By: Brooklyn Middleton / Staff Writer
In issues of sex work, there is an utter lack of humanity and empathy that stems from laws that not only make sex workers criminals but also increases stigmatization and marginalization.
Inexplicably, American society does virtually nothing to protect the human rights and ensure the safety of sex workers. It is not until there is a media frenzy surrounding a potential serial killer of sex workers that Americans turn their heads towards the issue. Even then, sex workers are shamed for their professions and given little resources to cope with abuse .
On Jan. 24, 2011, police identified the bodies of four young women found on a Long Island beach. All of them were sex workers who lived in the New York area and had advertised their services on Craigslist. This is the most recent tragedy of sex workers being victimized, and it is demonstrative of why there needs to be a drastic rethinking of sex work laws.
The illegality of sex work possesses inherent risks that make sex workers vulnerable to exploitation, abuse and murder. The more underground and illegal a profession is, the more seedy, dangerous and prone to exploitation it will be. I would like to argue that the illegality of the work that is perpetuated and supported by laws contributes to the dehumanization of sex workers, thus leading to a flawed perception that sex workers are disposable, even subhuman.
Gary Leon Ridgway, a serial killed who brutally murdered 48 sex workers and, prosecutors often think, many more, gave an explanation as to why he chose women in this profession as his victims. CBS News quotes Ridgway as saying, “I picked prostitutes as my victims because I hate most prostitutes and I did not want to pay them for sex. I also picked prostitutes as victims because they were easy to pick up without being noticed. I knew they would not be reported missing right away and might never be reported missing.”
This view, while disturbing, is actually a perspective that bears analysis, as it provides a basis for one of the fundamental reasons sex workers are so often victimized. The “unnoticeable” nature of sex work is problematic and exactly what makes sex workers so easy to victimize. This brings me to my point about how the illegality of sex work does nothing to protect women.
The patriarchal notion of lawmakers and even feminists asserting that sex workers are victims of circumstance, poverty and drug addiction and are forced into sex work is an interesting point. The complexities of sex work absolutely possesses these elements and thorough and effective outreach to these women is crucial. However, the legal system fails to protect sex workers.
If the legal system gave a damn about “protecting” these women, there wouldn’t be implementations of laws that paint these women as criminals and brand them with convictions that not only legally affect them, but also socially stigmatize them. Furthermore, the profession would be heavily regulated and limitless access to reproductive health would be given.
The assertion that criminalizing sex work “protects” women in any way is illogical; it only drives their work into silence and gags them from reporting crimes. Until a revolution not just in the political and legal environment surrounding sex work but also in the stigmatization of sex work, occurs, sex workers will continue to be victimized and preyed upon. That is truly a crime.
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