Should Sex Work Be Decriminalized?
Although having sex is not a criminal offense in most places around the world, the situation changes when money gets involved. Having sex for cash is forbidden by law in many countries, including the United States, Russia, China, Iran, and South Africa. In some of them, the punishment for breaking the rules is even the death penalty.
Many people claim that decriminalization of prostitution could be beneficial for sex workers, allowing them to take advantage of workers’ protection laws, organize trade unions, and undergo regular health checks. Moreover, they argue that if the sex act is consensual, there is no real reason for the government to intervene in the transaction. It shouldn’t matter if it’s a face-to-face meeting or playing the best porn games online.
However, this movement also has opponents who state that making sex work legal could cause more harm than good. They deem it a threat to moral codes and a promotion of an immoral lifestyle. Besides, they see it as an abuse of human rights and express their worries that it may fuel human trafficking.
Below, we take a closer look at the arguments for and against the decriminalization of sex work and try to come to a satisfying conclusion.
The Pros of Decriminalization
1. Protection from Abuse
Some people claim that the decriminalization of sex work is necessary to protect sex workers from abuse. They argue that criminalizing the act has made many sex workers more vulnerable to attacks, as they are forced to work in illegal apartments and on the streets. Indeed, it is more difficult for them to report a crime if they get attacked while working illegally than when they have a license.
2. Health and Safety
Another positive consequence that many experts claim would follow the legalization of prostitution would be health and safety. It is easier for health professionals to carry out regular check-ups on sex workers if they work in licensed brothels than if they work illegally. It will protect not only their lives but also the lives and health of their clients who wouldn’t have to worry about the condition of the one they have sex with.
3. More Money
It is estimated that about 40 million people regularly engage in sex work, including up to 2 million people in the United States. Many of these people earn their living by providing sexual services, and if the industry were regulated, there would be a lot more money flowing into the economy.
4. Freedom of Choice
Some people believe that everyone has the right to do whatever they want with their own bodies as long as no one else gets hurt. Therefore, in their eyes, making prostitution illegal is an infringement on people’s freedom of choice. They argue that there is nothing wrong with choosing to sell sex for a living if nobody is forced to do it.
5. Job Opportunities
Legalizing prostitution could also create job opportunities for many people who want to enter the sex trade. This would enable them to work legally instead of working illegally on the streets or in dangerous apartments. Moreover, they could even sign contracts and take out insurance, which would make them eligible for government benefits such as unemployment benefits or pension plans.
The Cons of Decriminalization
1. Human Trafficking
One common argument against legalizing prostitution is that doing so would cause an increase in human trafficking. It is argued that making sex work legal would cause foreign criminals to start smuggling women into such places, making them more vulnerable to attacks. In addition, some opponents of decriminalization claim that legalizing prostitution would be the first step towards legalizing slavery, which could lead to a rise in slavery worldwide.
2. Public Health Issues
Another concern regarding the legalization of prostitution is public health. Those who oppose it claim that legalizing sex work would encourage reckless behavior among customers and spread sexually transmitted diseases. Besides, some people believe that men who buy sex are more likely to rape and abuse women than those who don’t.
3. An Abuse of Human Rights
Opponents of decriminalization also say that legalizing prostitution would be an abuse of human rights. Apart from their fear that it would increase the number of human trafficking cases, they argue that by legalizing prostitution, you are granting men the right to buy women and treat them as products, objects, not human beings.
4. A Threat to Moral Codes
Some people believe that legalizing prostitution would pose a threat to moral codes. They think that making the sex trade legal could cause a spike in the number of incidences of infidelity and promiscuity because having sex for money would no longer be considered taboo. They also argue that it would negatively affect how society treats women and perpetuate inequality since most prostitutes are women and/or queer.
Conclusion
The issue of whether or not prostitution should be legalized remains a controversial one. Both sides of the argument have their advocates as well as their opponents, and there is no clear answer to this dilemma.
On the one hand, there are many benefits that would follow such a move, including protection from abuse and safety, not to mention the advantages for the country’s economy. On the other hand, decriminalization opponents argue that making sex work legal could cause more harm than good. After all, governments should not be in the business of promoting an immoral lifestyle. But who’s to judge what’s immoral?
September 22nd, 2021
Posted in Articles
of course it should. treat it like any other job
of course, treat me like every other retard troll
The issue will be regulation. All industries are regulated in one way or another. As public health is more involved in this one than others, are the regulators health officials, labor officials, or a combination of both. If anything has been demonstrated by the Covid issue, the territorial fights between labor and health cause confusion which harms people. Sex work is all the more muddied because of the morals issues that will inevitably enter into the discussions. As this is a “should” question (should sex work be legalized?) and not a “how” question (how do we legalize sex work?), the answer is easy, “yes, it should.” The complexity is “how.” It is because of that “how” the U.S. won’t touch this question and will leave it to individual states to sort out.
Who are you writing these articles for Niklas? is the Boobieblog now a hardcore investigative journalism site? all you’re gonna get here is a sounding board of men in their 30-60 who most likely already have similar opinions to you… Maybe post this on REDDIT?
The goal of this blog right from the beginning has always been to win a Pulitzer Prize
This really isn’t an issue in most of the world — only in rogue states like Iran, Somalia or the United States.
Prostitution isn’t actually illegal in the untied states .
It’s just that every state except Nevada has laws against on the state level .
Thing here is that human trafficking is almost as likely if not more likely to happen even without decriminalization. In fact it would be easier to figure out who has been trafficked through and who hasn’t if it was legal and regulated properly.