PROSTITUTION -- Should It Be Legalized in the United States?
The United States of America is a country founded on the principal that all citizens are free, equal, and possess the inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These bold principles are the foundation of the U.S. Constitution and provide guarantees for each citizen to absolute freedom of choice in all aspects of their life.
However, in reality, even our most cherished freedoms must be limited in the interests of maintaining public order and balancing the equal rights of other citizens. The process of maintaining equilibrium for an individual’s rights against the rights of other citizens is often difficult. Nowhere is this balancing act more complex than in the personal and intimate realm of sexuality. When the private realm of sexuality becomes public, as it does with prostitution, the conflict is complicated by notions of public decency, public health, and social mores. Prostitution is a profession that has existed throughout human history and has been a social problem since the dawn of human civilization.
Arguments against the legalization of prostitution are most commonly based on the harm principle and supplemented by the offense principle. Social concepts of legal paternalism, coupled with moralistic views, further complicate the issue. Simply put, prostitution is socially and morally condemned in our culture. Many of the social harms, supposedly created by prostitution, are overruled with the application of an individual’s unimpeachable, guaranteed constitutional rights of liberty and the rights to pursue happiness.
Clearly, there is harm connected with prostitution. However, it is equally clear that the harm is not due to prostitution per se – but to the conditions in which it operates, including the current legal structure and societal condemnation. The greatest harm done to both prostitutes and society is: the coercion of prostitutes to perform sex acts against their will; the denial of the prostitutes’ guaranteed constitutional rights; and most importantly, the prostitutes lack of social acceptance.
The greatest obstacle to legalization of prostitution is social acceptance. Many theologians have privately and publicly condemned prostitution based on their own individual, ethically-religious ideologies. The Islamic-Judea-Christian hierarchies are in direct opposition to any efforts of legalizing prostitution. These religious leaders are convinced that the legalization of prostitution would eventually transform society into a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah and begat its eminent destruction. These rabbis, priests, elders, and ministers have persuaded many in their congregations to emulate their ideologies.
As the self-appointed representatives of society’s moral and ethical conscience, these socially-esteemed, religious-icons – with the support of their followers – have influenced anti-prostitution legislation, judicial decisions in prostitution cases, and have even influenced the intensity in which law enforcement officials investigate prostitution offenses. These sanctimoniously-religious fanatics have turned “mala in prohibita” crimes into “mala in se” crimes. Studies have shown where law enforcement officials have pursued prostitution investigations with far more vigor than other more serious felonies.
It is obvious that prostitution is not the unmitigated-evil, sexual-enslavement, sexual-deviancy, or felonious-heinous crime that opponents classify it as. It is an institution that serves a social need and encompasses the entire spectrum of gender, race, religion, age, marital, and economic status.
While it is true that there is some risk of disease in prostitution, the risk can be minimized more efficiently in a legal environment than in an illegal one. If legalized, health-care plans, that are cost supplemented by the government, should be made available to prostitutes. Prostitutes would be required to obtain a regularly-scheduled medical examination to continue working in that profession. Mandated screenings for early identification of sexually-transmitted diseases would be a major part of this health plan. Law enforcement officials, as well as potential customers, could demand to see a government-issued, medical-clearance card when interacting with a legalized prostitute.
The majority of harms caused by prostitution are related to the street walkers and to the pimps that prey on them. Carefully-crafted legalization would give prostitutes the right to ply their trade in a safe environment, off the streets, without pimps, and by their own choice. Legalization provides the prostitute with the legal protection from abuse that every American citizen wants and deserves.
Another major concern of opponents to legalization is the thousands of underage prostitutes. This group of prostitutes consists primarily of teenagers, largely runaways and throwaways, who are forced into prostitution in order to survive. Rather than arresting and harassing the teenage prostitute, laws should be enacted condemning those who force or coerce teens into prostitution.
Legalization of prostitution must be done carefully – with the needs of the prostitute, the customer, and society kept in mind. Society must not just only legalize prostitution – it also must accept it and respect it as a profession. This action would not create a degenerate society, as some would claim, but would create a healthy society that honors its commitment to personal freedom and dignity.
