 2015). The other one is My Life My Choice, which is a 12-week program that works with young women who are in danger of being sexually exploited.
Case Analysis
The purpose of carrying out this case study is to understand the role of the Dreamcatcher Foundation in Chicago. Recently, there has been an increase in the number of young women engaging in prostitution. The vice goes hand in hand with drug abuse. Therefore, most of these women are drug addicts or are the at the risk of abusing drugs. Similarly, it has led to low levels of education and in general poor lifestyles. Many wealthy businesspeople have found Chicago a place for cheap sex with amateurs who do not know what they want in life besides being desperate to help their families in any way they can (Thomas, 2015).
The environment is somehow hostile for the natural development of the girls as their relatives coarse them to engage in the act, and the local government does not take the issue seriously thereby making the cases of violence, murder, rape and distribution of drugs a casual affair. Men and women have made it a business to look for the naïve girls and women and lure them to the brothels, and once they start the business, it becomes difficult to stop without any professional help ( Thomas, 2015).
Poor parenting techniques are also to blame for the rise of prostitution. Most of the parents of young women are either jobless, drunkards or violent to the children resulting to them running away from home due to the emotional and physical torture. Having lived a life of prostitution and drugs, Brenda Myers and her co-founder, Stephanie Daniels started the Dreamcatcher Foundation which seeks to help those already in prostitution to stop and educate as well as discourage the other young girls who are at risk or contemplating joining the routine.
Objectives of the Case Study
To determine the menace of sex trafficking, prostitution and drug abuse among the young female population. Gauging the surrounding community’s attitude towards the practice, the role of the Dreamcatcher Foundation in the lives of the young girls and women, the reasons for the activities, the role of other stakeholders in support of the organization and how the girls have benefited from the non-profit organization (Boyle, 2015).
Data Collection Methods
Since the case study involves a large number of people, it was necessary to use different methods of data collection. In this instance, I opted to use the following procedures as shall be discussed in the course of the research. They include observation, interviewing, samples from the young women, online journals on the foundation. All these were to ensure a comprehensive research on the case analysis to ensure accuracy and efficiency as well as good representation from all the participants.
Interviews
This was the primary method for data collection since the nature of the case study required one on one interaction to understand the gravity of the issue. I had a chance to interview the people at the foundation at different capacities and other residents. First, I engaged with Brenda Myers, the co-founder of the Dreamcatcher Foundation, with the aim of understanding the mission and reason of the organization. She is not afraid to talk about her past as commercial sex worker alongside her other partner Stephanie Daniels who are survivors of sex trafficking. She further said that theirs is a purely nonprofit organization which uses the harm reduction approach by working with girls from their residences. For instance, she stated that the girls were encouraged to make their decisions on how they want to move forward with their lives once they stopped working in the brothels or identified all the dependent variables to the issue under study ( Thomas, 2015).
Myers being a victim herself, resorts to approaching girls on the streets who appear vulnerable and tries to talk to them since that’s where they are likely to be found (Boyle,2015).She confessed that in some cases it was not easy to convince the girls to join in the program although, with time, some came to seek for help. Similarly, the organization has a van which is used to search around the neighborhoods of Chicago to identify potential victims.
Additionally, there is no specific way used to orient the girls into the organization since everyone has a different story ranging from sexual assault or violence. Sometimes the girls do not talk about their problem but with time, the staff figures it out. Hence, Dreamcatcher’s first role is to ensure safety for all the girls who come in need of assistance.
Secondly, I held conversations with some of the girls and young women in the organization. It was disheartening to know the cruel situations they had been through. For example, one young woman from the Mexican descent talked about how she had been promised a good life once in the US by a family friend but was shocked when she was introduced to prostitution ( Guth, et.al, 2014). However, it’s true that most of them have different experiences which all led to the same result.
Poverty is the main reason why the young girls and women engage in prostitution and other activities which make them at risk of sexual exploitation and trafficking ( Hume & Mulcock, 2012). Most of the victims I talked too had been at one time raped or drugged to engage in sexual activities and then later got hooked on the lifestyle. On the other hand, there were those in the organization who had not engaged in prostitution but were trying to make something out of their lives. Though, most of them were not ready to talk about their experiences because, I think they were embarrassed, or the discussion was likely to bring back the horrible memories.
Likewise, I talked to the other staff on their experience in dealing with the women. They confessed that it’s hard to deal with the girls at first because they do not trust anyone however with time, their attitudes changed enabling them to move on from their past experiences.
Equally, I talked to some of the people residents in the neighborhood of the organization. Most of them seemed not to care, and they supported the idea that any activity which brings money and food to the table was allowed. One man had the courage to say that he had introduced his stepdaughter to give sex for money (Boyle, 2015). Although there were those concerned, little could be done because there was the lack of cooperation from the legal authorities. For example, some of the residents claimed that the police focused on arresting the young women on the streets who had been manipulated and abused instead of an emphasis on the owners of the brothels and other individuals who were engineering the exploitation of the girls.
