Legalization VS Decriminalization

Although many people use the terms as synonyms, legalization and decriminalization are not the same thing, and would produce very different results. Legalization would make selling sex legal but there would be specific regulations and laws applied to the sex trade (“Prostitution Law Reform”). The problem with this is that many of these government rules are seen as “intrusive” and “demeaning” (“Prostitution”). Decriminalization, on the other hand, would treat prostitution as any other industry allowing the workers all the rights and protection enjoyed by other workers such as hairdressers, counselors, doctors, and estheticians (“IUSW”). All laws against prostitution would be abolished since there are already laws against trafficking, drugs, and sex with children; negative issues which are often associated with the sex trade. “If the police put their efforts into the fight against… real crime, consenting adults [could] get on with their business with no harm to anyone and make their contribution to society” (“IUSW”). The government would also benefit from either legalization or decriminalization by collecting taxes on the services of a prostitute as they do with any employee or small-business.

Some countries where prostitution has been legalized or decriminalized;
- Nevada, US **
- Germany **
- Australia ***
- Belgium *
- New Zealand *
- Indonesia *

The Netherlands is the most well known country where prostitution is decriminalized and treated as any other profession (“Prostitution in the Netherlands”). Workers there are able to form unions and receive all the benefits of a self-employed individual in any trade. There are some countries where selling sex is not necessarily illegal, but acts surrounding it are. In Sweden, prostitution has been decriminalized, but customers, pimps and traffickers are still criminalized (“Laws”). In other countries, female prostitutes are arrested much more frequently than either male prostitutes or johns, showing that patriarchy and gendered oppression are influencing the enforcement of the law (“Prostitution: Criminology”). Many countries are currently debating changes in their policies on prostitution based on activism from within the sex trade and from other feminists as well.


Works Cited:

“IUSW – Recommendations – Legalization.” The International Union of Sex Workers. 9 March 2007 http://www.iusw.org/policy/05_legalisation.html **

“Laws.” Prostitution Research and Education Website. 27 March 2007 http://www.prostitutionresearch.com/c-laws-about-prostitution.html

Outshoorn, Joyce, ed. The Politics of Prostitution: Women’s Movements, Democratic States and the Globalization of Sex Commerce. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004. ***

“Prostitution.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 6 March 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution

“Prostitution: Criminology.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 6 March 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution_%28criminology%29

“Prostitution in the Netherlands.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 6 March 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution_in_the_Netherlands

“Prostitution Law Reform: Defining Terms.” Prostitutes’ Education Network – Prostitution: Decriminalization and Legalization. 27 March 2007 http://www.bayswan.org/defining.html

“Sex Worker.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 6 March 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_worker *