Prostitution has been a topic of a heated debate for centuries worldwide. However, people still have no solution to the problem. More so, there is no particular definition of prostitution.
Some see it as a result of abuse while others deem that it is a result of experiencing different aspects of one’s sexuality (Levin & Peled, 2011). In the majority of countries prostitutions is seen as stigma which should be removed from the respectful life of citizens (Mathieu, 2011).
However, the number of prostitutes in the streets makes it clear that t is not enough to ignore the problem trying to remove prostitutes from respectable places. Prostitutes have become a vulnerable group of people who are assaulted, humiliated, abused or even killed.
I believe this is inappropriate for the contemporary civilized world. I deem people should accept the fact that prostitution is a part of the human society and it is not a stigma but a certain way to experience one’s sexuality.
Prostitutes and Society
Notably, people have had different attitudes towards prostitution throughout centuries. For instance, in ancient Greece prostitution was legalized. There was certain hierarchy within the array of prostitutes.
Courtesans and concubines (now such females are called prostitutes) were regarded as means to satisfy people’s (predominantly male’s) sexual needs. This enabled men to remain faithful husbands and respectful citizens of the ancient Greek society.
Adultery was a very serious crime but intercourse with a prostitute remained within the legal norm. On the other hand, prostitution was also seen as a means to make one’s living.
Thus, many widows had no other way to provide for their families. Many young women also experienced their sexuality as a tool for gaining money.
The film Dangerous Beauty reveals similar attitudes toward prostitution. Thus, young Venetian women have two paths: they can be wives or they can be courtesans. Basically, the film reveals two ways of experiencing female sexuality.
On one hand, women can see their sexuality as a certain way to be proper wives who give birth to children and raise them. On the other hand, women can choose to become courtesans and enjoy certain liberties (publish poems, attend libraries) which are inaccessible for wives.
The main character of the film, Veronica, chooses the latter option. She experiences her sexuality as a way to liberate herself from certain burdens. Of course, this is also the way to financially support her family.
Theoretical Approach
Interestingly, the film can be regarded as an illustration of certain theoretical approaches to the problem. The film refutes Freudian assumptions as to the motifs which make women choose the illegal path of experiencing their sexuality.
Thus, neo-Freudians articulated the idea that women who became prostitutes tried to “repress female homosexual inclinations” through this “pseudo-heterosexual sexual activity” (Levin & Peled, 2011, p. 583). Some researchers try to tie this choice with child abuse experiences.
However, such assumptions are hardly plausible as in many cases prostitutes do not have such kind of experiences or certain hidden inclinations.
The film also tells a story of a young woman who has a ‘normal’ life with no child abuse experiences or homosexual inclinations. On the contrary, Veronica has a loving mother and brother, she also loves a man.
Symbolic interactionists articulated the idea that the interaction between prostitutes and their clients is “a microcosm of all male-female relationships” (Levin & Peled, 2011, p. 584). Admittedly, this formulation is quite comprehensive.
On one hand, males use females’ sexuality to satisfy their sexual needs. Females, in their turn, use their sexuality as a way to obtain the most appropriate partner (boyfriend, husband, etc.) and create the family which would meet their own standards.
Importantly, family symbolizes stability, respect, status and financial security for a woman. Likewise, during the interaction between a man and a prostitute, a man gets sexual satisfaction and a prostitute gets money which can secure her future.
The symbol perfectly fits the film as Veronica gets money for satisfying males’ sexual (and even spiritual) needs. Males pay to spend time with a beautiful and educated woman. Basically, they pay for something they cannot have at home due to conventions which existed at that time.
At the same time, Veronica gets money which enables her to support her family. The money can also secure her future as she can become quite a wealthy woman. Finally, she gets freedom. This form of interaction is one of the purest and fairest.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I should admit that the research implemented made me understand that people have seen prostitution differently. I do not think the research or the film changed the way I see sexuality or prostitution.
I have always thought that prostitution is one of the fairest types of interaction between a man and a woman. However, I now understand that people can change their attitude toward prostitution. Ancient Greece and Venice of the sixteenth century can be regarded as examples to follow.
Those societies were not as hypocritical as contemporary people are. They knew that prostitution was a part of their lives and they assign a certain niche for this phenomenon. I deem we should adopt some ways used in ancient Greece or Venice of the sixteenth century.
Admittedly, prostitutes provide services which are rather specific. However, this does not give people the right to condemn the women who made such a choice.
Reference List
Levin, L. & Peled, E. (2011). The attitudes toward prostitutes and prostitution scale: A new tool for measuring public attitudes toward prostitutes and prostitution. Research on Social Work Practice, 21(5), 582-593.
Mathieu, L. (2011). Neighbors’ anxieties against prostitutes’ fears: Ambivalence and repression in the policing of street prostitution in France. Emotion, Space and Society, 4(2), 113-120.
Recently, Ontario’s top court upheld a decision to legalize prostitution provided the sex selling services do not bring benefits to the third party. On the one hand, legalizing prostitution is a reasonable step for solving a number of problems. It is clear that selling sex indoor is the safest way for a prostitute rather than working outdoors, which is banned by legislature.
On the other hand, one should take a closer look at the actual purposes and underpinnings of women resorting to such a profession, including poverty, racial and gender discrimination, and dehumanization of a female body. Moreover, changing morale is not an advantage for a healthy and safety development of Canadian society.
Therefore, the Canadian government should not legalize the prostitution because it violates women’s rights and limits their professional opportunities for self-determination in society.
Prostitution, therefore, is seen as violence against women that emerged as a result of racism, sexism, and oppression on the part of male society. In addition, sex selling is often a result of low level of living and unemployment in the country, which negatively affect the overall image of the country.
Legalization of prostitution would mean official support of violence against women who suffer from prejudiced stereotypes. Women should not confront racism and gender discrimination because it limits their access to equal professional opportunities. After all, it violates human rights and freedoms.
According to the research conducted by Brock, prostitution is regarded as a form of oppression that prevents women from fulfilling themselves as full-fledged individuals endowed with similar opportunities (1). In addition, sex services contribute to dehumanization of female identity because of physical harm to the body. The government should take efforts to protect women from abuse and maltreatment.
Despite the fact that legalization introduces official control of prostitution, it still fails to protect women from exploitation because the criminal systems of sex trade are much more complicated to unveil all outlaw undercurrents. Thus, legalization does not guarantee welfare and security of their employees (Brock 11). Limited responsibilities does not guarantee prostitute social benefits and packages.
To prove the negative consequences of legalizing prostitution for Canadian society, Morton et al. have conducted a survey on the beliefs and attitudes to women exploitation (239). The research has discovered that female participants have turned out to be more negative toward the prostitution than male participants.
What is more interesting is that “…underage prostitution was viewed as a greater problem among female and street prostitutes than for male and indoor prostitutes” (Morton et al. 239). Because of age issues, prostitution is also regarded as a case of abuse against children.
The legalization of prostitution implies benefits for the individuals who sell sex, but not the third parties involved in sex trade. However, the legalization of the prostitution does not guarantee excluding of pimps who would gain benefits from the prostitution business.
Besides, the third parties involved consider prostitution as one of the main profits, aside from drug selling. In fact, the people involved in this business often fail to consider health and safety of their workers. Besides, the established law does not presuppose health issues to be considered. Inconsistency in the adopted laws may lead to even more serious consequences.
Specifically, Craig states, “in a just society a government is not entitled to jeopardize the health and physical safety of sex workers for the sake of reducing public nuisance” (99). Therefore, even if the Canadian government legalizes the prostitution business, it will not guarantee full protection of liberty and equality, particularly for female prostitutes.
There is also evidence that the highest rates of drug trade and murders of women are connected with the prostitution. Therefore, women involved into sex selling services are under the great risk. There is also a reasonable assumption that prostitution is the result of poverty and unemployment in the country.
