In reality, there was no wilderness. It was rush hour on Ellice Avenue.
But one driver kept re-appearing, craning his neck for his prey of preference.
We�ll call him �Johnny,� and he was desperately searching for a suitable �Jane.�
I stepped off the curb to try to make it obvious that I was recording the license plate of his vehicle for display on our Web site (www.geocities.com/wccia/johns). As he disappeared around the corner, I thought, �Maybe he's scared. Maybe he's reconsidering the wisdom of cruising around here.� Within 3 minutes he was back.
I decided on a more direct approach. His van stopped at a traffic light and he scanned the sidewalk. I crossed three lanes of traffic, coming from the other direction. I stood between lanes and rapped on his car window. He almost jumped through the windshield. Having already made a spectacle of myself, I spoke loudly enough to be heard by everyone in the area. I asked if he was looking for something in particular. �If you�re looking for a hooker, there�s one just down the street,� as I pointed to one of the regulars. He nervously denied it, and stepped on the gas when the red light changed to green.
Watching him, I figured he was finally going to leave the area. Wrong! He pulled around the corner and tried to inconspicuously wait for the girl to come to his car. I walked back home, shaking my head. What else can you do?
About a week ago, I was invited to �John School.� It�s a one day class on the personal and community implications of prostitution. The class, usually about 35 men, consists of guys who thought they were picking up a hooker, but actually propositioned an undercover cop. Busted!!
It was my fourth time at the �school.� I�ve been given a regular opportunity to inform the Johns about their impact on our neighbourhood.
As I walk in the room, I recognize the same guy I confronted in traffic on Ellice Avenue. The persistent cruiser. You should have seen his face when he saw me!
The interesting thing about these guys in �John School� or the guys in their cars, who haven�t yet been caught, is that they usually don�t believe they�ve done anything wrong. They�ve sheathed their "instruments" and shelved their conscience. They tell themselves they�re helpless victims of sexual incontinence. It may be embarrassing, but they don�t feel it�s wrong.
In his mind, he wasn't circling prey, he was trading a poor woman some spare change for a backlane orgasm. It�s a harmless, perhaps even charitable, exchange. Maybe she�s using it to buy extra groceries for the kids. Maybe she�s a college student, working off the loan.
They don�t understand that each trick brings many of the addicted girls one step closer to an overdose or some other drug-related tragedy.
They don�t want to know that these women haven�t eaten for days. Many have lost their kids. Their smiles are formed by desperation, not affection. They despise the �johns,� and hate themselves.
Johns don�t understand the fear of innocent women and children, walking along the street or standing at the bus stop.
Johns don�t know enough about diseases like TB, Hep C and AIDS. They can�t even imagine how their actions tie in with the vicious cycle of pimps, gangs and dealers.
The question is - if they did know - would they care?
Facts, guilt trips and fear won�t change people who don�t want to change.
�John School� works just like regular school. Teachers teach. Students listen. There�s no assurance that they learn until they get the test. For �Johnny,� it�ll be a test of character, a test of the will.
I�m hoping Johnny passes his test. We�ll be watching.
Rev. Harry Lehotsky
514 Maryland Street
Winnipeg, Mb R3G 1M5
(204) 775-4929
[email protected]