I’m not against those who work for sex, but the idea to earn for a living doesn’t seem nice. IMO, sex should be for 2 people (or more for others who prefer polyamory) who wants to be intimate/romantic with each other. My point is money should not be the purpose.
I don’t guess it needs my approval but as long as there is a demand for the service it will happen.
Like you, I just like everyone to get sex for sex, that’s how I’ve always done it, but that’s a very recent outlook, it was very gatekept before and women generally were trading sex for something, and men were generally trading something for it. I remember being in high school and the only categories were girlfriend, slut, or just don’t have sex, it was so fraught.
I expect there may always be a marketplace. And certainly don’t hold any sort of bad feelings towards those trying to market themselves, if you can make a living at it, great.
Went to barber school with a lady who was doing job retraining after getting busted for prostitution. She said she really had enjoyed it, had few clients, all regulars, worked out of her home, made a good living. Wasn’t bothering anyone until apparently someone noticed and was bothered.
I like this answer, but he deleted. It’s still in my inbox so I’m gonna share but not mention the commentor’s name
In germany sex Work is a normal regulated job like any other. You are insured, receive vacation days, etc. It is accepted here as completely normal work like any other. Because it is. was once in a brothel with a friend. While he was in the room with a lady, talked to the others and asked why they were doing this job. The answer was “I like dicks” and “Its fun and pays very well” To be honest, the ladies seem to enjoy their work more (and earn a lot more) than any job I’ve had in my life.
Germany still has a problem with sex trafficking however they have a much better system than 99.9% of other countries in the world.
Out of curiosity, why does sex need a purpose? Why should it be or not be for anything in particular? What makes it any different from, say, juggling?
Sex work isn’t just prostitution, by the way. It’s anyone making a living off of sexual content. If you’re shooting porn or are a cam girl, you’re a sex worker as well.
Prostitution is problematic in that currently, because it’s an illegal service, it’s largely being performed by people who don’t have a choice in the matter. Human trafficking is a huge problem. If prostitution were legalized and regulated, if the societal “we” changed our collective attitudes towards it, life would improve for a lot of people. I struggle to phrase this next bit in a tactful way. If you’re against improving the lives of so many people because it doesn’t align with your view of sex should be for, that’s pretty shitty of you. Not saying that’s the case, I don’t live inside your head, but that’s how I see it.
In places where prostitution is legal, the amount of human trafficking goes way down, because the brothels in these places are usually inspected pretty regularly. They have to follow regulations or else they will be forcefully shutdown, and the employees being there willingly is usually one of those regulations.
out here you need a license for it as well. Which, from what I’ve heard, is not easy to get
I’m not against it if they think it will improve their lives. As i said on my other replies, im opening my mind to this topic. I just feel bad for people who gets life ruined because of it. They are not forced to do it, but some need to go hardcore (no pun intended) because that’s their only way to survive during these hard times.
Eh, it’s just a service in exchange for money. Just like a massage parlour or spa or doctor or chiropractor or hair stylist. Sex isn’t special.
There are two main “career paths” here:
- Those that willingly choose sex work.
- Those that are pressured into sex work.
Imo, the former is perfectly fine (because everyone involved is consenting). The latter is problematic and the actual problem we need to solve.
So many people conflate the two and assume that all sex work is exploitation. All mixed in with the implicit sexism that says women shouldn’t have any autonomy over their own body and sexuality.
It’s a pretty high percentage.
But it’s a pretty high percentage for similar reasons to illegal pot sales funding terrorists or gangs/cartels. The legal status puts it way more in the purview of organized crime.
I mean, is it a high percentage? Feels like the kind of thing that you could fudge figures either way.
And yeah, we need to empower sex workers and give them legal and health support.
In the context of women being literal sex slaves, even 5 or 10% would constitute a high percentage that gave regular purchasers a reasonably high chance of encountering one. (I wasn’t intending to play that semantics game, but it’s worth noting regardless.)
I think it’s pretty high. There are legal places that have some safeguards in place, but in most of the world there’s just nowhere for a woman to say “I’d like to try sex work” and get an opportunity to do so. It’s inherently the people on the fringes of society, the runaways with nowhere to go who end up reliant on a predator, the people addicted to drugs that have no way to get their next fix, the people trafficked. Even the “high class” stuff, because there isn’t any legitimate entry point, is relying on tactics like calling it a modeling gig and then propositioning the models, and there’s an inherent element of coercion* to that as well.
