Cars that are completely sans power steering, like your Escort, older Hondas, etc, use a manual rack and pinion steering system. Driving a car with manual steering is not the same thing as driving a car with a malfunctioning power steering system. The reason it is so hard to steer a car with a malfunctioning power steering system is because all of the fluid in your lines has to be manually pushed by you, without the assistance of the power steering pump. A lot of car enthusiasts/modifiers will remove all of the power steering components from their racks intentionally in order to lighten up the vehicle and to (arguably) increase handling.

It doesn't even really hold true to that assumption. Like Aldhibah said, unless you're coasting down a long hill or are being pushed by a group of body builders, the wheels will have to be disengaged from the engine (i.e. in neutral) if you're planning on getting anywhere.