Until You Love Yourself: Prostitutes Reclaim Their Lives After Years of Violence and Addiction

16 Jun 2014

Until You Love Yourself: Prostitutes Reclaim Their Lives After Years of Violence and Addiction

Prostitution is a multi-billion dollar business in the United States.  Some sources estimate the annual revenue at close to $15 billion.  The sex industry and the illegal drug industry, which often live side by side, “tear up women and use them til they throw them out” according to The Rev. Becca Stevens, who founded Nashville, Tennessee’s Magdalene and Thistle Farms.  Stevens founded Magdalene, a residential program for women who have survived lives of prostitution, addiction and life on the streets, as a way to recover some of those women, give them a place to heal and prepare for a new life free of the dangers of the street. Magdalene is grounded in Stevens’ belief that unconditional love has the power to heal.