Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Laura Foster on January 3, 2011 at 3:47pm

In ancient Rome, prostitution was the first trade to be taxed.  That's why it's called "the world's oldest profession".  [source: some book somewhere one time]

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Permalink Reply by Shine on January 3, 2011 at 3:48pm

Haha, I love your source. :)

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Permalink Reply by Julien on January 3, 2011 at 3:50pm

Great source. :)

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Ulean Breedlove on January 3, 2011 at 4:56pm

Yes I would vote for tax on prostitution!

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Permalink Reply by Laura Foster on January 3, 2011 at 3:50pm

I'm a bit mixed on whether or not it should be legal, because of the ease with which it could be exploited in cases of human trafficking.  However I do believe it should be decriminalized, by which I mean, rather than throwing a 16-year-old girl in the joint for soliticiation, go after the pimp and throw him/her in jail for trafficking.

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Permalink Reply by Eric on January 3, 2011 at 4:06pm

I couldn't agree with you more!

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Permalink Reply by Cecilia on January 3, 2011 at 4:54pm

This is a very good point, hadn't thought about the human trafficking angle.  But if it were well regulated it seems that that could be addressed through careful regulation and monitoring. 

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Permalink Reply by Julien on January 3, 2011 at 9:14pm

If it were an ordinary place of business, with W2 forms, ID req'd, tax forms, probably licensing, etc, it'd be HARDER not easier, to grab illegals and minors who do not want to work as prostitutes.

 

Exactly.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Foster on January 3, 2011 at 11:11pm

I respectfully disagree with your disagreement.  In countries in which prostitution is not done in secrecy (for example, Thailand), human trafficking is rampant (this according to a US State Department report on trafficking issued last year, as well as in previous years).  I don't believe people are exploited because of the secrecy.  I believe people are exploited because there's money to be had, just as in running weapons or drugs; and exploiters are hard to catch because they know how to hide.

 

I seriously doubt that requiring W2s, taxes, IDs, etc. will make the already existing (and prospering) underground cease to be underground.  If pimps aren't concerned with the welfare of the people they buy and sell as commodities, they'll hardly bother with tax paperwork.

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Permalink Reply by Julien on January 3, 2011 at 11:18pm

Sure, but they'll run out of customers pretty quick. Hiring a prostitute in current circumstances can be dangerous for many different reasons, and I think that the customers would appreciate a safer way to do it.

 

And I don't think that prostitution in Thailand is really controlled by anybody except the pimps.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Foster on January 4, 2011 at 3:53pm

I think you misunderstand me. I didn't say it was legal in Thailand; I merely said that it wasn't done in secrecy, to counter your argument that "Humans are already being exploited, because in most states, prostitution is done in secrecy."

I don't think it's true that no kids are trafficked in Las Vegas, nor that no illegals being forced into it. The U.S. Justice Department appears to agree with me, as do this listing at Change.org and this article from a Las Vegas news source. In fairness, I don't have very hard numbers as to how much of this goes on vs. how much legal & regulated prostitution goes on (that's the problem of things happening underground; they're underground). But I think I can safely say that it does go on, and that the statement "People are not being kidnapped and dragged in there" is incorrect.

Also, to be fair, I personally can't state from any qualified position whether or not for a fact legal prostitution makes it easier or harder for traffickers. But I do think it's a myth that legalization has removed or will remove pimps/traffickers; if anything it's driven them away from the public eye to the point that (at least some) people think illegal trafficking doesn't happen at all.

I want to see what sort of hard data I can find from organizations who make it their day-to-day work to know and to do something about such issues, because this whole discussion has piqued my interest as to whether or not data can support the suggestion that legalized prostitution makes it more or less difficult for human trafficking to flourish.

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Permalink Reply by Eric on January 3, 2011 at 4:06pm

Intelligence Squared US had this debate:

 

http://intelligencesquaredus.org/index.php/past-debates/its-wrong-t...

 

It was a good one.

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