Women will have to resort to such services to be able to earn enough money for living. According to Morton et al., “…street prostitutes were more likely to live below the poverty line than prostitutes working indoors, especially among females” (239). At the same time, the study emphasizes that there is a slight differences in incomes between indoor and street prostitutes.
One way of another, legalizing prostitutions restricts both women and man from receiving education and obtaining a prestigious job due to the lack of financial support. In addition, there is also assumption that women working brothels are less likely to come from complete and happy families.
In such a manner, establishing the corresponding laws does not allow these individuals to change their live and create a normal family. Social institutions, therefore, will not be able to create a healthy society with highest moral values, norms, and traditions.
Despite the persuasive arguments against legalizing prostitutions, the law could be effective in case of consistent and systematic procedures of the implementation. Though the prostitution is factually legal, there are other laws that neglect freedom and rights of sex workers. Specifically, there are laws banning work of brothers, which are considered the safest place for prostitutes.
Certainly, some individuals are allowed to work for themselves and sell sex, but they are not protected by the government. The Canadian government fails to approach this problem effectively and, as a result, is produces more disorders.
Finally, the legalization of prostitutions, particularly for women, ensures the promulgation of patriarchy in society, which contradicts the current trends in equal opportunities for people regardless of their gender.
In conclusion, the Canadian should reconsider their decision about legalizing prostitution because of the serious consequence it can have for the Canadian citizens. There should be more consistent and effective laws that would protect sex workers from abuse, maltreatment, racial and gender discrimination. The governmental authorities should also take care of the women who enter the prostitution because of financial difficulties.
The point is that prostitutes often resort to sex selling because of their low incomes, as well as lack of opportunities to receive higher education. Finally, the prostitution creates much more benefits for the third parties involved in business.
Their pressure on sex worker often deprives the latter of safety and health guarantees. The danger of drug abuse is also closely associated with prostitution opening curtain to the criminal laws. Certainly, there are some reasonable underpinnings for legalizing sex trade, but they are not enough to meet the needs of the Canadian society.
People would be limited to expressing their professional growth and accomplishment because of the possible to find easier way to earn money. In addition, legalizing prostitution does not contribute to shaping the highest moral values in Canada.
Works Cited
Brock, Michelle. Should Canada Legalize Prostitution? Panel Discussion with Gunilla Ekberg, Lee Lakeman, and Trisha Baptie. Hope for the Sold. Web.
Craig, Elaine. “Sex Work By Law: Bedford’s Impact On Municipal Approaches To Regulating The Sex Trade.” Review Of Constitutional Studies 16.1 (2011): 97-120. Print.
Morton, Heather., Klein, Caroline., & Boris Gorzalka. Attitudes, Beliefs, and Knowledge of Prostitution and the Law in Canada. Canadian Journal Of Criminology & Criminal Justice, 54.2 (2012): 229-244. Print.
As far as prostitution in Bangkok is concerned, it has been estimated that here are about 200 European women and 500 Chinese women in the sex industry (Clark, 2005, p. 23). This has come to be referred to as the dark side of Thailand that people don’t know which portrays a narrow segment of life in Bangkok. In this case, it has been estimated that the sex industry as a whole generates more than 100 billion baht each year.
This has always been as a result of various short term sex establishments that have sprung up as time goes by. As far as the industry as a whole is concerned, thousands of women are always sold to brothels in Bangkok by unscrupulous job brokers.
Brothels have always operated in an organized international syndicate for their own sustainability when it comes to money issues. 40% of foreigners make up majority of prostitutes in different establishments in Bangkok (Clark, 2005, p. 55).
The industry has different segmentations based on the amount of money that is involved in the business. It should be known that a large number of women and children alike are always lured into the business from neighboring countries to Bangkok with the promise and expectation of good money.
This implies that most of these prostitutes want to go to Bangkok for prostitution because of the thriving industry in the country which might not be the case in their own countries (Seabrook, 1996, p. 35). Thai women always move to other roles in the sex industry which therefore requires replacement that is always done by trafficking in other foreign women who are estimated at more than 10,000 every year.
As much as fewer Thai women have entered the sex industry in recent years, there has been a large influx of women from Burma and Southern China into the country for prostitution (Murcott, 1991, p. 62). Most prostitutes in Bangkok have entered the country illegally which shows that there are thousands of foreign women in the sex industry.
Prostitution culture and public opinions
It should be known that prostitution is one of the areas where issues of people’s private life are always subjected to public opinion as far as cultural history is concerned. This means that there are several underlying factors that have been behind the prostitution culture in Thailand and more specifically Bangkok.
The practice of prostitution is illegal but it has been practiced throughout the country which raises various integrity issues (Cleo, 1994, p. 9). The fact that prostitution is illegal in the country has made it difficult for various stakeholders to estimate the exact number of women and children who are involved in the sex industry.
On the other hand, just like in other countries, people’s views about prostitution in Thailand have always been influenced by cultural changes that have emerged with modernity (Hanna, 2004, p. 89). Visiting a prostitute or a mistress in Thailand is common but it doesn’t mean that it is acceptable behavior.
This is a held public opinion that has been ignored by different people who are involved in the sex industry. The society has a lot of tolerance to the downtrodden which has ended up shaping perceptions and attitudes towards prostitution.
It should be known that the attitude of different Thai girls towards prostitution is shaped by the society’s cultural norm. The acceptance of tolerating people who are downtrodden has enabled prostitution to flourish without any social stigma that is found in other countries and societies (Peracca, 2005, p. 16).
Social stigma towards prostitution in Thailand has not taken root because prostitutes provide assistance to their families and relatives. This has therefore tilted public opinion in their favor as time goes by thereby creating a new culture where although prostitution is illegal, it is wholly embraced by the society (McCamish, 2002. p. 40).
The political power has not been able to create some national subjectivity that is desired to make a firm national position or opinion about prostitution and the sex industry in Thailand. Thailand’s modernization has been greatly influenced by many cultures that relate to western capitalism thereby playing a big role in shaping peoples opinion on the issue of prostitution.
As far as culture is concerned, prostitution in Thailand is illegal but it is tolerated and partly regulated in practice (Bales, 1999, p. 19). This means that the country is breeding a culture of child prostitution based on different and diverse aspects that are supposed to be evaluated if public opinion is expected to shift in the near future.
Gambling culture in Thailand
It should be known that Thailand, at least at a façade level, is not a gambling state as many people might assume it to be. This means that the state does not in any way permit casinos and sports books although official lottery is allowed. There are certain underlying factors that will always tempt people into gambling in different societies which are expected depending on the motive.
As far as the culture in the country is concerned, there are other officially endorsed activities apart from gambling. On the other hand, as much as it is illegal, it is widely popular in the country just like any other place. Illegality in gambling in Thailand means that there is more discretion that is involved (Rich, 2007, p. 20).
There has been an argument that the Thai government should legalize some forms of gambling from different quarters of the country but these needs proper review for long term sustainability.
Just like prostitution, gambling is illegal but there are other people who have continued with the practice without fear. As far as this issue is concerned, it is quite obvious that gambling has some economic and social impacts whether it is legal or illegal.
There are some small exceptions that allow people to gamble in one way or the other. This therefore brings us to the aspect of the effects of gambling to the society and individuals. Legalized and illegal gambling will always have some effects on the society in the country in one way or the other. There are many illegal gambling spots in the country known as Siam.
This can be explained from the fact that many foreign nationals have always come in the country to engage in these illegal gambling. This means that the practice is acceptable amongst the citizens as an economic activity that can give them money (Kausch, 2003, p. 37). People get addicted to gambling because of the monetary returns that are associated with it.
This means that as long as somebody is getting money from gambling, she or he will continue doing it in the long term. In the process, this has often led to addiction to gambling with far reaching consequences. As time goes by, different cartels have emerged by to protect their interest as far as gambling is concerned.