Finally, if prostitution is legalized, it would prove economically advantageous. It would eliminate the burdensome law enforcement, judicial, and incarceration costs associated with prostitution. Prostitution would become a viable and professional entity in society. Prostitutions’ unreported incomes would legally now become reportable, taxable incomes. As the famous rap artist, Snoop Dogg so articulately, linguistically and figuratively stated, “B**ches get laid and played… but hoes get paid.”*
However, in reality, even our most cherished freedoms must be limited in the interests of maintaining public order and balancing the equal rights of other citizens. The process of maintaining equilibrium for an individual’s rights against the rights of other citizens is often difficult. Nowhere is this balancing act more complex than in the personal and intimate realm of sexuality. When the private realm of sexuality becomes public, as it does with prostitution, the conflict is complicated by notions of public decency, public health, and social mores. Prostitution is a profession that has existed throughout human history and has been a social problem since the dawn of human civilization.
Arguments against the legalization of prostitution are most commonly based on the harm principle and supplemented by the offense principle. Social concepts of legal paternalism, coupled with moralistic views, further complicate the issue. Simply put, prostitution is socially and morally condemned in our culture. Many of the social harms, supposedly created by prostitution, are overruled with the application of an individual’s unimpeachable, guaranteed constitutional rights of liberty and the rights to pursue happiness.
Clearly, there is harm connected with prostitution. However, it is equally clear that the harm is not due to prostitution per se – but to the conditions in which it operates, including the current legal structure and societal condemnation. The greatest harm done to both prostitutes and society is: the coercion of prostitutes to perform sex acts against their will; the denial of the prostitutes’ guaranteed constitutional rights; and most importantly, the prostitutes lack of social acceptance.
The greatest obstacle to legalization of prostitution is social acceptance. Many theologians have privately and publicly condemned prostitution based on their own individual, ethically-religious ideologies. The Islamic-Judea-Christian hierarchies are in direct opposition to any efforts of legalizing prostitution. These religious leaders are convinced that the legalization of prostitution would eventually transform society into a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah and begat its eminent destruction. These rabbis, priests, elders, and ministers have persuaded many in their congregations to emulate their ideologies.
As the self-appointed representatives of society’s moral and ethical conscience, these socially-esteemed, religious-icons – with the support of their followers – have influenced anti-prostitution legislation, judicial decisions in prostitution cases, and have even influenced the intensity in which law enforcement officials investigate prostitution offenses. These sanctimoniously-religious fanatics have turned “mala in prohibita” crimes into “mala in se” crimes. Studies have shown where law enforcement officials have pursued prostitution investigations with far more vigor than other more serious felonies.
It is obvious that prostitution is not the unmitigated-evil, sexual-enslavement, sexual-deviancy, or felonious-heinous crime that opponents classify it as. It is an institution that serves a social need and encompasses the entire spectrum of gender, race, religion, age, marital, and economic status.
While it is true that there is some risk of disease in prostitution, the risk can be minimized more efficiently in a legal environment than in an illegal one. If legalized, health-care plans, that are cost supplemented by the government, should be made available to prostitutes. Prostitutes would be required to obtain a regularly-scheduled medical examination to continue working in that profession. Mandated screenings for early identification of sexually-transmitted diseases would be a major part of this health plan. Law enforcement officials, as well as potential customers, could demand to see a government-issued, medical-clearance card when interacting with a legalized prostitute.
The majority of harms caused by prostitution are related to the street walkers and to the pimps that prey on them. Carefully-crafted legalization would give prostitutes the right to ply their trade in a safe environment, off the streets, without pimps, and by their own choice. Legalization provides the prostitute with the legal protection from abuse that every American citizen wants and deserves.
Another major concern of opponents to legalization is the thousands of underage prostitutes. This group of prostitutes consists primarily of teenagers, largely runaways and throwaways, who are forced into prostitution in order to survive. Rather than arresting and harassing the teenage prostitute, laws should be enacted condemning those who force or coerce teens into prostitution.
Legalization of prostitution must be done carefully – with the needs of the prostitute, the customer, and society kept in mind. Society must not just only legalize prostitution – it also must accept it and respect it as a profession. This action would not create a degenerate society, as some would claim, but would create a healthy society that honors its commitment to personal freedom and dignity.
Finally, if prostitution is legalized, it would prove economically advantageous. It would eliminate the burdensome law enforcement, judicial, and incarceration costs associated with prostitution. Prostitution would become a viable and professional entity in society. Prostitutions’ unreported incomes would legally now become reportable, taxable incomes. As the famous rap artist, Snoop Dogg so articulately, linguistically and figuratively stated, “B**ches get laid and played… but hoes get paid.”*
posted by ytownherb at 7:51 AM
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