Ashley Strain
Eng 100 Research Assignment
For Kent Lewis
Time to Legalize the World’s Oldest Profession
Prostitution is the act of offering sexual services to another person in return for money. Prostitution is often referred to as the world’s oldest profession and has existed in the sex industry for centuries occurring all over the world. Since prostitution first began the debate has raged: should prostitution be legalized or not? To protect the safety of sex trade workers, the time has come to legalize prostitution.
A major argument for legalizing prostitution is the questionable logic of criminalizing an activity that occurs routinely in our society. The services of a prostitute are used regularly by many people. According to Doctor Allan Schwartz, four main reasons that men visit prostitutes are a “compulsive need for sex, an insatiable need for sexual pleasure, a fear of intimacy or relationships, and misogyny” (Schwartz). These reasons for using the services of prostitutes have existed for a long period of time and the demand for paid sex will always exist. In many segments of society paying for sex is acceptable. History has proven that eliminating prostitution is not possible. Decriminalizing the sex trade will recognize prostitutions role in our society.
Prostitution is generally an act between consenting adults and different categories include street, brothels, escorts and sex tourism. According to Sherry F. Colb of Rutgers Law School, prostitution is classified as a victimless crime. She states “What makes prostitution a victimless crime in the sense that no one is necessarily harmed by it, is that there are consenting adults involved” (Sherry Colb). Prosecuting and then clogging the already overloaded justice system with more court cases related to a consensual act is a waste of money and valued resources. If prostitution is legalized these resources will be better directed towards reducing crimes where there is a victim or a loss.
Women will...