There’s no positive way to legalize “work” that is based on one person using another. Sex work by its very nature is not only manipulative, its bribing one person to do something they would prefer not to do, for money.
I worked with quite a few prostitutes (its not ‘sex work’, its prostitution - giving it a prettier name doesn’t do justice to how degrading it really is) years ago and without exception they were doing it because they didnt have any other skills or options and quite a few of them had addictions they needed to feed. It feeds the cycle.
The one organization in town that was highly successful in getting them out of it, gave them a safe place to live and then trained them in things like receptionist skills or basic accounting. Once they had workplace marketable skills NO ONE ever said, ‘oh I missed being used by shady and abusive men’. Ever.
If it’s always going to happen regardless, would you rather it be underground and more dangerous, or regulated and safer?
You cant regulate into ‘safety’ something that is abusive by nature. There’s no such thing and the state can’t legitimize something thats illegitimate. The only people who think thats a good idea are those who haven’t seen the dark side of prostitution. Painting over it with nice ideas doesn’t make it any less seedy, manipulative and soul destroying. NO girl ever woke up one day and said, ‘Id really love to be a prostitute when I grow up’ But they do. Because they’re out of options. So the solution is not to find ‘cures’ its to continue to make it illegal and embarrassing as hell for the men who use those services. Its amazing how shining a spotlight on their activity suddenly makes them go home. I wonder why.
You are painting sex work as all back alley prostitution, but it is not all like that.
You also have high end escorts, and high end call girls that only deal with rich clients, charging $4000 a night. In those cases the women set their terms, and it is sex amongst consenting adults. Its not a strong arm pimp forcing poor women to work, or a homeless young women needing to survive.
Unless you somehow think sex between consenting adults becomes abuse once they take the $4000?
Unless you somehow think sex between consenting adults becomes abuse once they take the $4000?
No its just soul crushing and degrading that’s all. $40 or $4000 doesnt matter, its still giving up one’s dignity and autonomy and allowing oneself to be used for money. If its so rewarding why aren’t those call girls advertising their great life to the world? Because they’re not proud of what they do, and neither are their parents, that’s why. Yes, it matters.
Find me the pre teen girl that woke up one morning and said, ‘Id really love to be a call girl when I grow up’. They dont. But I would bet you that you WOULD find about 99% of them have been used and abused before they got into that lifestyle. I have literally had a young prostitute say to me, “Well, I’m going to be used anyway, I may as well get paid for it” Does that sound like someone who’s happy in their ‘chosen profession’?
Disagree with your dense copy-paste.
I just wrote that. If five sentences is too ‘dense’ for you, you can always put it into ChatGPT and ask it to summarize lol
they would prefer not to do
First of all, says who? There are loads of sex workers who are content with their job
Second of all, isn’t that something you could say of any job? Do you think the McDonald’s burger flipper is content with their job? They actually are paid shit to do something they don’t want
What about porn? Should we forbid that too, then? Because no one making porn must want to do it, right?
Yeah, let’s keep sex work illegal, that way if a woman decides to get into that, she can’t go to the police when abused, she will need to do it in ways that are much more dangerous than needed, she won’t be able to say no, and we can improve and increase human trafficking… I mean, all great stuff, right?
Here is a kicker: people like sex. Bigger kicker: women like sex. OMG! I know! Who knew! I did, you didn’t!
If both parties consent, it is fine and should be perfectly legal.its not your job to tell other what they can and cannot do, or what they can and cannot like.
The difference between McDonalds and sex work is that the employee isnt giving up their dignity and their body autonomy for someone else’s use (and often abuse). HUGE difference and equating the two is really quite disingenuous. ‘I’ll flip burgers for minimum wage’ is nothing like ‘I’ll suck your dick for $50’
There are loads of workers content with their jobs? Really? I’d believe you that they were if they actually would say that but you know why they won’t? Because they don’t want people to know what they do. They aren’t proud of the work they do and they know that exposing their work will more than likely cut off the opportunity to do any other regular job in the future. Because inherently, everyone knows that selling your body is soul crushing and demeaning despite the porn industry’s attempt to make it look lucrative and enjoyable. Not surprisingly, its almost always the young and vulnerable who get drawn into it and either right away or after a few bad experiences, they end up leaving. Because its not what its portrayed to be.
I’d be fine with banning porn if that’s were an option. The world wouldn’t be WORSE off without it. Pretty sure a few thousands generations of people figured out how to have sex and enjoy it before porn came along. Porn sets up false expectations, especially in youth who have no idea that what their watching is not real life and not how women respond. eg. No women has ever groaned in ecstasy cause some dude is jizzing on her stomach for example. Just unrealistic versions of what orgasmic sex is like for a woman because its all made for men by men. Just recently read a report that said that near asphyxiations are become far more common as people come in to emerg units - guess where THAT idea came from? And young people, especially young girls who dont know better think that’s “normal” - its not. Its not normal, and its downright dangerous.
Yes, people dont just like sex they LOVE it. And Im no prude, I have a great sex life with an amazing wife. But that doesnt mean we make it easier for people, especially women, and vulnerable young people to get into ‘sex work’ Theres nothing good that comes with it and like all other vices, people who argue ‘well we cant stop it so we may as well legalize it’ aren’t usually the people who have to clean up the mess and suffer the consequences when we finally realize we have a big problem with gambling and drug use and drinking and prostitution. Making it legal doesnt solve anything, it just puts a nice veneer on something so we can pretend its not as harmful as it really is.