It should be known that there are grave dangers for people who do not want to pay as far as gambling is concerned. People who get on the wrong side of gamblers have always paid with death which has led to a bad culture that is emerging in the country.
The psychology of gambling
There are different aspects of gambling that are supposed to be understood. In this case, it should be known that addiction to gambling can always ruin finances and family relationships in one way or the other. This means that there are different psychological aspects that are used by casinos to encourage people into gambling. In fact, it is as far as making a bet on the outcome of different events is concerned.
Gambling is always considered an immoral activity because those people who engage in it might end up stealing or coming crimes to get the money. In the long run, it always leads to greater poverty because people want to continue playing and pay debts that they have incurred as a result of gambling (Hagan, 2010, p. 27). Gambling has always been seen as a manifestation of greed by various people in the society.
This is because despite the greed and laziness, there is a desire to get rich as time goes by without working hard or investing in anything. There is an exploitation of human frailty that is involved in gambling which explains why it has thrived illegally in Thailand and other countries.
Gambling becomes a problem in the society when an individual cannot control what he or she is spending in the long run and short run. There is always a rush mentality to gambling although there is an addiction to some occasional pay offs. On the other hand, gambling can be fun when it becomes more than a game. In this case, people become addicted to gambling because of the thrill to win and the anticipation of winning.
People who are addicted to gambling believe that it can help them in alleviating different and diverse problems that they might be facing in one way or the other.
This means that such individuals are likely to spend considerable amounts of money to get whatever they want as far as gambling is concerned (Volberg, 2002, p. 103). Therefore compulsive gambling has been described as a disorder that affects various people in Thailand who engage in gambling illegally in one way or the other.
Narcotics, how people get addicted
There are various factors that have always led to addiction in one way or the other depending on the prevailing situation and circumstance. Using narcotics has never caused addiction in any way. People therefore become physiologically dependent on drugs as time goes by. In this case, it does occur that there is nobody who starts depending on drugs from the word go but rather it takes time (Rang, 2003, p. 44).
This means that there is an addiction cycle that is followed by everybody before they become fully fledged addicts. The addiction cycle is the reoccurring process that takes place as people cope with addiction. In the first stage there is always acting out where people engage in some behavior to relive stress (Roesner, 2006, p. 72).
After acting out, there is always guilt and remorse due to sinning that the individual has engaged in. Shame and depression follows guilt and remorse because people feel badly about themselves based on what they have done. Shame and depression leads to recommitments as a result of the behavior that people engage in (Hillman, 2008, p. 60).
Most notably, there is some recommitment to the same habit that an individual was feeling shame about. Performance follows recommitment which ultimately leads to stress that makes people and individuals to continue using the drug.
Stress can be manifested in different ways but it is brought about by diverse and distinct aspects. Fear of failure, fear of rejection and expectations can always lead to stress which should be understood.
People turn to the life of crime and prostitution to support addiction because such aspects are related in one way or the other. Addiction is very bad and an individual needs the drug to support his life which means that they can do anything to get the money that will get those drugs (Boob, 2007, p. 51). Many drug users will always turn to prostitution to support their habits because they never have any meaningful way of getting money.
By engaging in prostitution they will be able to get money and thereby continue using drugs. On the other hand, people who cannot engage in prostitution will turn to crime to get money. In this case, addicts can only support their behavior by turning to prostitution and crime (Gass, 2008, p. 39). Lacking income to support an illegal habit is very bad which turns people to crime and prostitution.
It should be known that pimps always use violence and drugs as a control mechanism in different ways. This is always a strategy of control over their activities should be understood for long term sustainability when it comes to understanding this issue. In this case, drugs are a control mechanism that they have always used to support their activities when it comes to monopolizing.
The most renowned form of control mechanism has always been violence but if this fails to work out, pimps have always resorted to drugs. Just like other drug dealers, pimps are also able to keep their business by using any means possible. All in all, it should be known that drug addiction, prostitution and crime are related in one way or the other meaning that they will always thrive together.
Reference List
Bales, K. (1999). Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
Boob, G. (2007). Stress, Dysregulation of Drug Reward Pathways, and the Transition to Drug Dependence. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.
Clark, J. (2005). Falang: Behind Bangkok’s Smile. Bangkok: Oxford press.
Cleo, O. (1994). Patpong Sisters: An American Woman’s View of the Bangkok Sex World. New York: Routledge.
Fuller, P. (1975). The Psychology of Gambling. New York: Harper Colophon Books.
Gass, T. (2008). Glutamatergic substrates of drug addiction and alcoholism. Chicago: University of Chicago press.
Hagan, K, (2010). Gambling linked to one in five suicidal patients. Melbourne: The Age.
Hanna, D. (2004). Brit Girls who pay Thais for no-strings sex. Thailand: Daily Mirror.
Hillman, D. (2008).The Chemical Muse. New York City: St. Martin’s Press.
Kausch, O. (2003). Patterns of substance abuse among treatment-seeking pathological gamblers. Thailand: The Nation.
McCamish, M. (2002). The structural relationships of Support from male sex workers in Pattaya to rural parents in Thailand. Bangkok: Parallax Press.
Murcott, S. (1991). The First Buddhist Women: Translations and Commentary on the Therigatha. Bangkok: Parallax Press.
Peracca, S. (2005).Young teens happy with sex work. Thailand: The Nation.
Rang, H. (2003). Pharmacology. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.
Rich, B. (2007). Gambling had role in religious history. Bangkok: Oxford press.
Roesner, S. (2006). New pharmacological approaches for the treatment of alcoholism. New York: Routledge.
Seabrook, J. (1996).Travels in the Skin Trade: Tourism and the Sex Industry. Bangkok: Parallax Press.
Volberg, A. (2002). The epidemiology of pathological gambling. New York: St. Martin’s Press.
Prostitution sometimes referred to as the “world’s oldest vocation”, is a phenomena that exists in almost every culture in the world. Prostitution is often carried out by prostitutes who are paid for sexual encounters or exposure. These prostitutes are normally found on the streets of different areas or working in prostitution buildings or centers, referred to as Brothels. In the case of the organized working where there is a boss who receives the price then pays them a portion of the money; the boss is referred to as a ‘Pimp’ if a man and ‘Madame’ if a woman. Some places commonly known for prostitution is Amsterdam within the Red Light region (Scheb & Scheb II, 2008).
The legality of prostitution differs from one region to another, where in different countries different advances are used in controlling or stopping the practice. In some countries decriminalization is applied that views prostitution as a profession like any other. Prohibitions where, prostitution is viewed as a crime and the people caught practicing it at different levels are prosecuted by the law. Regulation is another approach applied where the practice is looked at as a profession and therefore controlled by the state; through issuing of licenses to brothels, prostitutes undergoing health procedures and registration, and owners of brothels and the prostitutes themselves taxed. The other approach is Abolition where the whores are considered victims of the situation, but the people who run prostitution businesses and their customers are punishable before the law. In short prostitution is legal in countries like Turkey, Netherlands and Germany, but illegal in others (Scheb & Scheb II, 2008).
However there is also a second side of prostitution in which the sex workers do not do it at will, but are forced to. Some of these prostitutes are victims of human trafficking, kidnap, child prostitution and sexual slavery. Some of the countries where this problem is very evident are Thailand, India and the Philippines. The strategy used to make these forced prostitutions work, is confiscation of the travel documents of the victims; detainment to avoid their escape; violent threats against their families and relatives; and death threats among other harsh threats (Scheb & Scheb II, 2008).
One of the chief strategies of controlling prostitution is through improving the environments where prostitution practices take place. The common places for prostitution include; the areas where their activities do not conflict with the justifiable businesses that are carried out. These places that offer a comfort zone for this crime is; cheap motels, bars, coffee shops and drug dealing venues. The reason prostitution is accommodated here is that; it promotes the inflow of customers and business in the search for their services. Other areas that encourage the practice include dimly lit locations, abandoned buildings and alleys. The strategy to be employed in this case is the improvement of these places that includes improving lighting conditions, removal of abandoned buildings and introduction of active activities in questionable streets. The businesses that encourage the practice, should also be placed under strict policing and subjection to heavy penalties when found promoting the practice (American Prosecutors Research Institute, 2004).