Observation
Being an intern at the organization, it was easier to gain a firsthand experience in collecting data for my case study. During the first days in the group, the girls, and young women were distrustful and kept to themselves. It’s evident that they victims and other girls who came to the organization were very young and physically and emotionally disorientated (Guth, et.al, 2015). They are individuals who have gone through a lot of sad events prohibiting them from having a normal life like other children which is filled with happiness and innocence. I observed that the girls were very violent and most of the time the place was not peaceful. After one month, a few girls had started talking to me, and I could deduce that they were determined to improve their lives besides the numerous challenges.
Most women lack basic knowledge skills such as reading, writing or typing. I concluded that most of them had not reached the high school level due to poverty. Even though the foundation offers educational services such as tutoring and diploma readiness for the women to enable them to finish their education, it proved difficult for them to study as most of them was substance drug abusers and they had to struggle between fighting the addiction and balancing their school work (Hume & Mulcock, 2012).
Even so, Mrs. Myers and the other people in charge of the organization were not intolerant but rather much understanding and always tried to talk to the girls. For example, they did not stay in the office but rather ride around on the streets of Chicago, and I had a chance to work with her. She starts with the opening line “Hey punkin' you need some condoms?” that is what she says to women she is hoping to get off the street ( Boyle, 2015). Offering condoms are just a way of initiating a connection with the prostitutes. Further, they hand out cards hoping for a call from the girls in case they had a change of mind.
Marie Miller is one of the survivors who gave the organization a call after being offered condoms. She is a former prostitute and says she is grateful for the foundation gave her a new family and hope. She accompanied us in one of our rides where we were able to get one prostitute from the streets. She was very restless since she had not taken any drugs. Mrs. Myers asked her to make a decision if she wanted to come with us and after some persuading, she agreed to go with us. We learned that she was 22 years old starting at age 16.
As said earlier, drug trafficking is a major issue all over Chicago. I observed that most of the young girls were being used to distribute drugs. They are an easy target for the peddlers as thy can go around undetected by anyone. Further, the cases of violence on the women and young girls being stabbed or raped in the drug world or being beaten by the owners of the sex houses as well as those who came to prey on the young girls. Although people witness the cases they refuse to testify or talk to the authorities thereby achieving justice for the victims is always a dead end (Guth, et.al, 2015).
Personal Essays
During the tutorials, I had a chance to read about the experiences of the women. The foundation had a platform where they were to write anonymous essays describing their experiences and how the organization had changed their life (Guth, et.al, 2015). Most of the girls had different stories to tell regarding their misfortunes. Through this, I was able to fully understand their feelings of appreciation to the founders of the organization. In a way, it was the best platform for the women to express themselves without feeling dirty or ashamed of their bodies.
Reading Journals
I also read many articles and journals written by various people regarding the sex exploitation in Chicago. It’s apparent that the activity is rampant in the ghettos of the region. According to the many articles, the phenomenon has been in existence for a long time to the dismay of everyone, and there were no signs of it reducing but rather it continues to increase each due to the harsh economic conditions ( Smith, 2014). Additionally, apart from the Dreamcatcher Foundation, there were no other significant organizations ready to fight the cause.
To record all the information gathered, I employed specific record keeping. In the case of the interviews, I recorded the conversations and the testimonies in compact disks (CDs). Similarly, I wrote down notes on all the observations, online journals and the samples from the victims’ experiences.
Data Analysis
Being an intern as well as a researcher at Dreamcatcher Foundation participation from both parties data collection provided for a variety of outcomes. First, the Dreamcatcher Foundation has assisted at least 100 prostitutes to redeem their life since its start in the year 2007. Thus, developing a good relationship with the young women at the Centre, the staff, and the society was vital in carrying out this research ( Guth, et.al, 2014).
Mrs. Myers and her team are very determined to ensure that they help as many girls and young women as possible. The two programs it has initiated, My Life, My Choice and The Youth Empowerment Project has been helpful in helping the young women avoid being exposed to abuse. Walking down the streets to offer support was legendary of her and motivation to all women who want to get out of prostitution.
By interviewing and observing the people of Chicago, on the role of the society in sex abuse, it’s true to say that at some length, the issue of women violation is not taken seriously by most people ( Smith, 2014). Women are considered the weaker sex thereby they ought to be submissive and allow themselves to be used by the men. Prostitution, drug trafficking, and other ills were cheered on by the residents, and as long as the authorities do not catch one, everyone has to mind their own business.
The leadership of the organization under Myers, who is the CEO, is well organized to enable it to achieve its mission. Under the guidance and counseling of the team, the women, and young girls can open up and talk about study topic. The organization is still growing. Hence it cannot accommodate a large number of young women.
