Case Study : Nevada's Licensed Brothels

In her argumentative essay "Enough Already, It's Time to Decriminalize Prostitution," Patty Kelly asserts that decriminalizing the practice of prostitution is in America's best interests. Her essay begins with several statistics to prove her claim that prostitution is a long-standing "part of our culture," will likely remain as such, and should, therefore, be legalized, as warrantable (Kelly 436). Following this, she draws upon her personal experience as an anthropologist closely studying regulated commercial sex in Mexico and reports that prostitution is an often conscientious and profitable decision for the women involved. She also argues that while prostitution

According to Jacqueline Barnhart in her book, “The Fair but Frail,” there is an increase of sex crimes in locations where prostitution was made legal. She also argues legalized prostitution promotes and contributes to

You are in good company if you are a male currently in Las Vegas, or arranging a visit, and find yourself more than a little curious about brothels in Nevada. The thought of visiting such an establishment excites many who cannot wait to immerse themselves in the unrestrained environ of America’s Playground. Before you picture yourself a short cab ride away from legal brothels in Las Vegas, familiarize yourself with the facts about such places. Most falsely believe there are brothels on the Strip, and this is not the case. Knowing what to expect about a Vegas brothel experience prevents any unpleasant surprises and assists in planning a journey to the rural areas in which they are located.

Prostitution was made illegal in most states in 1910 to 1915 due to the influence of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union. In the United States, Nevada is the only state that allows some legal prostitution. Nevada has eight counties that have active brothels, and prostitution outside the licensed brothels is illegal throughout Nevada. There is no specific reason why there is some legal prostitution in Nevada. However, it is suggested that there was a long history of fighting and protesting for brothels and hence, prostitution became legal in some rural areas of Nevada. According to the “U.S. and State Prostitution Arrests, 2001-2010” article, California is the state that has the most prostitution-related arrests with 11,334 persons in 2010.

My paper will present the debatable question, should prostitution be legal in Las Vegas? As I argue for the issue, the reader must know that there is a misconceived idea that the city of sins, Las Vegas, is home to legal prostitution. In contrary to popular belief, prostitution is not legal in Las Vegas; there are rural areas in Nevada where brothels are running and prostitution is condoned, but in the county of Clark, it is the opposite. Although it may not be true, legalizing prostitution can bring Las Vegas and the people who work in such a profession multiple benefits. Any person who resides in this city of lights is aware of the busy streets that are filled with prostitution occurring even though the law is against it. Whether it 's the unkempt streetwalker or the high class escort, this seems to be a booming operation.

Patty Kelly’s article, “Enough already, it’s time we decriminalize prostitution”, takes the reader into a fascinating behind the scene look into one of Mexico’s legalized brothels. Although it is apparent that her research and investigation into this social experiment are well defined, it is too narrow a focus to gather all the required information to support her argument. Kelly begins with a half hazard analysis of Elliot Spitzer infidelity, then continues down the path that is far too laser like to see the overall effect on these women; failing to see these prostitutes as real people with hearts and souls. Instead, she produces an impression that the prostitutes are just commodity, bought and sold on the open market, lacking feeling

By the year 2015, it has been long since brothels have lined the streets of well-known cities to the extent in which they did during the early 1900’s. While there are still a few legal brothels in Nevada and in some foreign countries, we usually find similar sorts in the forms of gentleman clubs or strip clubs nowadays. When examining the early 1900’s and our current modernity, there are, of course, both extreme and subtle similarities and differences. In Karen Abbott’s novel, Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys and the Battle for America’s Soul, there is no pronounced comparison of our modern world with the one of the past, but we can insightfully see that we are not so different. Prostitution, sex trafficking, drugs,

Abstract: This paper explores the world’s oldest and most controversial occupation and puts forth a foundational plan for legalizing and regulating sex work in a safe way that satisfies both radical and liberal feminists ideals. To understand how prostitution has evolved to where it’s at today, this proposal travels through the history of prostitution in the United States (heavily focusing on the twentieth century.) Prostitutes were initially accepted and openly sought after. A shift in societal norms and values placed sex work in a heavy degradation. The regulation of prostitution in Nevada began in 1970 and resulted in the first licensed brothel in 1971. Fast forward nearly fifty years and prostitution is outlawed in 49 out of 50 states. Vast amounts of money are being spent annually in failed attempts to stop prostitution all together. Radical feminists are those who would identify as conservative. They are against prostitution on the belief that it victimizes and degrades women in poverty. Liberal feminists strongly agree that the government has no place in a women’s body and that the right to perform sex work is human right. This paper analyzes these different perspectives and incorporates a model that will resemble the current working regulation in Nevada. Stricter stipulations such as health requirements and the legal age should help influence radical feminist to expand their perspective and acceptance.