Another strategy that can be applied to control prostitution is the employment of diversion programs for individuals caught prostituting. One approach is that the individuals are taken back to the venue they committed the prostitution acts; are exposed to community service and face the residents of the given area, instead of having to face the law. After this the offenders are exposed to counseling and discussions with a given authority like a health officer; are required to sign an agreement that they will not repeat the behaviors, and the court comes in to declare that if the offender is caught within a given period; they face the current and the past offences before the law. After this the offender is attached to an alternative employment or is recommended to certain employers, who monitor their behavior (American Prosecutors Research Institute, 2004).
Other strategies that can be used include placing area restrictions where these behaviors take place; partnering between the government and community organized groups in controlling the practice at different levels; and involving the different levels of community in strategizing and planning of long-term solutions to the problem of prostitution. The problem of human trafficking, kidnapping and sexual slavery despite being independent crimes; form a substantial aspect of the prostitution problem. As a measure to control the practice, governments and immigration agencies should be more alert and place strict policies guarding these supportive crimes. Another approach that can be helpful in controlling the vice is through offering corrective measures segregate to the different geographical regions, and offering selective enforcement practices to the different victims due to the varied nature of the practice (Scheb & Scheb II, 2008).
Reference
American Prosecutors Research Institute. (2004). Unwelcome Guests: A Community
Prosecution Approach to Street-Level Drug Dealing and Prostitution. Alexandria (Virginia): American Prosecutors Research Institute, National Center for Community Prosecution
Scheb, John. & Scheb, John II. (2008). Criminal law and procedure, 6th Edition. Wadsworth Publishing Co Inc.
The problem of prostitution is the consideration of the whole society. There are people who are sure that legalization of prostitution is amoral and due to this it should be punished severely. My strict opinion is that prostitution should be legalized due to several reasons: (a) a great amount of money is in a whirl of shady economy and the state does not get the taxes from it, (b) prostitutes are under the constant pressure of their souteneurs and the legalization may help them to find protection, (c) the constitution of every country guarantees the freedom of choice and opinion, and if being a prostitute is somebody’s choice why is should be forbidden.
Prostitution brings a huge income and, as the business is not legalized, the state does not get its part, the state budget is not fulfilled with the financial injection from prostitution business. The participants of the legalized business, prostitution in our case, participate in state economical affairs. If they pay taxes, they are eager to use social guarantees (such as unemployment insurance, health insurance, old-aged pension). In its turn, the government may provide some inspection and supervision under the work conditions of the prostitutes and help in some cases to improve them (Nathanson & Young, 2006).
Prostitutes are under the constant pressure of the souteneurs and the legalization of this king of business may allow prostitutes to turn to police for protection. Prostitutes also suffer from clients’ cruelty and beating. They know that there is no way out as nobody can help them as they are out of law, they do not have any rights. The legalization of the business may solve this problem. Taking into consideration Germany and the Netherlands, the prostitution legalization allowed protecting the rights of women who are in the business already and to those who just want to start (Malarek, 2004).
Every person has the right for freedom: freedom of thinking, freedom of speaking, freedom of choice, and also the freedom to use one’s body. Person’s choice whether to have sex or not, whether to take money for this or not can never be legal or illegal. It is a choice. We are not talking about human trafficking as it is the crime. We are talking about free personal choice. Some people clean streets, they may like their jobs or not but they are paid for this. Comparing with street cleaning, prostitution is the same job, where people get sexual satisfaction and a good salary for their job.
So, prostitution must be legalized because of several reasons. The state budget will increase as the prostitution business operates with huge sum of money. The prostitution exists and it is impossible to cancel it, so the government should at least protect prostitutes from pressure and violence. Every person is free in his/her actions in reference to his/her body. If woman want to have sex for money, let her do this, it is her choice and her body, so it is impossible to forbid.
Reference List
Malarek, V. (2004). The Natashas: inside the new global sex trade. Arcade Publishing.
Nathanson, P. & Young K. K. (2006). Legalizing misandry: from public shame to systemic discrimination against men. McGill-Queen’s Press – MQUP.
Prostitution and Freedom. (2003). The Wilson Quarterly, 27.
Prostitution is commonly referred to as one of the oldest careers in the world and it is mentioned even in the Holy Scriptures. Every country in the world today is faced with the challenge of dealing with the sex trade while in some the trade has been legalized (UNICEF). Great debates surround the notion that prostitution is a means of empowerment rather than a violation of women’s rights (Wilkinson 36). Many people doubt the general assumption that women involved in promiscuous activities are indeed under gender duress. Prostitution has spread worldwide and with the development in technology, the business is growing bigger every day.
For the trade to thrive, there has to be a reasonable balance between the forces of a market, which are demand, and supply. Males create the demand while women are there to supply (Wilkinson 47). Many women who practice prostitution look at it as a form of employment, some even forced into it by their families. This essay seeks to argue that prostitution is the greatest form of female exploitation as opposed to empowerment. Men who pay for sexual services are not interested in the welfare of their service providers rather their sole intentions are to use them for their satisfaction.
Violation of women’s rights in prostitution
Human rights can be infringed in many ways but depriving a woman of the right over her own body is quite demeaning. Prostitution is a practice where such deprivations are a norm and women can be used as sexual tools to satisfy males’ sexual needs. Some women in the sex industry argue that prostitution allows them to enjoy their rights over their bodies. However, taking an ardent observation into the real situation, indeed it is clear that through prostitution the male gender shows their ability to control women’s sexuality (Day par. 6). Prostitution is abhorrently a violation of human rights in totality since it is impossible to have sexual consent between two adults especially when it is based on financial gain (Day par. 5). Women in prostitution report incidences whereby they have been subjected to violent ordeals leaving them with emotional scars.
Some of these violent actions include physical and psychological assaults, sexual abuse, robbery as well as kidnapping in some isolated cases (Hvistendahl par. 7). Daily, an average prostitute is raped, verbally abused, battered, or even tortured (Hvistendahl par. 9). According to the prostitutes, these are the challenges associated with their kind of profession. They argue that every job has its challenges and they take it as a challenge they have to overcome. However, rape and sexual harassment are unjustifiable under any possible circumstances since they are harming the women. People are harmed when they are made worse off than before the exploitation started. That explains why the majority of women who suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder are mostly women who engage in the sex trade. Women are tricked into making pornographic materials without their consent while being sexually harassed to perform and make pornographic videos.
Degrading human dignity
Prostitution is an indecent behavior that depicts a form of socialized male violence against women (Hvistendahl par. 7). Women who practice prostitution are sexually involved with men whom they do not know hence feign enjoyment (Wilkinson 55). Sex in exchange for money degrades self-worth hence demeaning human dignity. The civil libertarian argument about prostitution is that prostitution is simply a way for women to support themselves financially. They argue that it is a matter of choice where consenting men and women engage in sexual relations. Nonetheless, civil libertarians forget the inequalities in the ‘world’s oldest profession’ (Wilkinson 56). The sex transactions between men and women involved in prostitution are explicitly discriminative of women. Prostitution is not a transaction where two parties exchange sexual services voluntarily to each other for enjoyment.
According to Wilkinson’s concepts of objectification and commodification, prostitution has turned the human body into a commodity and has commercialized human social practices. Supporters of the commercial sex campaign argue that the trade is not in itself harmful but the circumstances involved (Wilkinson 57). Wilkinson argues that commodification of the body includes aspects such as, exploitation, objectification, harm, coercion, and consent, which are the main characteristics of any, sex trade (Wilkinson 57). He argues that regulating the trade, as a business entity is the most effective approach to dealing with the moral concern in this case. The practice is bent on one partner enjoying while the other gains financial benefits of providing the commodified sexual services. In this case, a woman is simply a commodity and can be used as the client or consumer pleases. Exploitation is unjust because the exploited person suffers harm. Goals in these scenarios can be releasing sexual frustration, feeling “power” over someone else, or enhancing one’s ego.
