The Case for Decriminalization

2019 ◽  
pp. 169-241
Author(s):  
Jessica Flanigan
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Well Being

Sex work should be decriminalized because the criminalization of sex work violates the rights of sex workers and their clients and it has bad consequences. The case for decriminalization has three parts. First, criminalization violates the rights of sex workers and their clients. Second, decriminalization would be better on balance for sex workers’ and clients’ well-being. Third, criminalization is inegalitarian, especially because laws that prohibit the sale or purchase of sex subordinate both sex workers and their clients to fines and incarceration. Throughout this analysis, arguments are developed that fall along a spectrum of idealization.

scholarly journals Reimagining Sex Work Venues: Occupational Health, Safety, and Rights in Indoor Workplaces

2021 ◽  
pp. 207-230
Author(s):  
Brooke S. West ◽  
◽  
Anne M. Montgomery ◽  
Allison R. Ebben
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Health ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Occupational Health And Safety ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Critical Element ◽  
Sex Worker ◽  
Safety Standards

AbstractThe setting in which sex workers live and work is a critical element shaping health outcomes, in so far that different venues afford different sets of risk and protective factors. Understanding how contextual factors differ across venue types and influence health outcomes is thus essential to developing and supporting programmes promoting the rights and safety of people in sex work. In this chapter, we focus primarily on indoor workplaces, with the goals of: (1) elucidating unique social, economic, physical, and policy factors that influence the well-being of sex workers in indoor workplaces; (2) highlighting sex worker-led efforts in the Thai context through a case study of the organisation Empower Thailand; (3) describing best practices for indoor settings; and (4) developing a framework of key factors that must be addressed to improve the rights and safety of sex workers in indoor workplaces, and to support their efforts to organise. The chapter draws attention to convergences and divergences in key challenges that sex workers encounter in indoor venues in different global contexts, as well as opportunities to advance comprehensive occupational health and safety programmes. Indoor venues pose important potential for establishing and implementing occupational health and safety standards in sex work and also may provide substantial opportunity for collective organising given the close proximity of people working together. However, any efforts to improve the health and safety of sex workers must explicitly address the structural conditions that lead to power imbalances and which undermine sex worker agency and equality.

scholarly journals When Sex Work Becomes Your Everything

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 373-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela M. Bayer ◽  
Mijail Garvich ◽  
David A. Díaz ◽  
Hugo Sánchez ◽  
Patricia J. García ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Neighborhoods ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Male Sex Workers ◽  
Transmitted Infection ◽  
Sti Prevention ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Need Support

In Peru, there are few studies on male sex workers (MSWs), and existing studies explore limited subgroups or offer limited information about MSWs’ perspectives. This study provides in-depth perspectives from 40 MSWs who work in downtown Lima ( Cercado) and in surrounding urban neighborhoods (non- Cercado) through interviews on their identities, lives, and HIV/STI (sexually transmitted infection) risks and vulnerabilities. Findings are that entry into sex work links economy and affection, particularly among Cercado MSWs. Continued sex work cements this link, making it difficult to exit sex work and establish goals. Ties between economics and affections influence MSWs’ perceived HIV/STI risks, vulnerabilities, and prevention practices. Although Cercado MSWs report higher HIV/STI risks and vulnerabilities than non- Cercado peers, they report fewer prevention practices given inability to buy condoms and acceptance of client offers of higher payment, especially clients they feel affection for. MSWs need support to strengthen their self-perceptions and define and pursue their goals in order to improve their HIV/STI prevention practices, health, and well-being.

scholarly journals Increased burden of suicidality among young street-involved sex workers who use drugs in Vancouver, Canada

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. e152-e157
Author(s):  
Brittany Barker ◽  
Scott E Hadland ◽  
Huiru Dong ◽  
Kate Shannon ◽  
Thomas Kerr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Multivariable Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Estimating Equation ◽  
Elevated Risk ◽  
Generalized Estimating Equation ◽  
At Risk Youth ◽  
Youth Study ◽  
Health And Well Being

