Decriminalizing Prostitution: Downtown East Side Sex Workers

Canada is a nation renown as a liberal-leaning, forward nation; promoting the advancement of women in all parts of the world. However, it is a nation guilty of punishing women for the circumstances in which they find themselves with laws showing an antiquated view on the issue of prostitution—one that prosecutes sex workers instead of those who take advantage of women’s situations and buy sexual services. BY examining the origins of current-day laws concerning prostitution in Canada and looking at European legislation as well as its successes and failures made it is possible to find a middle ground that will suit Canada should it ever decide to change its laws concerning prostitution.

As part of McGill’s Community Engagement Day, I went on a walking tour of Montréal’s historical Red Light District presented by Karen Herland, professor and specialist in the history of prostitution. Her historical analysis (personal communication, October 2, 2015) of the neighbourhood gave great insights on morality and legislation issues regarding sex work, specifically about the relationship between authorities and prostitution as well as some of the impacts that these laws and other attitudes that regulate sex work have on women. Her astute reports lead us to the following proposition: the dynamics between authorities and sex work indicates that under the guise of “morality”, the laws in place and their application did not actually oppose sex work, they rather worked to limit women’s emancipation.

Additional prohibitions are placed on any advertising for sexual services which include newspapers, online, or other forms of media (Department of Justice Canada, 2014). This policy is greatly influenced by the Swedish Model argues that it is society’s responsibility to outlaw the purchase of sexual services on the understanding that ‘women are vulnerable’ and sex trade is never a choice (Cosh, 2014). Mainly, the new prohibitions will be supported by $20 million in new funding, with an emphasis on programs that can help individuals exit prostitution.

Decreasing violence and promoting safety is one of the many positive outcomes from legalizing prostitution. Engaging in conversation about the purchase of sex is illegal in Canada. Because of this, Meaghan (2002) argues that prostitutes are forced to work in unsafe locations away from police surveillance, rushing negotiations and not being able to make an safe decision about their client. Seals (2015), found prostitutes are fearful of legal recourse when they are victimized. Legalization would give prostitutes the same protection as the general public and would be able to press charges accordingly. Providing a registered place of business for licensing also limits instances of violence. Seib, C., Dunne, M. P., Fischer, J., & Najman, J. M. (2010), found that prostitutes who worked in regulated brothels were healthier and safer than prostitutes who worked in non-regulated brothels or on the streets. “Elaborate safety measures (panic buttons, listening devices, and management surveillance) allow managers to respond to unruly or violent customers quickly and effectively” (Weitzer, 2006, p. 35). This also would help limit the chance of Human sex trafficking as businesses would be consistently checked and positive relationships with law enforcement would be made.

Due to the fairly recent changes regarding the legality of prostitution in Canada, individuals who use and provide these services have been cautious (Warnica, 2015). Unfortunately, new laws may create more problems than benefits, such as, financial problems due to fewer people buying sex because it is illegal to do so. In this paper, I will explicate and assess the new changes to the law regarding prostitution in Canada, arguing that prostitution should be legal in Canada. Prostitution laws vary all over the world. Some jurisdictions are similar to Canada whilst others are extremely different. The United Kingdom is similar to Canada, as acts related to prostitution are illegal but prostitution itself is not. In Germany, Netherlands, and New Zealand prostitution is legal and so are brothels. However, in Argentina, France, Singapore and Greece brothels are illegal put prostitution is. There is no universal agreement on how governments should legislate or regulate prostitution.

Sometimes, the term “sex work” is used, as well as “prostitution”. But whichever term we choose to say, it does not eliminate the stigma attached to it. Cases such as the Bedford V. Canada Case (144) indulges into the conspiracy of sex work and challenges certain sections of the Criminal Code that make business in relation to prostitution illegal. Ideally, a sex worker has a career just as a teacher or lawyer. For this reason, their human rights and dignity should be protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as are other professions. However, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as the Criminal Code do not seek to protect sex workers, yet, they seek to do otherwise using certain sections of the Criminal Code

Violence, suicide and homicide are serious public health issues that affect many women globally. The World Health Organization recently sent “ a powerful message that violence against women is a global health problem of epidemic proportions (1)”. There is a growing advocacy that calls for the protection of young women who face consequences due to the exploitation of providing sexual services. Legalizing prostitution in Canada would just encourage clients to abuse sex workers even more so. By implementing a policy that would ban prostitution in Canada, the health issues of violence and homicide will diminish, protecting the basic interests of the population.