Women in prostitution trade their self-worth and human dignity in pursuit of financial gains. Most times, women who engage in prostitution are in a vulnerable state of mind.
A person is vulnerable when she/he perceives that there is no other course of action than the one proposed, even with the knowledge that this choice might bring harm. The wealthy men take advantage of the “desperate” state they are in and exploit them to satisfy their own needs. Therefore, prostitution cannot be viewed as a way of empowering women but as an act, that destroys their consciousness to decency and moral values. In prostitution, women experience the greatest level of social and sexual insubordination (Wilkinson 57).
Physical and psychological abuse
Physical and psychological abuse is a far-reaching implication of prostitution and the effects of this are detrimental to the future of both young men and women. Sadly, the sex trade has increased the level of human trafficking involving underage teenagers (UNICEF). The video, ‘Not My Life’ uploaded by UNICEF USA shows the extent of human trafficking on a global scene. In some poor countries, children are forced into the practice by their poor parents who seek to raise money by selling their daughters to men seeking sexual services although in some cases young men are also victims of the forced sex trade. This is tantamount to the slave trade although the ramifications are even worse. Clients normally abuse young girls physically by beating them up and forcing them into sexual intercourse in very inhumane ways.
Kids, both boys, and girls are victims of coercion while engaging in sexual activities without their consent. This leads to physical and psychological harm that can have long-term implications in the future. Prostitutes or sex workers, as they are commonly referred to, are the greatest victims of rape (MacKinnon 78). More often than not, sex workers are forced to have sex with men whom they do not even know or love. This amounts to rape which results in other psychological and psychological effects. The physical and psychological abuse notwithstanding, the women are expected to act and pretend to be enjoying the sexual intercourse. These are the adversities that women in the prostitution industry have to put up within the course of their profession.
Forced sex and coercion
Women in prostitution have no rights over their bodies as discussed earlier in this essay. Most of the clients force them into engaging in inhumane practices such as sexual intercourse with animals (MacKinnon 78). Some are even forced to have their sexual services recorded for resale on the black market in exchange for money (Wilkinson 33). Pornographic materials have increased all over the world due to the increase in the number of women engaging in the sex trade, which has also seen the increase in the prevalence of abuse of children especially young teenage girls. In third-world countries, young children are forced into the sex trade as a way of raising money to support their poor families (UNICEF). At their tender age, they have to cope with the rude clients who force and coerce them for their sexual pleasure.
Conclusion
This essay has shed some light on the sex trade/prostitution to show how women are currently being lured into the practice in the guise of empowerment. The paper also discusses Wilson’s concepts of objectification and commodification to show the rationale used in approaching this trade. The essay displays prostitution as a form of exploitation as opposed to a means of empowerment. The paper shows some of the physical and psychological pain that the victims undergo because of prostitution arguing that some of the culprits are forced into it by poverty. Prostitution is under all circumstances a way through which men exploit vulnerable women for their sexual satisfaction in exchange for money. However, research has shown that in the long run, the emotional pain caused to the women surpasses the financial gains therein.
Works Cited
Day, Shelagh. Prostitution: Violating the Human Rights of Poor Women. 2008. Web.
Henderson, Sarah, and Alana Jeeydel. Women and Politics in a Global World, New York, NY: Oxford University Press. 2010. Print.
Prostitution is one of the oldest professions known to mankind. In the last decade, studies have been carried out to try and understand why people engage in this behavior which abuses the moral fiber of society. From a sociological point of view, prostitution is socially deviant and morally repugnant behavior. Traditionally, prostitution has been known as a “female profession” paying little attention to the presence of male prostitutes in society. In addition, researchers have failed to agree on the reasons why people especially young males engage in prostitution compared to their older counterparts.
Prostitution, age, and marriage status
According to Carpenter (1998), the need to buy sex is driven by the fact that most of the prostitutes’ clients have the conviction that they cannot have access to sex in any other form which is socially acceptable other than using money or material things with monetary value. In addition, clients feel in control when they buy sex compared to when they get it from their wives. Although few married men engage in buying sex, those who buy it as stated by one of the prostitutes are that men love their wives as well as children but engage in prostitution to get something extra (Carpenter, 1998).
Clients on the other hand have acknowledged that their underlying motive is based on a natural drive to have sex. As a result, they occasionally go and acquire sex from prostitutes to fulfill that urge. Other reasons why either married or unmarried men may engage in prostitution is because they are either lonely, ugly, incarcerated, or sexually incapacitated and prostitutes are the only people who understand them hence the drive to have sex with a prostitute. However, the shocking news is that married men who buy sex and visit brothels enjoy the company of prostitutes more than their wives (Carpenter, 1998). According to Perkins (1999), married men seek sex because there were either being rejected, denied their conjugal rights or they enjoy being in the company of sex workers.
Plumridge, Chetwynd and Reed (1997), note that there is a relationship that exists between the interaction of a client and a commercial sex worker. In their study, they found that males who initiate sex and take control over a commercial sex worker thus gain the societal respect a man gets from a woman. The study that was carried out on male clients between 23 and 78 years old found that once in a while, men would save money and use it to buy sex. Out of the subjects used, only seven were married which indicates that even married men are part of the prostitution circle. However, some of the men were divorced, separated, or single.
The married men noted that after rejection from their wives, they would seek alternatives of sexual pleasure from outside which was achieved via commercial sex workers (Plumridge et al., 1997). The two preceding statements can confirm that men buy sex because prostitutes are always there for them despite the problems they are going through. Married men also noted that, unlike their wives, prostitutes would initiate sex and be in control.
This spiced what they had from their wedded wives hence the preference to buy sex. This can be supported by a study carried out by Perkins (1999) which found that married men who visited sex workers claimed that they were denied sex, their sexual partners did not offer sexual pleasure, sex workers were less complicated, or they enjoyed having sex with several sex partners.
Men who have developed an intimate relationship with a sex worker are more likely to have unprotected sex. In addition, the young generation sees nothing wrong with having unprotected sex compared to the older males. This is because the young generation is on the verge of trying to experiment with things while the older generation buys sex from a prostitute because they need something extra.
The statements can be supported by Haque and Soonthorndhada (2009) who note that married men who engage in commercial sex are less likely to engage in protected sex. This is because the intimate relationship developed with their wives is transferred to prostitutes. In their study, Haque and Soonthorndhada (2009) found that most of the people especially the young of between 20-24 years in their study had engaged in unprotected sex upon the use of alcohol. Shocking, most the participants 62.1% used condoms not to prevent themselves from STIs but prevent pregnancy and other reasons.
Prostitution is not as always smooth as it is expected in the case of a client who buys sex from a worker and gets it. The statement can be supported by Karandikar and Prospero (2010) who do not that violence is sometimes encountered in prostitution especially from pimps, clients, and police officers. In their study, they found that prostitution had harm especially when the clients sexually abused the sex workers.
In addition, the sex workers would be forced to have unprotected sex which leads to HIV, depression, suicide attempts, or substance abuse. The cruelty, rape, and sex without consent on the prostitutes are some of the examples that are associated with prostitution. Furthermore, transmitting sexually acquired diseases such as HIV as a result of not using condoms is another harm that affects both the clients and the workers.
Perkins (1999) carried out research to find the frequency and the age group that engaged in prostitution. Out of the participants, 40% were never married and were between ages 26-40 years. This age group according to the study, engaged in buying sex with the aim of buying sex and enjoying alternative modes of sex. The researcher concluded that compared to the early 90s, few married men would visit sex workers compared to currently when fewer unmarried men seek sex workers compared to the married men. The contributing factor to this change of trend has been because of greater availability of sex outside both marriage and prostitution.
