From 2013-16, I went on outreach rides with Fourth Street Clinic, a Salt Lake City nonprofit that provides medical care to homeless folks and street sex workers. The medical team included a doctor, nurse and former sex worker. We visited motels and met mostly women on the street in need of health care and hygienic supplies.
I met a group of extremely vulnerable women. Forced to live under the radar, these women face endless struggles to survive. Violence from “johns” is regular. As the activity they engage in is illegal, turning to the police for help is not an option, which can sometimes lead to sexual violence as well.
For most, drug use becomes a way to cope with the horrors of life on the streets. These women come from all walks of life and have become homeless due to many different circumstances.
“I’m not scared of death. I’m more scared of everyday life than death.” - Tina