Looking at Nevada a state that has legal prostitution might help answer that question. It is the only state that has legal prostitution in the United States. A quick overview of history of Nevada’s prostitution history and where they are now. Nevada in the 19th century was a railroad town and in the early 20th century prostitution on the economy was beneficial and was allowed by the local government. The time the United States was active World War II the tolerance for prostitution in Nevada had changed and policies by the local government began to effect prostitution on Nevada; there was a change from 1905 where there was acceptance to 1955 where there was disparagement views on prostitution. (Rowley 2012) There have been laws passed for the

Nevada’s licensed brothels were portrayed as havens for human trafficking by Farley, but there is a wide divide between Farley’s conclusions and the actual number of documented arrests for this crime. According to Farley, she passed on her information to the FBI, yet there have been no known trafficking prosecutions related to her information. Long before her investigation, there were a handful of cases in the late 1990s when a few pimps were convicted of pandering their women through Nevada brothels. Otherwise, documented cases are hard to find because there are a great number of regulations in place intended to prevent trafficking. For example, prostitutes must pass a FBI background check and be fingerprinted before working in Nye

It is rather odd to think that prostitution, which is considered to be the world’s oldest profession, would be illegal and harmful in nature. The issue of legalizing prostitution has entered public conversation around the world, which is severely divided. Many, like myself, consider prostitution to be a victimless crime. Despite such opposition to legalizing prostitution, many argue that legalizing it would result in decreased morality issues, increase the economic activity in the United States, and help decrease the number of sexually transmitted diseases among both prostitutes and those who patronize them,

In the chapter Bernstein, tells her reader that prostitution is illegal in all states with the exception of Nevada. Bernstein goes on to explain that this does not stop clients from seeking out paid sexual exchanges, even thought they know the risk of possible arrests or being infected with a sexually transmitted infection. While I was reading the article, the first time through, my initial question was what draws a client to seeking out a paid sexual experience. Bernstein answers that question with the interviews included in the chapter, which were conducted with several male clients.

Prostitution has been around as long as human beings have engaged in sexual activities, and it is even touted as the world’s oldest profession. Despite these proclamations, the subject of prostitution continues to spark controversy in the United States in moderns times as it is a hot debate topic. Off and on, throughout the years, various states around the country have proposed that the practice should be decriminalized; however, it remains illegal nationwide, except for a few counties in Nevada. The reasons for this stem from both sides of the argument, as anti-prostitution advocates claim decriminalization of prostitution is immoral and sexually exploitative, while pro-prostitution advocates want to keep the government out of the bedrooms of consenting adults. No matter the stance for or against prostitution, the current legal construction surrounding it is undeniably harmful. Regardless of the arguments against prostitutes, it is time to decriminalize the laws against this practice to protect the rights of sex workers.

In 1979, prostitution soliciting was decriminalized, and in 1983 it was regulated to “prohibit soliciting within view of homes, schools, churches, and hospitals” (Sullivan 101), which still leaves areas where it can be legally solicited. This allows prostitutes to work without the anxiety of possible prosecution, and “new possibilities for safer street work have opened” (101). With these laws in place, street workers can also take clients to safe-house brothels that are near health services, and “provide safe-sex equipment to workers” (101). This shows how regulation can improve the working conditions of many prostitutes.

In the book Sex for Sale Prostitution, Pornography, and the Sex Industry, Table 1.1 shows characteristics of types of prostitution. There are six categories; Business location, prices charged, exploitation by third parties, risk of violent victimization, public visibility, and impact on community. There are also six types of jobs in the sex industry; Call girl, escort, brothel worker, massage parlor worker, bar or casino worker, and street walker. For every job besides the street walker the prices charged are high or moderate, exploitation by third parties were low to moderate, the risk of violent victimization was either very low or low, public visibility is either none or very low, and the impact on the community is either none or little (Weitzer 8). This shows that prostitution, unless one is a streetwalker, is relatively safe, profitable,