Ignoring the consent of women perpetuates inequality and would seem to be discriminatory. The Department of Social Work, University of Gothenburg, Sweden said that “To unilaterally proclaim someone as an exploited victim or needy belongs to the so-called paternalistic tradition where the experts have power to define the clients.” In this set-up, the society or Government forces help to the women exploited in prostitution as they unilaterally consider them as victims, hence, presents two problems: 1) it denies sex-workers’ rights to autonomy, perpetuates a paternalistic society, and leads to victim blaming; 2) people in sex-work are continually stigmatized.
On the other hand, the non-abolitionist scholars object to the view of the abolitionist
Harmful societal beliefs that perpetuate misconceptions about abuse and unfairly blame victims exacerbate these challenges. To tackle these issues effectively, Half the Sky recommends strategies, like strengthening frameworks, providing support services to survivors, and promoting cultural change through activism and education. A holistic approach addressing root causes of sexual trafficking while empowering survivors and holding perpetrators accountable is essential to eradicate this practice. Nicholas Kristofs observation, about prostitution and strict sexual norms, sheds light on the interplay between gender relations, cultural influences and economic factors. In societies where women are marginalized or undervalued, they are more vulnerable to exploitation in the sex trade.
Our criminal justice system’s explicit bias against sex workers only compounds the problem” (Keena). Sex workers are given no respect and in cases have their livelihood used against them as a way to further abuse them. This comes from the belief that since sex is their job; their safety and consent do not matter as they are not seen to be doing anything for society. People see these women as products sold to them instead of
In a decade that will be surely known as one of grand feminist success it seems worthwhile mentioning that prostitution is a new feminist issue. According to “Women Have the Rights” many sex workers and feminist activists see the decriminalization of prostitution as a human rights initiative for women to regain control over their bodies. These third wave feminists find sex an issue that should be more widely discussed. Large leaps in pornography such as female filmmakers and feminist porn stars point to an ideal that consensual sex work is just another fore front in the battle for gender equality. Legalization of prostitution leads to more government oversight requiring
Those who sadly become part of globalization or capitalism for women are beaten and force into organization that seen them as pawns in game that will drugged them to alter their perception of reality. They would even force pregnant mothers into having births and then taking their children away as collateral damage in order to make them obey their rules or laws. Policemen will even turn a blind eye because they have mutual ties with the brothels owners and it is not that they do not believe the victim or female story but it is far more common in countries where women are more sexually conservative. Prior examples are Iran, Pakistan, and India. Human trafficking is a disease that cannot be describe in one article or video but throughout history, it is a term that challenges the foundations of compassion and
The Swedish model has certainly reduced the visibility of street prostitution for obvious reasons. Although, a report in 2007 by the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare found that it was impossible to draw any conclusions about the overall level of prostitution in Sweden, thus the industry most likely has simply transitioned underground. Therefore, the Swedish model needs to be recognized for what it is -- a more effective prohibition model, rather than what it is not -- a truly feminist model.
In this paper, I discuss the “Swedish model” which bans the purchasing (but not the selling) of sex and its effect on the people it governs. The general world view seems to be that prostitution propagates male violence against women. The Sex Purchase Act was based on the idea that in an ideal gender-equal society, it is shameful and unacceptable for men to pay for casual sex or even a nice blow-job. The penalties for this “crime” range from petty fines to six months’ in prison. In reality, it is the decriminalization of prostitution that would make conditions for all people in the sex industry happier and safer as well as decrease the occurrence of other crimes involving rape.
With no government control or regulation, work-place violence, harassment, and medical care are not monitored or concerned, even though this line of work is the most vulnerable to all three conditions. In fact, nearly seventy-five percent of sex-workers experience work-place violence. For this, “decriminalization could be the best means to protect the rights of sex workers and ensure that these individuals receive adequate medical care, legal assistance, and police protection” (Amnesty International). Along with Amnesty International, one of the most respected human rights organizations in the world, the World Health Organization, UN Women, Global Commission on HIV and the law, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, Human Rights Watch, and the Open Society Foundations also support the decriminalization of prostitution in the United States. Criminalizing prostitution will not end prostitution. Instead, the only plausible solution is government regulation. With government support, clients can be tracked through credit cards and any violence or harassment will be able to be reported and taken care of, on a legal level. The sex-work industry also has alarming statistics involving STI’s and STD’s. The men who control the women, or the ‘pimps’, force the women to have oral, vaginal, and anal sex without any kind of contraception, if that is what the client prefers. The Porn Industry,
Prostitution is one of the world’s oldest professions, and laws prohibiting prostitution may be the oldest examples of government regulation and government (sex) discrimination (Armentano, 1993). Prostitution also may be illegal, but if you look hard enough in the streets, you can see them. Countries have been arguing to make
Feminists are concerned whether or not a prostitute controls her own sexual identity. Others believe prostitution is degrading, and sexual slavery towards woman while someone like Martha Nussbaum, believe its not threatening a woman anymore more than any other paid job. Where do you stand when it comes to prostitution? Personally I’m concerned with the moral factors and the harm it brings to women both physically and mentally. Throughout this paper I will examine the issues and questions which arise from Nussbaum’s paper, “Whether From Reason or Prejudice: Taking Money for Bodily Service” in order to help come to a conclusion on whether or not prostitution is something society should control through the use of the criminal law.
