Legalization of Prostitution - Essay Example

Topic:  Should prostitution be legal? Legalization of prostitution might look like an encouraging topic, but looking at sex as a commodity is not advisable. Prostitution is everywhere and the market for sex is ever increasing. However looking from an ethical point of view, prostitution is illegal and immoral activity. Legalizing prostitution is like adding fuel to fire. Prostitution is a trade where in individuals sell sex for money and it is an industry where in predominantly women is in occupation. It is providing the customers with sex in exchange of money,and the person who sells sex is known’s as a prostitute and it can be female or male. In general prostitution is known to deterioate the social values of a person .Prostitution cannot be recommended in society, as it is against moral and ethical principles of human beings. It is prostitution which spread sexually transmitted diseases like HIV and AIDS in a society. Every country in the world has sex industry which serves to customers all around the clock.Hence there is a demand from the authorities of the sex industry to hike the position of the prostitutes as sex employees .The objective behind this is to promote the position of the sex workers and bestow them with legal protection. It is noticed that, large number of sex workers are tortured as they are not protected under law bodies. According to (Moses,2006)“Researchers have also examined data from a study of prostitutes’ clients to find out who they are, why they solicit sex from prostitutes, and what attitudes they hold toward violence against women”. Prostitution is against morality Prostitution is selling sex in a shameful way that society forgets the human values like modesty, moral, ethical and family values. When human has raised a family comprising a wife ,then there is no need for men to go searching sex outside of home. Moreover,indulging in sex with outsiders can regard one individual as a violator of social norms of a society. As an institution, prostitution is against morality even if it is an age old practice. Nevertheless,the prostitutes themselves cannot be tagged as evil doers but their circumstances have led them to do this immoral practice. Because of prostitution, the marriage as an institution is offended as many married men visit brothels without the knowledge of their wives. In this way the character and face value of a man as a husband, father and son is degraded. It is also normal for customers to terrorize, torture and brutalize women in the trade. As per(Weitzer,2005)“Customers are labeled prostitute users and sexual predators who brutalize women”. It is the neediness and necessity of people that lead them to the prostitution industry. It is this neediness that is exploited by the customers and prostitutes get tortured and terrorized which in the end is against morality. In General,women are expected to live with chastity, morality and modest in manners and society does not expect them to act in such a derogative manner. It is shameful on feminity to sell their sex as a commodity. Prostitution can also be a black mark on the moral consciousness of a person who is selling it and the one who is buying it. Prostitution is a sexual service Prostitution is a service industry where people are served sex in the form of a product. This sexual service is sold by females or even males at a high risk. These prostitutes do not have any protection or legal cover up to protect their rights. They have no human rights or credible place in the society. People in a way utilize prostitutes ,and the same population disregards them in the public. In the market, everyone offering service is considered as a seller and should be bound by legal rules and protection rights. People never understand that prostitutes are serving customers day and night and their body is at high risk of torture, molestation and sexually transmitted diseases. The government should understand this fact and acknowledge sexual activity as a service in the market. In many of the Asian countries, the girls and women working as prostitutes are mostly victims of human trafficking. These girls and women are trapped in this profession without their consent or permission. Also girls and women who are sexually abused are also a big part of the prostitution industry. In his journal(Edlund,2002)“Prostitution is a multibillion dollar business that employs millions of women worldwide. A recent study by the International Labor Office estimated that in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand, between 0.25 and 1.5 percent of the female population work as prostitutes”. The sex service is a low skill activity and hence there is no value for the prostitutes and their profession. Most of the women and girls in this profession are without guardians and caretaker and there is no one to speak for them. Prostitutes corrupt the society Prostitution never in the history has been regarded as a profession ever. Since the beginning of history, prostitutes were regarded as sinful and corrupting people in the society. The prostitutes and people who approach them are considered evil and sinful. Prostitutes have the immoral behavior of seducing young generation and adults to get attracted to them. Young people at a tender age get exploited or attracted to the erotic expressions and attitude of prostitutes. This can lead the young men to be addicted to sex and ultimately be a customer of theirs. Prostitution can also corrupt the mind and body of young and adult male population. Men instead of being productive and family – oriented get attracted to female sex workers which can destabilize the foundation of society. The Pornography which is a part of prostitution is also violating the minds of the male population.As per (Leuchtag,199 5 )“There is a close historical connection between pornography and prostitution. (The word pornography itself means, quite literally, "writing about prostitutes)”.Pornography is everywhere and any media is displaying porn acts and pictures to manipulate the minds of the male population. Men in general are more attracted to sex and it is not a hideous task for prostitutes to corrupt the society by exploiting the mind and body of the men population. So prostitution should not be legalized as it can damage the overall foundation of the society. Conclusion Everyone knows that prostitution as a sex industry exists in all countries, but no one is bothered to know whether it is legal or illegal to sell and buy it. Men by nature are sexually more active than women and hence become slave of sex with the assistance of prostitutes. It is prostitution which spreads sexually transmitted diseases like HIV and Aids among the people at large scale. Women having multiple sex partners end up being infected with STDs and this can lead to spreading of the diseases among their customers and further more into the society. These women also end up using drugs and alcohol. According to (Shannon,2007)“Substance-using women working in open street-level sex work markets face a myriad of health risks, including pervasive violence and assault, high rates of poverty and homelessness, drug-related harms, stigma, and social isolation” Prostitution cannot be legalized just because sex workers are selling sex, one should understand the worth of the product and the impact of that product on the society. Prostitution is immoral and corrupts society and damages the physical and mental health of both the sex worker and the customer. It is not morally rights for women to sell sex in the society as it can destabilize the sex worker as well as the man buying it .The government should instead take stern steps to abolish sex workers from indulging sex and show guidance and help towards new working opportunities. The prostitution must be ceased and legal bodies of a country should educate prostitutes. This would help to start new employment opportunities which give credit and human right for sex workers in the society Bibliography Edlund, L. (2002). A Theory of Prostitution. Journal of Political Economy, 110(1), 182-212. Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.the-idea-shop.com/papers/prostitution.pdf Leuchtag, A. (1995, June). The culture of pornography. In Find Articles. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1374/is_n3_v55/ai_16898787 Moses, M. C (2006, November). Understanding and Applying Research on Prostitution. National Institute of Justice, 255. Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.nij.gov/journals/ 255/prostitution _research .html Shannon, K. (2007). Community-based HIV prevention research among substance-using women in survival sex work: The Maka Project Partnership. Harm reduction Journal, 4(20). Weitzer, R. (2005). Flawed Theory and Method in Studies of Prostitution. Sage Publications, 11(7), 934-949. Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://policeprostitutionandpolitics.com/pdfs_all/ron%20weitzer%20articles/Flawed_Theory.pdf Read More