“What you put in your body, with whom you have sex - these are not the affairs of the state.” --Gore Vidal
Women should be the controllers of their own bodies. Prostitution has been a long-standing profession throughout history. Today, governments are still working to solve the perpetual dispute of the legalization of prostitution. There are forty-two million prostitutes in the world. In the United States, there are one million in the United States, and prostitution is only decriminalized in Nevada (Lubin). Despite the laws against it, the industry continues to thrive. Young women resort to prostitution because they have no other choice. Human trafficking and prostitution rings import prostitutes from developing, poorer countries throughout …show more content…
Starting in 1999, prostitution itself was legal, but the government began prosecuting those caught soliciting prostitutes. The goal of the process was to reduce prostitution by decreasing the demand for it . Anyone caught paying for sex is not only fined but publicly exposed as a John, and possibly sentenced to six months in jail. Thus far, no one has gone to jail ("Legalizing Prostitution"). When John's suffer persecution, the police treats the prostitutes like victims and the uses them as a way to target their pimps and traffickers. From 1998, when the new rules first became law, there was a drop of forty-percent leaving only about 1,500 prostitutes in 2003 ("Legalizing Prostitution"). Despite the obvious lowering of the number of prostitutes, many women have said that the profession is becoming more dangerous under the new rules. This is because the laws are driving the market underground (Kristof). Sweden’s new approach has generated lots of international interest, especially in surrounding European …show more content…
If it remains illegal it forces women to work “underground” in unsafe conditions and without proper health and safety precautions. The Netherlands is now one of the best know examples of open, legalized prostitution because of its innovative advancements (“Legalizing Prostitution”). Under the government's new laws, safer environments are in place for prostitutes to work, and there has been a large creation of policies to promote safe sex. For example, brothels became legal as early as 2000 though the move is widely controversial (“Prostitution in the Netherlands”). Brothel owners feel as though it is unfair because it forces them to obtain licenses to keep their establishment. Along with the licenses, brothel owners must follow regulations on health and safety regulations that can be expensive. Furthermore, Netherland’s government feels it important to eliminate the middleman, such as pimps, in the prostitution business. Pimps and other managers tend to exploit their workers, taking high levels of their profits and giving little in return (Kristof). In an effort to prevent women from being taken advantage of, the government has been establishing, “Red Light Districts”. These districts are places where prostitutes rent out storefronts and lure passersby by standing in the windows. The government favors this form of solicitation as well as streetwalking.
Women should be the controllers of their own bodies. Prostitution has been a long-standing profession throughout history. Today, governments are still working to solve the perpetual dispute of the legalization of prostitution. There are forty-two million prostitutes in the world. In the United States, there are one million in the United States, and prostitution is only decriminalized in Nevada (Lubin). Despite the laws against it, the industry continues to thrive. Young women resort to prostitution because they have no other choice. Human trafficking and prostitution rings import prostitutes from developing, poorer countries throughout …show more content…
Starting in 1999, prostitution itself was legal, but the government began prosecuting those caught soliciting prostitutes. The goal of the process was to reduce prostitution by decreasing the demand for it . Anyone caught paying for sex is not only fined but publicly exposed as a John, and possibly sentenced to six months in jail. Thus far, no one has gone to jail ("Legalizing Prostitution"). When John's suffer persecution, the police treats the prostitutes like victims and the uses them as a way to target their pimps and traffickers. From 1998, when the new rules first became law, there was a drop of forty-percent leaving only about 1,500 prostitutes in 2003 ("Legalizing Prostitution"). Despite the obvious lowering of the number of prostitutes, many women have said that the profession is becoming more dangerous under the new rules. This is because the laws are driving the market underground (Kristof). Sweden’s new approach has generated lots of international interest, especially in surrounding European …show more content…
If it remains illegal it forces women to work “underground” in unsafe conditions and without proper health and safety precautions. The Netherlands is now one of the best know examples of open, legalized prostitution because of its innovative advancements (“Legalizing Prostitution”). Under the government's new laws, safer environments are in place for prostitutes to work, and there has been a large creation of policies to promote safe sex. For example, brothels became legal as early as 2000 though the move is widely controversial (“Prostitution in the Netherlands”). Brothel owners feel as though it is unfair because it forces them to obtain licenses to keep their establishment. Along with the licenses, brothel owners must follow regulations on health and safety regulations that can be expensive. Furthermore, Netherland’s government feels it important to eliminate the middleman, such as pimps, in the prostitution business. Pimps and other managers tend to exploit their workers, taking high levels of their profits and giving little in return (Kristof). In an effort to prevent women from being taken advantage of, the government has been establishing, “Red Light Districts”. These districts are places where prostitutes rent out storefronts and lure passersby by standing in the windows. The government favors this form of solicitation as well as streetwalking.