Criminalisation of sex work normalises violence, review finds
Sex workers three times more likely to experience violence from client where trade is criminalised, data shows
Sex workers are more likely to suffer poor health, violence and abuse in countries where their trade is criminalised, a major review has found.
The review, by researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, found that sex workers suffering repressive policing – including arrest, imprisonment and extortion by officers – were three times more likely to experience sexual or physical violence from a client and were twice as likely to have HIV or another sexually transmitted infection as those who lived in countries where sex work was tolerated.
Sex workers who fear that they, or their clients, may be picked up by the police are more likely to engage in risky encounters, unable to take the time to talk to a client before getting into a car or negotiate terms in advance, the researchers found.
Their health and safety were at risk not only in countries where sex work was criminalised, but also in Canada, which has introduced the “Nordic model” pioneered by Sweden, under which the client can be arrested for a criminal offence, but not the sex worker.
Published in the journal PLOS Medicine, the paper by Lucy Platt, associate professor in public health epidemiology, and Pippa Grenfell, assistant professor of public health sociology, is a review of data from 33 countries. They included comments from sex workers who took part in some of the studies.
Canada passed a law in 2014 to make it illegal to pay for sex, but some sex workers say that has made their lives more risky.
“They couldn’t have designed a law better to make it less safe,” said one sex worker. “It’s like you have to hide out, you can’t talk to a guy, and there’s no discussion about what you’re willing to do and for how much. The negotiation has to take place afterwards, which is always so much scarier. It’s designed to set it up to be dangerous. I don’t think it was the original intention, but that’s what it does.”
Another woman working on the streets in Canada said she was no longer able to talk through the car window to ensure they felt safe. “Because of being so cold and being harassed, I got into a car where I normally wouldn’t have. The guy didn’t look at my face right away. And I just hopped in cause I was cold and tired of standing out there. And you know, he put something to my throat. And I had to do it for nothing.”
France, Iceland, Northern Ireland, Norway, the Republic of Ireland and Sweden also criminalise the client. Guatemala, Mexico, Turkey and the US state of Nevada have regulated sex work, which allows better conditions for some, but worse for the many who operate outside the regulated arrangements.
A man in the UK said the ideal situation was working from shared premises, where everybody had companionship and greater security. But, although buying and selling sexual services is legal, that can fall foul of the law. “Because of the legal situation, you have to be very, very careful. Because obviously it’s running a brothel, which has … really dangerous consequences these days,” he said.
New Zealand is the only country to have decriminalised sex work, in 2003, although it is not legal for migrants. Sex workers said they were more able to refuse clients and insist on condom use, while relationships with police were better. “We always have police coming up and down the street every night,” said one woman. “We’d even have them coming over to make sure that we were all right and making sure … that we’ve got minders and that they were taking registration plates and the identity of the clients. So … it changed the whole street, it’s changed everything.”
Grenfell said: “It is clear from our review that criminalisation of sex work normalises violence and reinforces gender, racial, economic and other inequalities. Decriminalisation of sex work is urgently needed, but other areas must also be addressed.
“Wider political action is required to tackle the inequalities, stigma and exclusion that sex workers face, not only within criminal justice systems but also in health, domestic violence, housing, welfare, employment, education and immigration sectors.”
Used to be that those advocating for legalization of prostitution were looking to a Netherlands model.
No one has ever supported the Nevada model.
But today we see that the Netherlands model has problems, the women can be treated badly by LE. They tend to still operate illegally as they do not want a record. But then when they get busted they are offered a drop of charges, if they register and pay a double fee.
The women still do not like dealing with male cops.
So today, most just advocate for flat out decriminalization.
Some have called for a special zone, like in San Francisco, around the Costco, and having one cop per block to insure safety.
Here, I find this 28 page paper, and its references to be extremely interesting:
anthropologymatters.com
Perhaps you might wish to comment on it.
SJG
Stage Side Makeout Session, lots more going on in the shadows too.
youtube.com
Lap sitting, prelude to a real nice DFK + FIV makeout session, if the guy wants to come on to her some and go for it.
youtube.com
It's pretty simple...those who are considered criminals can't go to the police for protection without fear of arrest. No police protection means many assaults will be unreported so violent assholes who victimize girls will often get away with it.
The NV model involves all kinds of screwy laws, based upon the ideal that the woman is a social menace. So her car has to be id'ed with the cops. She cannot leave the brothel without being signed out and paid for by a custie. No front room fraternizing.
Deja Vu tried to make their Pahrump Chicken Ranch as good as TJ. But they could not because of the screwy laws. No Front Room Makeout Sessions.
So they did what they could, then they gave up and put $4 Meg into Tijuana.
The Nevada model really regulates the women, and this screws over the custies.
Far better to deal with a girl you met in a strip club.
And these NV places are going out of business. Some have been bought and sold many times in the last 10 years. Some of the buildings have been torn down.