The middle aged men especially the married ones engages in prostitution because middle age is regarded as the period when sexual stagnation is very high and prostitution offers them adventurous variations in terms of sexual pleasure and satisfaction. Other results revealed in the study was that men who had been married for a longer period have high likelihood of visiting a sex worker compared to newly married (Perkins, 1999). This is because they get bored of having sex from their partners. In addition, sex workers are professionals and they take them from the bondage or stress associated with marriage.
The age group between 18 and 25 has been associated with high levels of alcoholism and sex (Wegenaar, Toomey & Lenk, 2005). This group indulges in high consumption of alcohol especially when at college levels. As a result, the younger group is more likely to engage in prostitution as part of leisure, entertainment, and discovering themselves. This kind of mentality makes them engage in sexual behaviours that do not conform to the societal norms. As such, they tend to perceive prostitution as a less risky venture compared to the older male counterparts. The preceding statements can be supported by Brown (2006) who acknowledges that the youth engage in prostitution even at early age.
Farley (2003) note that alcohol consumption by the young increase their sex drive and as result, they end up engaging in prostitution or paid sex which they consider as part of entertainment. This kind of behavior is catapulted by the fact that alcohol acts as a kind of aphrodisiac. Despite the fact that the young generation sees no harm with prostitution, Brown (2006) is keen to observe that the young not knowingly end up being sexually abused, or sexually exploited. This can be supported by Haque and Soonthorndhada (2009) who adds that the young especially of age between 22-24 years engage in unprotected sex with more than one sex workers not putting into consideration associated with having sex with multiple partners.
Hirschi’s Social Bond/Social Control Theory
The theoretical framework for the study will be developed based on the adoption of theoretical concepts and theory. Hirschi’s social bond/social control theory will be adopted as it better explains how society and deviant behaviour relate from a societal and sociological perspective.
Prostitution occurs in a society which is governed by social norms, beliefs, and culture. It is also considered as social deviant behavior which is repugnant in nature. Therefore, to better understand prostitution from the societal perspective it is imperative to have a look at Hirschi’s social control theory. According to Hamilton (2000), people who have high levels of social control compared to those with low social control are less likely to engage in what the society sees as antisocial behaviour such as prostitution and other crimes.
Based on the social control theory, both self control and social control acts as pre-requisite in engaging in an act that would be considered as not morally outright. The combination of the two defines the propensity to criminality or engaging in antisocial or deviant behaviours. As expounded by Travis Hirschi on the social control theory, society plays a great role in defining the behaviour of the people in the society. In addition, most of the delinquent behaviours occur as a result of unmonitored behaviours and social control especially by the family.
Hirschi’s social bond/social control theory assumes that weak social bonds makes people engage in deviant behaviours. The theory is based on four elements/bonds as devised by Hirschi which are attachment, commitment, involvement and beliefs (Hirschi, 1969). Attachment has been defined as the level of psychological affection an individual has to the social institution such as family and schools. According to Hirschi (1969), young people who have close and strong relations with the societal institutions have high levels of social control. In reference to prostitution, people engage in it as a result of rejection or self denial which leads to low self control.
On the second bond which is commitment, Hirschi (1969) note that the social relationships that people value are more safeguarded and people cannot engage in antisocial or deviant behaviour in fear of jeopardizing the relationship. For example, people are less likely to engage in deviant activities that jeopardize their marriage bonds or employment. According to the theory, people who have commitments have less likelihood to deviate from the social norms because of the risks associated with the acts (Hirschi, 1969). For instance, individuals who are heavily committed are less likely to engage in deviant acts such as prostitution and alcoholism.
According to Edlund & Korn (2002), the levels of involvement by an individual determine the activities in which they are likely to get committed to. In most of times, engaging in the socially approved activities reduces the chances of one to engage in activities labeled as being socially deviant. This can be supported by Hirschi who note that getting involved in socially acceptable behaviours reduces the chances of engaging in antisocial acts.
Lastly, belief which is the last social bond is used to refer to the level into which an individual engages in activities that conform to the societal norms, values, and law (Hirschi, 1969). The assumption made is that if the values are high to a person then they are less likely to engage in deviant behaviour. For example, if a youth perceives prostitution to be less harmful then they are more like to engage in prostitution. The most important component of the theory is that, the social bonds coalesce to indirectly have control over the behaviour of the people. This ensures that people get committed and involved in behaviours in which they highly value and as a result, they are less likely to deviate from them.
The theory will be adopted in the design of methodology as it explores the society, deviant behaviour and why people engage in activities which have been regarded as socially or morally deviant such as prostitution.
Reference List
Brown, K. (2006). Participation and young people involved in prostitution. Child Abuse Review, 15, 294-312.
Carpenter, B. (1998). The prostitute and the client: Challenging the dualisms. Women’s Studies International Forum, 21(4), 387–399.
Edlund, L., Korn, E. (2002). A Theory of prostitution. Journal of Political Economy, 110(1), 181–214.
Farley, M. (2003). Prostitution, Trafficking, and Traumatic Stress. New York: Haworth Press.
Hamilton, M. (2000). Theoretical framework. Web.
Haque, M. R., & Soonthorndhada, A. (2009). Risk Perception and Condom-use among Thai Youths: Findings from Kanchanaburi Demographic Surveillance System Site in Thailand. J Health Popul Nutr, 27(6): 772–783.
Hirschi, T. (1969). Causes of delinquency. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Karandikar, S., & Prospero, M. (2010). From client to pimp: Male violence against female sex workers. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 25(2), 257-273.
Perkins, R. (1999). How much are you, love? The customer in the Australian sex industry. Social Alternatives, 18(3), 38-47.
Plumridge, E, Chetwynd, J. & Reed, A. (1997). Control and condom in commercial Sex: Client perspective. Journal of Sociology of health and illness, 19, 2, 228-243.
Wagenaar, A. C., Toomey, T. L., &Lenk, K. M. (2005). Environmental influences on young adult drinking. Alcohol Research & Health, 28(4), 231-235.
This project is going to examine ways through which the problem of child prostitution in Thailand can be addressed. Child prostitution is one of the major issues, which have continued to violate the rights of children. The practice is common in South East Asia, and catastrophic in Thailand. Popular education as advocated by Freire (2000) will be used in addressing this problem.
Target Rights Issue
This project is aimed at addressing the problem of child prostitution in Thailand. Child prostitution in Thailand is a problem that has attracted international attention because of its infringement of the rights of the girl child. Underage girls in Thailand have been sold to brothels by their relatives, or abducted. In these brothels, these underage girls are subjected to sexual abuse. In addition, they are normally prohibited from leaving these brothels, a factor that violates their freedom of movement.
These girls also suffer other abuses such as beatings, which are normally done in order to coerce them to comply with the demands of clients. Child prostitution in Thailand also thrives because of western pedophiles who normally offer hundreds of dollars in order to have sex with these girls. The perpetrators of this trade normally sell the virginity of these children to the highest bidder.
Objectives: Goals of the project
The aims of this project are two: firstly, this project is aimed at sensitizing families, children, authorities, the general public and all other people involved in child prostitution, about its negative impacts on the rights and health of children. Secondly, the project aims at putting to end child prostitution in Thailand.
Reports have indicated that some families in Thailand sell their underage daughters to brothels. In order to end this vice, families who engage in this practice should be educated on the health consequences and children rights violations brought by the practice. Authorities in Thailand will also be sensitized because they have the legal means of protecting the rights of children in the country.
The general public also needs to know about the negative impacts of child prostitution to enable them to condemn the vice and report incidents of child prostitution to the authorities.
Legislative Authority
This initiative is mandated by the fact that it is illegal to subject children to prostitution. Children’s rights are universally protected, and protection of children from sexual abuse or exploitation is one of the core values of universal children rights. From a moral perspective, it is wrong for adults to defile children by subjecting them to prostitution.