*Coercion isn’t the perfect word choice but I’m blanking on a better one. Even if the intent isn’t explicitly to manipulate the women, the result is a lot of wild emotional swings, then a pitch when you’re still under their influence. And we’ve seen examples of people taken overseas and having their passports taken away, even by an NFL team. It definitely happens at a far more frequent level than we should be comfortable with.
I also know that male prostitution is a thing, and “women” isn’t comprehensive. But it’s mostly women.
I agree with pretty much everything you’ve said. I’ve just seen “it’s a high percentage” to be a dogwhistle for “all sex work is inherently exploitation so we should ban it.”, so apologies for assuming.
5-10% is far too high, yes. I don’t know if I’d agree with that figure (it really depends on what you consider sex work, tbh), but exploitation is a serious problem that needs fixing.
This is where a good ol’ “hate the game, not the player” applies.
I have no judgement of the people who do it to make money. Any issue I have is with the economy and culture that drives some to do it to survive when they wouldn’t otherwise choose to.
Your point about money shouldn’t be the purpose… but some people, especially women, are stuck where sex work is their best paying option. It’s not their fault.
In a perfect world where no one is forced to do any particular labor to survive, when consent is given 100% of the time, and everyone’s safe, I have zero issue with sex work from any angle. In this imperfect world, my issue is with the system and not the individuals working in the industry.
Yes. All the issues with sex work come from cultural and systemical issues. For example that it’s very opaque for people outside of the industry, the stereotypes you have to deal with, people judging you constantly or it’s not illegal everywhere.
And not to say there’s not some fucked up shit happening in the industry.
I think the argument should be the same like with drugs: it’s generally good, but it can be a problem and just for the transparency and oversight we need to make it legal everywhere but well regulated. That’s my opinion.
I think if it doesn’t affect other people, and nobody is being exploited/everyone is participating willingly, then it’s none of my business what others choose to do.
I’m actually trying to help sex workers, particularly porn Creators, use the fediverse to take control of their social media. I want to help them keep control of their own destiny - https://xxxiver.se
Legalize it, tax it, regulate it like any other job.
I’d not buy any, even when single.
I would consider selling before a lot of other jobs. Depends on the money really. Not much of a market for straight, average looking, men in their 30s however.
Sure it’d be great if basic needs like food, shelter, healthcare and yes, sex, weren’t commoditized, but until we get
SexicaidSexicare for All, I’m fine with people making money from sex and paying for it. Legalize and regulate it for the safety of the workers and the customers.^Someone please come up with a better name than Sexicaid^Sexycare, or maybe sexicare?
omg I’m an idiot I was trying to riff off Medicare for All and used Medicaid instead, Sexicare definitely works
Not my business, but would hope appropriate precautions are in place for both parties involved.
I approve of it in that it’s legitimate work, unlike being a landlord, and lots of vulnerable people end up doing it as the only method of supporting themselves, as well as a lot of single moms trying to deal with making an income and parenting, etc. I would not disparage anyone doing it. Would I worry about their emotional and physical health and safety doing it? Yes. We have a sex workers collective drop-in center in my city who make efforts to try to help keep them safe, such as testing, condoms, etc, which is great. But I can’t help but wonder how someone’s mental health would be affected by just being a glorified blow up doll. There was an Ask Reddit once about what people saw on porn sets, and someone who worked on one said all the girls seemed really fake and unhappy and vacant emotionally, and that concerns me. I would not want anyone hurt by doing this work is my point, but I don’t object to them doing it of course. Just please take care of yourself!
Edit to add: last weekend my church took a potluck to the local park where there is a small tent encampment of unhoused folks and invited them to eat with us, which they did, which was nice, and although they were shy we all talked a little, and some of them were clearly sex workers from what they talked about. One had what I think was scabies on her skin, and that’s the kind of thing that worries me.
The choice/situation blends in with every occupation so as long as no aggression or wrongful leverage is involved.
I don’t work and I don’t have sex so idk really, I don’t feel like I’m the best person to ask about it
It should be everywhere. As simple as buying a pack of cigarettes. For many is literally all the attention will get for the rest of our lives.
Regulate it, keep the workers safe, ensure they’re well compensated and tested. Basically, treat is like every other profession.
If two consenting adults want to exchange money for sexual favors, who cares? If the worker chooses to sell their body for money via sexual acts, why is that inherently worse than someone who does construction selling their body for a living?