NV laws benefit the brothel owners and the politicians who stay in office by convincing people that they are protecting them from the evil women.
We had this proposition which would have required condom use in porno movies. That would have legalized porno movies. But it did not pass. So they are not legalized. But so long as it stays within some bounds, most people agree that it should not be considered criminal.
We had this Leslie Love Bill in MIchigan, to professionalize strip clubs. That would have been a disaster.
So they run, just without any real attempts to enforce on much.
The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe."
No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers
youtube.com
The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe."
No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers
youtube.com
The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe."
No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers
youtube.com
Comments
last commentArticle text:
Criminalisation of sex work normalises violence, review finds
Sex workers three times more likely to experience violence from client where trade is criminalised, data shows
Sex workers are more likely to suffer poor health, violence and abuse in countries where their trade is criminalised, a major review has found.
The review, by researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, found that sex workers suffering repressive policing – including arrest, imprisonment and extortion by officers – were three times more likely to experience sexual or physical violence from a client and were twice as likely to have HIV or another sexually transmitted infection as those who lived in countries where sex work was tolerated.
Sex workers who fear that they, or their clients, may be picked up by the police are more likely to engage in risky encounters, unable to take the time to talk to a client before getting into a car or negotiate terms in advance, the researchers found.
Their health and safety were at risk not only in countries where sex work was criminalised, but also in Canada, which has introduced the “Nordic model” pioneered by Sweden, under which the client can be arrested for a criminal offence, but not the sex worker.
Published in the journal PLOS Medicine, the paper by Lucy Platt, associate professor in public health epidemiology, and Pippa Grenfell, assistant professor of public health sociology, is a review of data from 33 countries. They included comments from sex workers who took part in some of the studies.
Canada passed a law in 2014 to make it illegal to pay for sex, but some sex workers say that has made their lives more risky.
“They couldn’t have designed a law better to make it less safe,” said one sex worker. “It’s like you have to hide out, you can’t talk to a guy, and there’s no discussion about what you’re willing to do and for how much. The negotiation has to take place afterwards, which is always so much scarier. It’s designed to set it up to be dangerous. I don’t think it was the original intention, but that’s what it does.”
Another woman working on the streets in Canada said she was no longer able to talk through the car window to ensure they felt safe. “Because of being so cold and being harassed, I got into a car where I normally wouldn’t have. The guy didn’t look at my face right away. And I just hopped in cause I was cold and tired of standing out there. And you know, he put something to my throat. And I had to do it for nothing.”
France, Iceland, Northern Ireland, Norway, the Republic of Ireland and Sweden also criminalise the client. Guatemala, Mexico, Turkey and the US state of Nevada have regulated sex work, which allows better conditions for some, but worse for the many who operate outside the regulated arrangements.
A man in the UK said the ideal situation was working from shared premises, where everybody had companionship and greater security. But, although buying and selling sexual services is legal, that can fall foul of the law. “Because of the legal situation, you have to be very, very careful. Because obviously it’s running a brothel, which has … really dangerous consequences these days,” he said.
New Zealand is the only country to have decriminalised sex work, in 2003, although it is not legal for migrants. Sex workers said they were more able to refuse clients and insist on condom use, while relationships with police were better. “We always have police coming up and down the street every night,” said one woman. “We’d even have them coming over to make sure that we were all right and making sure … that we’ve got minders and that they were taking registration plates and the identity of the clients. So … it changed the whole street, it’s changed everything.”
Grenfell said: “It is clear from our review that criminalisation of sex work normalises violence and reinforces gender, racial, economic and other inequalities. Decriminalisation of sex work is urgently needed, but other areas must also be addressed.
“Wider political action is required to tackle the inequalities, stigma and exclusion that sex workers face, not only within criminal justice systems but also in health, domestic violence, housing, welfare, employment, education and immigration sectors.”
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One would assume criminalization of anything will lead to crime and criminals getting involved - e.g. Prohibition, etc.
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damm compelling! sex work is like any other work laborers have legal rights because of laws. make work illegal laws don't apply rights go away
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If it is in the Guardian it is a lie, or anti male, ant working person, anti white, and on and on.
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Yep, not only because it enables lower accountability for bad clients, but also many in LE aren’t exactly innocent either. titsandsass.com
I agree with the earlier comment that that is a natural result for any kind of prohibition law.
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Well, there’s one for the “no shit Sherlock” category.
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I agree that the criminalization is at the root of most of the problems.
SJG
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"The main problem is the lack of the social infrastructure to handle decriminalization."
IceyLoco, plus 25.
I am blown away!
SJG
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Used to be that those advocating for legalization of prostitution were looking to a Netherlands model.
No one has ever supported the Nevada model.
But today we see that the Netherlands model has problems, the women can be treated badly by LE. They tend to still operate illegally as they do not want a record. But then when they get busted they are offered a drop of charges, if they register and pay a double fee.