Adults should protect children and safeguard their rights. It is therefore unethical for adults to violate children’s rights. In addition, the united nation through UNICEF, advocates for universal children rights that protect them from child labor, sexual abuse and other forms of abuse in the society. Therefore, everyone is legally and morally obliged to advocate for the ending of child prostitution in Thailand.
Scope
The initiative to sensitize the public and end child prostitution in Thailand will be a nationwide program. This program will target communities and the relevant institutions in Thailand. The program will be rolled out in different communities across Thailand. The institutions that will be targeted in this program will be the police and the ministry of tourism.
Being a nationwide initiative, one of the major limitations to the implementation of this project is finances. Other limitations may be lack of support from the communities in Thailand, and sabotage from parties, which have certain interests, or benefits from child prostitution in the country.
Approach
This project will adopt a popular education approach as advocated by Paulo Freire. Popular education according Freire (2002) is a type of education that is aimed at empowering individuals who are politically and socially marginalized by enabling them to embrace ideas that will bring social change.
This type of education is different from formal learning in that everyone involved needs to participate effectively. In popular education there is no demarcation between students and the teacher, instead everybody plays the role of a teacher and student simultaneously.
In popular education, knowledge is generated through group activities. This group activity normally enables individuals to evaluate their life situations together. This will make individuals realize their true position in the word (Freire, 2000, p. 133). According to Freire (2000), no type of education is neutral.
Education has the potential of either making people to accept the status quo, or encourage them to think independently in order to bring the desired change. Popular education is a liberation type of learning in that it has the potential of inculcating independent thinking among people enabling them to challenge the status quo. Use of popular education to sensitize people in Thailand about the negative impacts of child prostitution, will enable them to reject the current status that permit child prostitution.
Popular education also encourages mutual learning and dialogue. Dialogue serves in the process of learning by enabling individuals who are learning to have confidence that they can solve the challenges they face (Freire, 2000, p. 135). In sensitizing the public to end child prostitution in Thailand, constant dialogue will be used to make those who have been affected by children prostitution to realize that they are not alone.
Dialogue will also enable people who have been affected by child prostitution or those who have undergone through this vice to realize that it is not their fault. Popular learning also requires that the facilitator identifies the differences in the group that can generate conflict in the learning process. In dealing with this problem, the facilitator should seek a common ground (Freire, 2000, p. 136).
Basically, popular education aims at empowering individuals who are socially and politically marginalized. Children subjected to prostitution in Thailand are socially and politically marginalized (Freire, 2000, p. 48). The oppressors in this project are the perpetrators of child prostitution, while the oppressed are the victims of this vice. In liberating these children from child prostitution, the program will encourage communities to confront the perpetrators of this vice and stop them from continuing with the trade.
Participants
The participants in this project will include families, communities and institutions like ministry of tourism and the police. Families and communities will participate because they are affected by child prostitution, while at the same time they help in the propagation of this vice. Families and communities have sold their own daughters to brothels. Therefore, the popular education and the sensitization process should begin with them because empowering them will be crucial in ending child prostitution.
The ministry of tourism is included as a participant because foreigners who pose as tourists are also involved in child prostitution. These foreigners, who mainly hail from the west, provide the money that is needed to sustain child prostitution in Thailand. If the ministry is sensitized to abolish sex tourism, incidents of child prostitution will drastically reduce, or end due to lack of finances.
The police are included as participants because they safeguard laws, and they have a responsibility in ensuring that the rights of children are not violated. The police are crucial as participants because they have the authority of confronting the perpetrators of child prostitution and bringing them to justice.
Partners
The partners in this project will be the government of Thailand, UNICEF and other international NGOs that are interested in ending child prostitution in the country, and south East Asia in general. The government of Thailand will grant the project managers the permission for the implementation of the project. In addition, the government will provide the security that will be needed because the issue addressed by the project is sensitive, and individuals with vested interests may seek to sabotage it.
The government will also provide logistical support. UNICEF and other international NGOs will be approached to partially fund the project. They can also provide the capacity required to implement the project in terms of personnel and teaching resources. Communities in Thailand will also be partners in the project because they are the people who will determine the success or failure of the project.
Evaluation
The project will be evaluated through surveys that will be conducted in different stages to determine whether it is effective. Some of the indicators that will be examined to determine the effectiveness of the project include the attitude of the general public towards child prostitution, number of brothels, which will still be operating after the project, and the number of perpetrators brought to justice during and after the project.
Whether families will stop or continue the practice of selling their own daughters to prostitution, will also be used as a measure of evaluating the project. The success or failure of the project will simply be indicated by a reduction of child prostitution, an end to it, or its persistence.
Reference
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York, NY: Continuum.
Deviant behavior is an act that breaches the cultural norms. Norms are considered to be the behavior standards that define the actions that are acceptable in the society. Thus they form a paradigm for predicting actions or behaviors in the society. This means that deviance is any “thought, feeling or act” (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 45) that according to the social audience’s judgment violates the cultural norms (formal or informal rules) or values.
This paper will focus on prostitution as a deviant behavior. It will begin by defining prostitution and explaining why it is considered to be a deviant behavior. Then two sociological theories namely, the labeling theory and the differential association theory will be used to explain why the behavior continues to exist. Finally, the paper will end by discussing the reasons as to why prostitution is best explained by the differential association theory.
Prostitution
Prostitution is defined as “the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return of payment” (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 68). Thus the person who offers such services is referred to as a prostitute. In some countries the act is legalized and regulated by the government while in others it is illegal and attracts severe punishment. Prostitution is some times viewed as a profession since there is a significant level of expertise or skills and practice that is required in order to successfully offer the services (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 69).
According to religious teachings, prostitution is considered to be a sinful act that should be condemned. The social audience also has a negative attitude towards it since they believe that sex is meant for procreation and not for mere pleasure. Thus commercializing it is unacceptable (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 69).
The medical perspective on prostitution condemns the act on the ground that it facilitates the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Thus prostitution is labeled as a deviant behavior since it does not meet the standards of morality as defined by religious perspectives, health principles and social perspectives. The prostitutes are thus labeled as deviants due to the fact that they “willfully sell their bodies in exchange for material things” (Taylor, 2010, p. 59).
The causes of prostitution are as follows. First, the rising levels of permissiveness in the society have provided an opportunity for individuals to engage in deviant behaviors without being punished (Taylor, 2010, p. 63). Second, rising levels of poverty has forced people to engage in the act in order to earn a living. Finally, the rise in cases of failed relationships and marriages has forced the affected individuals to embark on prostitution in order to fulfill their sexual desires.
Sociological Perspectives
Differential Association Theory
According to this theory, criminal or deviant behaviors develop through learning. This means that deviance is not an inherent trait of the individual since it only develops as the deviant learns about the outlawed acts from others. The learning occurs as individuals interact by “communicating ideas and symbols” (Taylor, 2010, p. 71).
The symbols and ideas in regard to deviance can be favorable or unfavorable. Thus a person will take the favorable symbols and ideas, especially if they outweigh the unfavorable ones. This means that a person will engage in a deviant behavior if the merits are greater than the demerits.
In the context of prostitution, the behavior is usually learned as individuals share their ideas about sexuality. Besides, most people usually join the sex industry after learning about the material benefits that are associated with prostitution. Research studies in sex industry reveal that the success of the practitioners depends on the level of their expertise or skills (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 67). Such skills are usually acquired as prostitutes interact and share ideas on prostitution.
Besides, advancement in communication technology such as the introduction of the internet has made it easy to share information on prostitution. This encourages individuals to join the sex industry as they learn more about it. These trends show that learning is an integral aspect of prostitution. Thus according to the differential association theory, prostitution continues to gain popularity in the society as individuals learn about it from each other through their interactions.