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,

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.

Sex Work, the term is prevalent indeed and also an extremely controversial topic in our society today. It drives men to pay for it, and women to sell it. Sex work can include phone sex operations, exotic dancing, nude webcam modeling, escort services, adult film performances, nude peepshows, massage parlor work, brothel work, prostitution and many more. Sex work comes in different forms and has been a familiar practice since ancient times. However, there are constitutional challenges in every country regarding sex work. For example, Canada’s sex work laws are persistently being challenged. In week five, we discussed the Canada’s sex work laws in the court case regarding Bedford v. Canada and Lauren Sampson’s proposals for change. Sex work is a phrase that many groups prefer to use instead of the term prostitution as it carries a lot of social stigma. As Sampson reflects in his work, the possible options available for reform in prostitution law in Canada in the aftermath of the Bedford case, I will further analyze the competing models proposed and reflected upon Sampson’s proposals for change and whether I agree with these approaches.

Prostitution is often referred to as the world’s oldest profession, and yet, it is also one of the most controversial. Utilizing multiple perspectives to understand certain issues may aid in the creating strategies for equality (Levan, “Unit 1”, 10). Different feminist theories have varying opinions regarding prostitution, and this paper will attempt to address the concerns that each framework brings in order to promote justice.

The legalization of prostitution is a matter long overdue because it would have a positive impact on the economy, set programs in place to improve quality of life for the victims/workers of the industry, and provide educative resources to bring awareness to the youth about the world’s oldest profession. Not a lot of light is shed on prostitution, let alone the sex industry in a state like Nevada where it is legal in 8 counties nor that up to the late 20th century it was a complete normality to visit brothels where customers would pay for sexual intercourse with a range of “workers” that consisted of mainly of women but also might have included children. In the United States, the public is blinded by a false representation of prostitution as it is considered a taboo and highly frowned upon and that can be attributed to how overconservative many Americans can be regarding the subject. However, our economy is at a difficult time and prostitution being legalized and regulated could work just like the legalization of alcohol in the early 1930s, it must be operated like any business.

In the United States, prostitution is regarded as vile, crude, and an assortment of other words. Those in the profession are regarded as no better than sluts or whores because not only as they having sex, they’re taking money just for some man to use their bodies to release his sexual tension. As a result of this thinking, only a few counties in one state has legalized prostitution and another state had it for a time as a result of a complete accident in the wording of the law. The reasons for the prevention of legalized prostitution are plentiful and so are the benefits for legalizing the profession in regards for the women and their clients. We must legalize the world’s oldest profession to help our society overcome it’s hesitance about all things sexual and improve the standard of working for the prostitute.

It has been said that prostitution is the oldest profession in the world. Where there is money there will be sex and where there is sex there will be prostitution. From Ancient Greece to the streets of North America, prostitution is woven into the fabric of most societies, past and present. Although controversial, prostitution and the laws that govern this line of work in Canada have recently made headlines across the country. Canada (Attorney General) v Bedford, 2013 SCC72, [2013] 3 S.C.R 1101 has taken the world’s oldest profession from out of the shadows and into the Supreme Court of Canada, creating a stir among legislators and citizens alike. When examining this particular case and the potential impact it will have on prostitution laws in Canada, one must take into account the previous court cases that have set the stage for Canada (Attorney General) v Bedford, 2013, the criticisms and support regarding the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision and how the Canadian Government has chosen to respond.

Prior to the decision in Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, prostitution and the commercialization of sexual services was not illegal; however there were three legislative barriers surrounding prostitution-related acts that implicated sex workers of criminal offences, thus the decision to work safe or risk arrest made their line of work difficult (Durisin, Love , & van der Meulen, 2013). Due to public demand and the need to clean street prostitutes, the criminalization of prostitute related activities repressed the working conditions of sex workers (Crago & Clamen, 2013). Prostitutes - a public nuisance - had to choose whether to work safely or risks arrests (Crago & Clamen, 2013). This paper will focus on the violence against sex workers due to the regulation of sex workers through the Criminal Code of Canada, which increased their vulnerability to violence from their clients and the police harassment (Lowman, 2013). The criminalization of commercial sexual acts has led to increased violence and due to the public’s perception of sex work as an immoral act, the safety of sex workers was not adequately monitored by law enforcement agencies. There is a need for the decriminalization of all forms of commercial sex which will create a safer and secure environment under labour regulations (rather than criminal regulations), where sex workers can engage in their profession without the threats or acts of violence.