The women still do not like dealing with male cops.
So today, most just advocate for flat out decriminalization.
Some have called for a special zone, like in San Francisco, around the Costco, and having one cop per block to insure safety.
Here, I find this 28 page paper, and its references to be extremely interesting: anthropologymatters.com
Perhaps you might wish to comment on it.
SJG
Stage Side Makeout Session, lots more going on in the shadows too. youtube.com
Lap sitting, prelude to a real nice DFK + FIV makeout session, if the guy wants to come on to her some and go for it. youtube.com
Stage side DATY discernable ( abajo ) youtube.com
Heavy thighs and tush, in white. Such girls are best for TLN, and she looks very ready for that. youtube.com
Led Zeppelin: Live on TV BYEN/Danmarks Radio [Full Performance] 1969 youtube.com
Nicki Minaj getwallpapers.com
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Nevada model is a total disaster.
Most proponents do not want legalization of any type anymore. They just want decriminalization. But often there is to be some containment on this.
If you just looked the other way and let the women come and go freely from a strip club, we would have it. Just as good as it is in TJ.
SJG
Log in to vote
It's pretty simple...those who are considered criminals can't go to the police for protection without fear of arrest. No police protection means many assaults will be unreported so violent assholes who victimize girls will often get away with it.
Log in to vote
The NV model involves all kinds of screwy laws, based upon the ideal that the woman is a social menace. So her car has to be id'ed with the cops. She cannot leave the brothel without being signed out and paid for by a custie. No front room fraternizing.
Deja Vu tried to make their Pahrump Chicken Ranch as good as TJ. But they could not because of the screwy laws. No Front Room Makeout Sessions.
So they did what they could, then they gave up and put $4 Meg into Tijuana.
The Nevada model really regulates the women, and this screws over the custies.
Far better to deal with a girl you met in a strip club.
And these NV places are going out of business. Some have been bought and sold many times in the last 10 years. Some of the buildings have been torn down.
NV laws benefit the brothel owners and the politicians who stay in office by convincing people that they are protecting them from the evil women.
SJG
Log in to vote
Most proponents now want decriminalization, not legalization. And usually they are willing to accept that it would be in certain zones.
If LE would just stick within due process and the Constitution, then most of the prostitution laws are unenforcible anyway.
SJG
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We had this proposition which would have required condom use in porno movies. That would have legalized porno movies. But it did not pass. So they are not legalized. But so long as it stays within some bounds, most people agree that it should not be considered criminal.
We had this Leslie Love Bill in MIchigan, to professionalize strip clubs. That would have been a disaster.
So they run, just without any real attempts to enforce on much.
SJG
Log in to vote
Trafficking is grossly exaggerated. This is being done by people who are basically anti-sex. Its just like they used to crusade against 'porn'.
Legalization has problems because it puts the women into bad situations with the authorities, and the NV model is even worse.
De-Criminalization is what most of the proponents today want. It does largely get rid of pimps because they are no longer necessary.
They have never called for NV legalization, but they used to call for Netherlands style legalization. Today, they only call for decriminalization.
Very interesting paper for those interested: anthropologymatters.com
Just imagine if LE had to follow the law and could not invoke things like "Trafficking" to put themselves above the law.
So a man and a woman walking out of a strip club and to the next door motel are not doing anything which is anyone else's business.
SJG
1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Eric Cline, PhD) youtube.com
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The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe." No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Nancy Wake: Gestapo's Most Wanted youtube.com
amazon.com
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers youtube.com
youtube.com
Log in to vote
The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe." No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Nancy Wake: Gestapo's Most Wanted youtube.com
amazon.com
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers youtube.com
youtube.com
Log in to vote
The way the Bush signed anti-trafficking and violence against women act is written, there need not be force, fraud, coercion, or mnr's involved. And it could even be domestic. The penalties are severe.
Even though this is certainly unconstitutional, you do not want to be the one hit by it.
"Decriminalization doesn't mean tricks are safe." No, but nowhere is totally safe, decriminalization increases the safety.
"If a strip club is known for prostitution" What does that mean? Talking like the women who engage in prostitution are a social menace.
"and a known prostitute is seen with a man, they have probable cause." Probable cause only goes that far if you think you are dealing with something like trrrr*sm. Prostitution, CA PC-647B, is a very minor crime, like loitering or open container. Shouldn't be using this to suspend basic constitutional rights. A woman with a record should not be a big deal.
SJG
Rarely are people called upon to show moral the kind of moral courage needed by those who served in French Resistance
Nancy Wake: Gestapo's Most Wanted youtube.com
amazon.com
Gary Clark Jr. - Bright Lights and notice Doyle Bramhall II, playing left handed and with a left hander's body, but with it strung for a right hander. Look close and you can see this, and if you listen to him play and watch closely you can hear it. He learned always using borrowed guitars from right handers youtube.com
youtube.com
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