AbstractBackgroundThe risks of suicidality among street-involved youth who use drugs and engage in sex work are not well described. This study sought to evaluate if street-involved youth who engage in sex work were at an elevated risk for attempting suicide.MethodsData were derived from the At-Risk Youth Study, a prospective cohort of street-involved youth who use drugs in Vancouver, Canada. Multivariable generalized estimating equation analyses were employed to examine whether youth who engaged in sex work were at elevated risk of attempting suicide, controlling for possible confounders.ResultsBetween September 2005 and May 2015, 1210 youth were recruited into the cohort, of whom, 173 (14.3%) reported recently attempting suicide at some point during the study period. In multivariable analysis, youth who engaged in sex work were significantly more likely to report a recent suicide attempt (adjusted odds ratio = 1.93; 95% confidence interval: 1.28–2.91).ConclusionsStreet-involved youth who engage in sex work were observed to be at a significantly higher risk for suicidality. Systematic discrimination and unaddressed trauma may contribute to the observed increased burden of suicidality among this population. Interventions that support the mental health and well-being of street-involved youth who engage in sex work are urgently needed.

“Different Strolls, Different Worlds? Gentrification and its Impact on Outdoor Sex Work”

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon S Oselin ◽  
Katie Hail-Jares ◽  
Melanie Kushida
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Urban Redevelopment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Conditions ◽  
Washington Dc ◽  
Strategic Decisions ◽  
Individual Perceptions

Abstract Research reveals mixed findings regarding gentrification’s effects on longtime residents and legal small businesses. There is only minimal examination of the ways in which urban redevelopment impacts illicit outdoor marketplaces, and the studies that do rarely employ a comparative analysis or focus on individual perceptions regarding such changes. Using the case of street-based sex work, this study illuminates how workers in the outdoor trade assess changing work conditions and establishes that such evaluations color workers’ decision-making. We draw on interviews with 51 sex workers of color who are familiar with two divergent sex work “strolls” in Washington, DC. Our findings suggest that participants perceive gentrification as a multifaceted phenomenon that reconfigures their work by altering social support, environmental conditions, and competition, changes which ultimately inform where they ply their trade. This research shows that individuals in illicit outdoor markets consider the ramifications of urban redevelopment on their work and make strategic decisions that have implications for their emotional, physical, and financial well-being.

scholarly journals At the Intersection of COVID-19 and Sex Work in the United States: A Call for Social Work Action

Affilia ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 088610992098513
Author(s):  
Nicole F. Bromfield ◽  
Meg Panichelli ◽  
Moshoula Capous-Desyllas
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Action ◽  
Sex Trade ◽  
The Impact

The emergence of COVID-19 in the United States in early 2020 has severely disrupted the lives of most Americans, and people engaged in sex trade are no exception. People in sex work encounter multiple challenges when trying to access the services they need, particularly as they fear arrest, stigma, and pathology related to their work. These barriers have been amplified during the global COVID-19 pandemic, as sex trade workers may further lack access to crucially needed health care and may not have a mechanism for generating a basic income to meet their daily survival needs. Using an intersectional feminist lens, in this article, we discuss the impact of COVID-19 on people in sex work while highlighting sex workers’ resiliency and community action in the face of the pandemic. We highlight empowerment work led by black and brown sex worker communities. As authors and advocates, we call for critical feminist social work action that situates social workers as advocates for the human rights, well-being, and health of individuals in sex work, with a focus on centering the voices of those with lived experience and a focus on harm reduction, during and in the lingering aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals Tracing Contradictions of Neoliberal Governmentality in Tijuana’s Sex Industry

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Hofmann
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Main Concern ◽  
Sex Industry ◽  
Work Arrangements ◽  
Neoliberal Governmentality ◽  
Intention To Move ◽  
Mexico Border ◽  
Selling Sex

My main concern in this article is to illustrate contradictions that neoliberal governmentality produces in the context of sex work in Tijuana. Neoliberal governmentality is a practice of ruling people that interweaves aspirations of individuals with the demands of the market. By theorising governmentality in the context of sex work in Tijuana, it is my intention to move beyond the limited discussion of voluntary versus forced prostitution, in order to stress that sex work has become entangled in ambiguous and simultaneous processes: on the one hand, it can generate personal empowerment and agency, and on the other hand, it demands the individual’s subjection to a neoliberal market regime. The article will explain the liberties allowed by Tijuana’s sex industry, and elucidate why sex workers prefer managerial sex-work arrangements to personalistic ways of selling sex based on pimps as intermediaries. Despite challenges of selling sex, the income generated from sex work at the US–Mexico border allows many women to create new lifestyles. Sex work is used as a strategic means to realise a project of self-actualisation, which is linked to the desire for economic well-being and upward social mobility. Drawing attention to the complicated entanglements of personal strategies and aspirations of sex workers in this particular locale with neoliberal governmentality, the article demonstrates that sex work can simultaneously be a site of oppression and exploitation, and a stepping-stone to personal advancement.