Even so, the study identified some of the challenges facing the organization and the participants. For example, although medical services are offered, the young women are afraid of undergoing tests, especially on HIV/AIDS ( Smith, 2014). Further, the hospitals have few facilities to deal with the ladies with drug problems once they are referred. The girls who have been turned into sex slaves or drug addicts are not willing to be assisted and in some instances it requires a lot of persuading for them to recognize that the organization is concerned for their welfare .Further, they disappear in the course of the transition period thus affecting their recovery process.
Lack of support from the local community is a problem. The people know the whereabouts of the young women who have been introduced to prostitution but still cannot help them to seek help. Thus, it’s upon the organization to go out the streets to search for them. The whole situation makes achieving quality results at the end of the designated programs a bit tricky because the society scorns the workers of the foundation (Boyle, 2015).
The organization does not have enough resources to carry out its planned activities. For example, it does not have rooms which can be used to house the victims until they get better. This hinders the admission of a large number of the girls to their program. Subsequently, the limited funds have not provided for the buying of all the equipment needed to facilitate the treatment of the women. For example, I realized that sometimes, the HIV test kits were unavailable, not to mention those for testing HPV.
On my role as the researcher, I faced a few problems. For instance, it was a bit overwhelming to try and collect data at the same time. I had to juggle between working as an intern and recording observations, interviews and reading to prepare for the case study.it was even more complicated because the girls and the young women came from the center in different times and left in the evening hence limiting the amount of info I obtained. Likewise, most of the residents were hostile to me in the cause of interviewing them or following up the observations I had made ( Spradley, 2016).
Recommendations
The Dreamcatcher Foundation is doing its best to protect the young women and girls from the streets. However, much needs to be done to make the Centre more useful. In trying to protect the girls, a safe environment is required. The organization is building a boarding house to help to give the survivors a place to stay in because, in the present situation, the women come to seek for help in the Centre although they stay at their homes, making it easy for them to go back to their usual habits ( Spradley, 2016).
The Federal and state government need to support the initiative. Women sex trafficking is rampant in many states of the US and therefore any efforts to prevent and stop the incident are necessary. However, some organizations have been impressed by the efforts of the Foundation and have pledged to offer them support.
Awareness needs to be created among the people of Chicago. This does not apply to the young girls only but rather to the parents and guardians who need to be wary of the activities their children engage in especially the young girls when they are not at the house because they are at high risk of sexual mistreatment (Smith, 2014). Most of the parents are irresponsible without any source of income leaving their children to suffer hardships. That is a reason for young girls trying to escape their homes.
The police department needs to be more vigilant in dealing with the issue of sexual violence. There tends to be racial discrimination by the Department in addressing the problem because it mostly involves the African American women and there have been a lot of injustices as seen by the recent killings of the blacks by the white policemen.
Dreamcatcher Foundation needs to increase the number of professional health workers. Because it’s a non-profit organization, many people working at the organization are volunteers and interns. Inadequate funds hinder the body from having many specialists to handle training, counseling and other activities needed to empower the survivors.
Conclusion
Sex exploitation of girls and young women young is everywhere worldwide although the society and the respective governments have done little to its effect. The lives of these women are ruined at tender ages starting from 12 years. Although sex trafficking is the manipulation or forcing of the young women to engage in sexual activities, poverty is the primary reason as to why all this happens .My research was to focus on the issue of prostitution and Chicago and how the Dreamcatcher Foundation has influenced the whole scenario. I used the participant observation technique to carry out the case study since it was the most suitable for proficiency. Subsequently, I used observation, interviews, reading personal essays and online journals as data collection methods aimed at helping me realize the objectives of the study. After the study, there were various findings among them the huge determination of the founders of the organization to help the girls. Unfortunately, the society does not care or is ignorant of the fact that the young women need its protection from malicious people who view them as objects of pleasure and money. Equally, there were a lot of challenges for the Dreamcatcher Foundation ranging from the refusal or unwillingness of the victims to seek help, the residents shielding the real culprits involved in the activity. On the same note, the organization has inadequate funds which make it hard for them to develop real homes for the survivors and other exposed girls. The findings enabled me to give recommendations to the effect of the involvement of the government, local authorities and other well-wishers who wish to support the Dreamcatcher Foundation with the hope of ending the sexual exploitation of young women not only in Chicago but all over the world.
References
Boyle, K. (2015). Surviving street prostitution: two new films on harrowing realities for women in America: The Conversation .
Guth, A., Anderson, R., Kinnard, K., Tran, H. (2014). Proper methodology and methods of collecting and analyzing slavery data: an examination of the Global Slavery Index. Social Inclusion , 2 (4)
Hume, L., Mulcock, J. (Eds.). (2012). Anthropologists in the field: Cases in participant observation . Columbia University Press
Smith, H. A. (2014). Walking Prey: How America's Youth are Vulnerable to Sex Slavery . Macmillan.
Spradley, J. P. (2016). Participant observation Waveland Press
Thomas, G. (2015). How to do your case study Sage.s