The sex industry is highly divided between those who call themselves “sex workers”, and former prostitutes who call themselves “survivors” (Glazer 340). Women should have the right to choose what they do for a living, including prostitution. The criminalization of prostitution does more harm than good when often women are left unprotected, both socially and legally, and therefore, the United States should make efforts to decriminalize and regulate prostitution instead.
As academia progresses in nature, there has been an increased awareness in the severity and commonality of rape and sexual assault. Conversely, despite how much literature is present on the matter, there is still a grossly disproportionate amount of literature on the nature of rape and sexual assault of marginalized victims versus that of an ‘ideal victim’ (Christie, 1986). More specifically there is very little to no research and literature on the topic of rape and sexual assault of prostitutes while in the process of their occupation. Women involved in prostitution are amongst the most victimized groups in society. However, there are some critics who present prostitution as a non-victim crime (Matthews, 2015). Victimization raises the issue
In the glorified sex culture of today’s age, pornography is everywhere and prostitution is seen as a choice people make. However, many people in prostitution are also victims of sex trafficking (Walsh, 2016). In western countries, people tend to see individuals in prostitution as more of a choice. However, in many eastern countries, they do not
Prostitution is widespread in Chicago where 20,000 women are taking part in the sex trade (Campbell & Robbins, 2011). 93% of these women have pimps and most are forced into it through various circumstances (Campbell & Robbins, 2011). This study is an example of how the prohibitionist paradigm [IS/IS NOT] relevant. Also, it [IS/IS NOT] reflected in the reasons why women leave the trade.
It is were women who have been traffic become victims of the sex industry. Some women like Katia 23 years old from Odessa in Ukraine are aware that they are being recruited for prostitution; however they do not realize the abuse they are going to suffer from their traffickers. After escaping from sex trafficking she confessed in a documentary call “ Sex-slave” that she could not believe places like that actually existed. She said “ I thought I will find I least one kind person, or that one of the pimps would set me free” “ they did not see us as human being but just as whores, as flesh that they could use. That's all”. Even if women consent to prostitution they are still abused and severely traumatised by their “buyers”. They become victims of sex-trafficking because they are held prisoner and at the end forced into prostitutions. They can not stop or leave when they want. They are denied the most basic human rights , and in the worst case, they are denied their right to life. In order to attempt, to regulate and control such terrible activities and discontinue the suffering from victims of sexual-exploitation, international organisations such as the UN, OSCE ( the organisation for security and co-operation in Europe) and the Council of Europe have put protocols and specific laws into place . Since the mid-1990s European institutions have
Sexual favours in return for money, just the thought of this has people cringing, although laws have deemed to move forward with the idea of prostitution it seems although socially there has not been much progress. The idea of prostitution still scares, or one could even go as far to say it disgusts people. The lack of knowledge and awareness of the details of sex work create this ongoing hate towards sex work, which continues to stigmatize sex workers. Regardless of changing laws, regardless of changing policies, why is it that sex workers are still afraid to proudly announce that their job is in fact the job of a sex worker? Unfortunately, it seems as though the idea of sex work that seems to be such a terrible one is not what bothers sex workers the most, it is the social misconception of what sex work is like that leads these individuals to feel highly stigmatized (Van der Meulen and Redwood, 2013). The primary harm for of prostitution seems to be the stigma against prostitution, women involved in prostitution are considered socially invisible as full human beings (Farley, 2004). Why is it that our changing and progressing laws are still unable to remove this stigma from the lives of sex workers? This paper will argue that prostitution laws continue to produce stigma around sex work. It will argue this through revisiting the historical laws, examining present laws and ongoing laws at this time.