This new law in the Netherlands has decriminalized both sex workers and businesses. Local authorities monitor the conditions under which prostitution is permitted. Industry standardization implements mandatory health and safety regulations such as running water, access to condoms, and fire escapes. Most importantly, these reforms grant prostitutes all the legal, social and labour rights that meet many, but not all, requirements of sex workers` organizations to work under legal and satisfactory conditions. We legalize and regulate many morally controversial businesses – such as gambling, alcohol, tobacco, knee dancing and pornography. Yes, women can be forced into prostitution. But we are not helping them by criminalizing sex work. Countries like New Zealand, which have decriminalized all acts of prostitution, seem to have better luck in terms of the well-being of sex workers, perhaps because they have focused on creating laws that “protect the human rights of sex workers and protect them from exploitation.” Why people are uncomfortable listening to sex workers talk about legalizing prostitution has nothing to do with concerns about women`s health and safety. If that were the real concern, prostitution would now be legal in the United States. The reason people don`t agree with legalizing prostitution is because prostitution is considered amoral because it involves (mostly) women selling their bodies for financial gain.
However, telling women what they can and cannot do with their bodies does not come from a place of morality: it comes from a place of control. Legalized workers in America get rights such as a minimum wage, non-discrimination, and a safe work environment. Since prostitutes do not work legally, none of these rights are granted to them. Would you like to discuss this issue with others? Join our debate “Should prostitution be legalised across Europe?” and add your thoughts in the comments section! Globally, the prostitution trade is worth $186 billion, according to the www.havocscope.com website, which analyzes the underground economy. Revenues of this magnitude could generate a lot of tax revenue. It is estimated that legalizing prostitution in the United States could bring tax authorities about $20 billion a year. In Germany, which liberalized its prostitution laws in 2002, the legal industry is worth around €16 billion and tax revenues make a significant contribution to some urban budgets. It is time for the sex industry to be taxed like any other business so that this income can benefit society.
Meanwhile, in the United States, we are cracking down on the tools sex workers like to use backpage.com. The website that allowed escorts to list their services was shut down earlier this month, and the co-founders and others associated with the company were accused of facilitating prostitution. Attorney General Jeff Sessions described the site as “the dominant market for illegal commercial sex, a place where sex traffickers often advertise to children and adults.” (One co-founder pleaded guilty to conspiracy to facilitate prostitution; the other co-founders pleaded not guilty.) The Law Against Online Sex Trafficking (FOSTA) promises to further reduce the legal protections of these websites, meaning more of them are likely to be shut down in the future. One sex worker told Newsweek she was “devastated and scared” by the closure and that “people will die” as prostitution continues to be forced underground and prostitutes have to work with more dangerous people. The ACLU states that trafficked persons are “vulnerable because they often work in jobs hidden from the public and not regulated by the government.” Researchers estimate that there are up to 31,000 people in legal sex work in the Netherlands. There are still problems with the living conditions of illegal prostitutes, but for those with residency papers, life has improved considerably. The Dutch government conducted a study on the quality of life of sex workers in the early 2000s and found improvements in several categories from 2002 to 2007. The proven benefits of legalizing prostitution include mental and physical health care (including STI prevention), safer and more accessible methods of reporting violence and abuse, and improved infrastructure and working conditions. Opponents believe that legalizing prostitution would lead to an increase in sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS, global human trafficking and violent crimes such as rape and murder.
They argue that prostitution is inherently immoral and commercially exploitative, reinforces the criminal underworld, and fosters the oppression of women by men. An April 2012 study by the Urban Justice Center found that New York City police officers had actually used women`s condoms as evidence in criminal prostitution cases against them. It is easy to imagine how this practice could deter sex workers from wearing protection. Nevada only allows prostitution in licensed brothels that workers regularly test for sexually transmitted infections. While Love isn`t the first to observe that legal prostitution can be relatively safe, rural Nevada`s counties are the only place in America where the world`s oldest profession is officially licensed. The United Nations Development Programme`s report on sex work in Asia and the Pacific highlighted why it is problematic when sex workers do not have legal rights. When people argue that prostitution should be illegal, in many cases, their concern comes from a place of morality described as a concern for women`s health and safety. People believe that legalizing prostitution will only abuse more women, make it harder for prostitutes to get out of the industry, or teach young women that their bodies exist only for the purpose of sexual exploitation by men. Prostitution is such a little-spoken taboo subject that most people would not bat an eyelid if they were told that the vast majority of prostitutes have been abused.
According to Prostitutes Education Network, an advocacy group for former sex workers, 70 percent of prostitutes reported being raped at some point in their careers. Whether they are clients, pimps, strangers and even police officers, prostitutes are constantly at the mercy of others. In addition to the horrors of being hurt so violently, the real atrocity lies in the inability of prostitutes to speak for themselves, even to try to obtain any form of justice. Instead of seeing a rapist locked up, a prostitute would be charged with prostitution, as well as possible fines and prison sentences. The illegal nature of prostitution not only endangers the lives and safety of sex workers, but also encourages sex trafficking and underage exploitation, which ultimately harms communities as a whole.