The Role of Place in the Lives of Sex Workers: A Sociospatial Analysis of Two International Case Studies

Affilia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-293
Author(s):  
Alison Grittner ◽  
Kathleen C. Sitter
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Spatial Justice ◽  
Place Theory ◽  
Material Environment

This article conceptualizes how place-based analysis can generate innovative understandings of sex work and spatial justice, including ways in which stigma, well-being, and marginality are embodied in sex work places. Focusing on three interconnected dimensions of place—geographic location, material environment, and sociopower structures—this article examines the unexplored realm of place and sex work. Beginning with an analysis of existing sex work literature and knowledge relating to dimensions of place, we explicate the role of feminist ideologies, juridical contexts, and the built environment as the conceptual and analytic groundwork for a place-based understanding of sex work. Architectural spatial methods then generate a place-based analysis of two case study exemplars: the Residence in Western Canada and the Strichtplatz in Zurich, Switzerland. We conclude by considering avenues to incorporate place theory into sex work research and the social work discipline, ultimately advocating for research, policy, and practice that concomitantly address sex workers’ social and spatial oppression.

scholarly journals The effect of sex work regulation on health and well-being of sex workers: Evidence from Senegal

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (11) ◽  
pp. 1627-1652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seiro Ito ◽  
Aurélia Lépine ◽  
Carole Treibich
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health And Well Being

Police Crackdowns, Human Rights Abuses, and Sex Work Industry in Nigeria: Evidence From an Empirical Investigation

2020 ◽  
pp. 105756772090713
Author(s):  
Habeeb Abdulrauf Salihu ◽  
Olufemi Adeniyi Fawole
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Hot Spots ◽  
Sampling Methods ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Commercial Sex ◽  
Commercial Sex Work ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
Work Activities

This study undertook a qualitative investigation into police crackdowns as a form of operational control mechanism employed to suppress sex workers and sex work industry in Ilorin Emirate, Kwara State, Nigeria. The study employed a qualitative research method. One hundred and six female commercial sex workers (41 at street hot spots and 65 in brothels) participated. They were aged between 19 and 47 and selected through a variety of sampling methods including purposive, referral, and venue-based sampling methods. In-depth interview was the instrument used in data collection, and thematic data analysis was employed in analyzing the data. Results indicate that police crackdown is usually experienced by sex workers at street hot spots and in brothels and are often associated with brutality, human rights abuses, and extortion, which have negative impacts on the livelihoods and general well-being of sex workers. Sex workers devised some strategies to escape and avoid police arrests and abuses. Thus, crackdowns merely displace sex workers during intense restrictions but do not reduce sex work activities. Therefore, the study suggests a change in suppressive approach to an inclusive nonviolent method in reducing commercial sex work activities.

scholarly journals Sex Work, Migration, and Human Trafficking in South Africa: From polarised arguments to potential partnerships

2019 ◽  
pp. 74-90
Author(s):  
Ntokozo Yingwana ◽  
Dr Rebecca Walker ◽  
Alex Etchart
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Human Trafficking ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Mobility Model ◽  
Sex Industry ◽  
Sex Worker ◽  
And Migration

In South Africa, the conflation of sex work with human trafficking means that migrant/mobile sex workers are often framed as victims of trafficking while arguments for the decriminalisation of sex work are discounted due to claims about the risks of increased trafficking. This is despite the lack of clear evidence that trafficking, including in the sex industry, is a widespread problem. Sex worker organisations have called for an evidence-based approach whereby migration, sex work, and trafficking are distinguished and the debate moves beyond the polarised divisions over sex work. This paper takes up this argument by drawing on research with sex workers and a sex worker organisation in South Africa, as well as reflections shared at two Sex Workers’ Anti-trafficking Research Symposiums. In so doing, the authors propose the further development of a Sex Work, Exploitation, and Migration/Mobility Model that takes into consideration the complexities of the quotidian experiences of migration and selling sex. This, we suggest, could enable a more effective and productive partnership between sex worker organisations and other stakeholder groups, including anti-trafficking and labour rights organisations, trade unions, and others to protect the rights and well-being of all those involved in sex work.

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