The Labeling Theory
According to this theory, deviance is created as members of the society formulate norms whose violation amounts to deviance (Taylor, 2010, p. 73). Labeling in this case is the process whereby the members of the society judge the actions of individuals based on accepted norms and then stereotype such actions as either deviant or not.
Thus it involves the “invention, selection and manipulation of beliefs that define conduct in a negative way” (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 76). This forms the basis for labeling individuals as deviants. Thus according to this theory, deviance occurs when an individual is labeled as a wicked person. After sometime, the deviant person internalizes the label and focuses on engaging in acts that are associated with the label.
This theory suggests that prostitution is a social construction that can cease to exist if those who engage in it are not labeled as deviants (Taylor, 2010, p. 73). The society usually punishes those found to engage in prostitution. However, this does not prevent such individuals from engaging in the act.
As they continue to engage in prostitution, they get more severe punishments and stigma from the community. Eventually the prostitutes accept their status and continue to engage in prostitution. This means that the actions of the prostitutes are reinforced by the punishments that they receive from the community. This is based on the fact that prostitutes are considered to be outcasts.
Thus they continue to engage in prostitution due to the fact that they can not be accepted by the society. This means that, according to the labeling theory, individuals practice the act because they have been labeled as prostitutes. It also means that prostitution continues to exist since the punishments used against it reinforce the actions of those who engage in it.
Conclusion
The above discussion shows that prostitution is considered to be a deviant behavior. The reason as to why a person can engage in prostitution and the persistence of the act in the society is best explained by the differential association theory. This is because prostitution just like any other behavior is learned through interaction (Clinard & Meier, 2008, p. 64).
Thus individuals continue to engage in it after realizing that the gains are more than the costs. Prostitution does not exist simply because those who engage in it have been labeled as deviants as suggested by the labeling theory. This can be proved by the fact that even in countries where the act has been legalized; its popularity has increased instead of diminishing.
Besides, consequences such as stigmatization have resulted into a significant reduction in the prevalence of the act instead of perpetuating it. However, it is apparent that an increase in availability of prostitution literature and free interaction has significantly increased the popularity of the act in the society. It is for this reason that differential association theory is considered to be the best in explaining prostitution and its prevalence in the society.
References
Clinard, M., & Meier, R. (2008). Sociology of deviant behavior. New York: Cengage.
Prostitution remains a debatable issue in Canada, with the country facing constitutional challenges as to the legal provisions, addressing the matter. While the law criminalizes prostitution, there are groups of people who have been fighting to have sex workers’ rights recognized by the country’s constitution. As a signatory to several international organizations, protecting marginalized groups, Canada is faced with the hurdle of considering the rights of this group of people.
Others believe that legalizing such activities would widely protect the rights of prostitutes since the society does not recognize them (EFC 4). On the other hand, opponents of this school of thought argue that all efforts have to be gathered to minimize the demand for prostitution. If these challenges are considered, Canada would fully legalize prostitution by eliminating sections of the criminal code, which criminalize prostitution.
How does one become a prostitute? Most analysts argue that people consider prostitution as a last resort, and it is therefore, considered to be unsafe and indecent. Arguments against prostitution have always been based on the insecure nature of services associated with prostitution, and that money, which is earned through this channel, is illegitimate.
Additionally, sex workers are highly prone to different forms of violence, including physical and sexual, mental and the high risk of contracting deadly diseases like hepatitis, sexually transmitted infections and AIDS, among others (EFC 5).
Moreover, prostitution is seen to be a dehumanizing behavior, which is compared to pornography. In other words, it mainly focuses on the sexual dimension of a person, thus creating a corrupt perception of people and their rightful position in the society. Is it morally right? Even though prostitution is considered to be a source of livelihood by those who support it, it demeans human character and self-worth.
What is the position of Canada on prostitution? According to the Canadian constitution, all activities related to prostitution are illegal, even though prostitution is not criminalized. Under the country’s law, prostitution is addressed under three sections, 210 to 213. Subsections 212 (1) (j) and 213 (1) (c) have significantly received criticism from sections of the public, arguing that they go against the rights of sex workers in the country.
The latter subsection criminalizes all activities, which are related to prostitution. On the other hand, subsection 213 (1) (c) of the constitution targets communication among prostitution, while purchasing sexual services (EFC 5).
Subsection 213 (1) (c) of the constitution was introduced and enacted as law in 1985, and mainly illegalizes the use of public offers by prostitutes when looking for clients to purchase sexual services. The main purpose of this introduction was to penalize those purchasing and those offering the services. However, most cases handled attack prostitutes more than the clients who are served. When caught, prostitutes are charged and allowed to serve a jail term in accordance with the decision of the presiding court.
For example, the percentage of men who were charged for publicizing their services translated to 47% between 1986 and 1995, even though the percentage of women who were charged harshly rose exponentially. 39% of women were charged and imprisoned for the offence, with only 3% of men were charged for similar communicating offences (EFC 6). Importantly, this approach ushered a two-tiered system, which mainly focused on-street prostitution, with that practiced in massage parlors, and clubs received minimal coverage of the law.
Legalization of prostitution refers to a change in the regime, which would remove all sanctions leveled against prostitution and its related activities. This would also see the Canadian government indulge in the regulation of commercial sex. The implication of such developments would mean that the government would become the main regulator of the industry, just the way it regulates other sectors of the economy like tourism and hospitality.
It would further mean that the state draws laws to cover the industry and craft certain frameworks, regarding its operations and management (EFC 6). For instance, some of the government laws would include mandatory examination of sex workers, issuance of operating licenses and designation of certain areas, for the selling and purchasing of sexual services. Even though the laws are not created by sex workers, law makers usually make these provisions to protect the rights of sex workers; they are therefore, designed for prostitutes.
What are the benefits of legalizing prostitution in Canada? Proponents of prostitution in Canada assert that the step would be essential in reducing levels of discrimination in the society. In general, sex workers are viewed as social misfits, and are therefore, not allowed to interact with others freely. Based on their deviation from what the society perceives to be right, they are less appreciated and treated in a manner that lowers their dignity to almost nothing (EFC 6). As a result, the lives of many are dominated with loneliness and low self-esteem.
Importantly, sex industry is perceived to be a major source of revenue in improving the country’s economy. For instance, the government would collect taxes from all operating prostitutes, which would later be used to expand other sectors of the economy. Besides taxes from all sex workers, it is argued that legalization of prostitution in Canada would require registration and licensing, which would equally become a source of revenue for the government. Through this regulation, some of the people in the industry would get discouraged, thus quitting the business (EFC 7).
Another benefit of legalizing prostitution is for ensuring the security of all sex workers. As mentioned before, sex workers are usually exposed to high levels of risks. Oftentimes, they are faced with all forms of violence, including sexual and physical violence. Physical violence includes cases where prostitutes are attacked on the streets and beaten for their activities, which are considered to be immoral and unacceptable in the society.
Additionally, some are attacked and assaulted sexually by gangs, thus putting their safety at risk (EFC 4). Legalization of the industry would therefore, guarantee protection of all sex workers from any form of discrimination. With regard to their health, legalization would ensure that they have access to safe ways of operating the business without contracting killer diseases like AIDS.
Conversely, it has been argued that there are enough reasons to criminalize prostitution. For instance, it is immoral and inhuman. Based on ethical teachings, any form of sexual immorality is wrong and has to be condemned in the strongest terms possible. It lowers one’s dignity as it goes against what is perceived as normal in the country.
Additionally, prostitution has been blamed for contributing towards new cases of AIDS infection (EFC 7). Most prostitutes are sexually exposed to the risk of contracting related infections. From the above analysis, it is evident that the issue of prostitution in Canada remains contentious and has to be handled with sobriety before a final decision is taken.
Works Cited
EFC. “Selling Ourselves: Prostitution in Canada Where are we Headed?” The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, 2010. Web.