Prostitution in a Different Light

Prostitution in the United States has hit an all time high in the year of 2019. There have been record-breaking statistics and facts that have been brought to light explaining why prostitution is bad for our country and all the reasons as to how human trafficking is affecting us all even if we are not involved in the physical mistreatment of others. The controversy surrounding my topic is that many people do want to legalize prostitution within the United States for the sole purpose of how it would “protect sex workers, reduce violence, and cut down on sex trafficking.” My current opinion on this topic is that I am against prostitution. It degrades both male and females for the pleasure of others and is an inhumane way to earn a living. I believe that prostitution should be illegal in every aspect because of the unjust treatments these workers receive on a daily basis.

The source I decided to choose is an online article called Legalize It where the authors give reasoning behind why or why not we should legalize something or not. They specify on the issue at hand being human trafficking. In the article, “Why it’s Time to Legalize Prostitution,” the author, Cathy Reisenwitz, talks about how beneficial the legalization of prostitution would be to us. I picked this specific article because I am completely opposed to her viewpoint and think it would be interesting writing from a completely different perspective from my own. She talks about how effective human trafficking is and how it benefits our country as a whole. Being that I am completely opposed to the legalization of human trafficking, I thought it could be useful to hear her side about why prostitution is good for our society versus how bad I believe it is.

While reading the article by Cathy Reisenwitz, I read about the many factors that go into being a prostitute and what life is like being involved in human trafficking. Reisenwitz states, “Violent people are more likely to prey on sex, confident that it won’t be reported to the police,” leaving us to believe that pimps and drug lords are more looked upon as the workers’ protectors since they have no one else to turn to. This idea makes sense because sex workers are coerced into so many things and are genuinely scared for their lives at points. However, Reisenwitz is trying to argue that if we were to legalize prostitution there would be rules placed so sex workers would have a bit more protection. Reading this statement helped me see prostitution from a different perspective because I have a better understanding of why sex workers fear for their lives at some points and why it may be a good idea to legalize prostitution. The author enhanced my thinking about this topic because I am looking at this issue as if I was a sex worker just wanting protection. This is because Reisenwitz speaks from the perspective of the sex worker instead of an outsider looking in. She emphasizes the fact that violent people are primarily the ones involved in sex trafficking; and therefore, lead us to believe that they could potentially threaten the sex workers if they try and alert the authorities.

Additionally, Cathy Reisenwitz talks about other countries involved in human trafficking and how they differ from the United States. Reisenwitz states, ”After Germany and New Zealand legalized sex work, violence against workers decreased, while workers’ quality of life improved.” She is comparing our country to that of one that also has high levels of prostitution and is justifying prostitution by stating that occupational health and safety laws were placed in order to protect the sex workers. In a way, that is a good argument as to why we should legalize prostitution for the livelihood of the workers in general. This quote definitely changed my view on legalizing human trafficking because it gave me a solid reason on how it would help these sex workers in their everyday lives and protect them from the injustices they face now in our society just for being a sex worker. The author enhanced my thinking about this topic because she is looking at my topic from the perspective of someone actually involved in it instead of just thinking about it from an outsider’s perspective.

Conclusively, this source contributed to my own knowledge about this topic because I more sensitive to sex workers and all that they have to undergo just for being in this field of work in the first place. I want people to understand the backgrounds of the sex workers that get involved in sex trafficking in the first place, and how difficult the decision is for them to be a sex worker. There is a lot more to the story then just being a prostitute, and I want my classmates to realize that after they’ve read my semester paper. I want them to be knowledgeable about the mistreatment all these sex workers face because they are trafficked.

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