On Barriers:

The main barrier is the industry itself in my view.

The gay/lesbian/bi's have come out of their closet and been very good in organizing and getting the rights and gradually acceptance they deserve.

But other than SWOP which hurts the cause and a small group in CALF which had great plans and ideas, there have been no organized group. I have had on my site the decim coalition but without any financial or other support.

I believe it is clear that the public does not want money wasted going after in private consenting adult sex.  The CA group did independent polling from a recognized polling organization that showed that.

My co-founder of Liberated Christians is active in a very conservative church. He told me after Sheriff Joe's big bust a few years ago even within that very anti-sex if not married Church, most considered it a waste of police resources to go after in private consenting adults.

SWOP did a great job in twice getting voter  initiatives for decriminalization on the ballet in both Berkeley and San Francisco. But of course they were both soundly defeated because they included public nuisance street hookers which even in the two most liberal cities in America voters are not going to approve.

Much of the public is surprised when they learn that at least outcall prostitution is totally legal in almost all  the world except the U.S. with no real negative effects. I would argue it benefits a society.  But street hookers are not legal anywhere except in NZ since 2003 with now a huge negative public outcry about it.  But private sexwork is just like any other job without the legal issues.

As folks know I have been one of the few outspoken in these issues from the Phoenix fight in 1999 against strip and swing clubs where I spoke at the public hearings, on radio talk shows etc to more recent events where I have been periodically in the media about decrim etc.  But for professional reasons I need my real name kept private which other than once the media has respected.

Some escorts also want to keep it illegal since it keeps fees much higher than in most of the world where it is legal.

Sexwork needs our own "Stonewall" like when the Gays had enough and decided to FIGHT for their rights which they have done fairly successfully. But in sexwork in our weird culture full of sex but also when its so "dirty" outside of marriage, few people are willing to come out and fight and overcome the negative society issues like the gay/bi/lesbians have now done.  They have gained over time a lot of favorable recognition in society.  As have PRIVATE (not street hookers) around the world where its not such a big deal when its legal and you don't have the other crimes associated with it when its not legal.

We also have huge legal opportunities with the Lawrence vs Texas case, which at my suggestion to the attorney in the DC Madam case was of interest to the judge before the attorney change. Her criminal attorney went to the "she didn't know they had sex" defense which has always failed, instead of attacking the Constitutional issues of the law.  In AZ the law is very vague and also could be attacked.

In a NY case I've written about lawyers for the sexwork defendants almost refused to use their argument that prostitution is sex for money. It is not the same as paying for time only and if sex happens between two consenting adults with no fee for the sex, it is not prostitution.  The attorney's were literally laughing at such a defense. But the sexworker defendants pushed them to use it and THEY WON in a NY JURY trail using the argument.

So in conclusion there are these barriers:
1) No organized movement for PRIVATE consenting adult sexwork other than small CA group that has mostly given up without more broad support but had the right ideas.

2) Sexwork attitudes to keep it illegal so can get the higher "go to jail" risk premium in fees.

3) Arrested sexworkers not willing to fight the law which is mostly a money issue since would take lots of money to hire attorneys to launch a real defense. But as in NY and the limited attention from judges Lawrence vs Texas has received, it could change the entire industry if funds were raised to have the right attorneys to fight the cases.

4) The weird shame factor about sex in our culture so much more so than in Europe or most other cultures.  Clients fear their families might find out, and sexworker fear their exposure to friends, future regular employment etc.



-- Modified on 3/27/2009 4:17:55 PM

-- Modified on 3/27/2009 4:20:01 PM

-- Modified on 3/27/2009 4:22:23 PM

You ask: Would the legalization-or decriminalization-of prostitution help or hinder the business interests and personal goals of those involved in our community?

I do not favor "legalization" that is totally unneeded other than perhaps for brothels. Women should be in charge of their own businesses and I see no reason whatsoever for a Nev type legalization. Rather deciminization at least of outcall just like it is in almost all the world except the U.S.

I can not imagine how it couldn't help at least the honest business interests.  Those that want to hide other illegal activities such as drugs, pimping, extortion would be hurt if it was decrim.

But having it more like in Canada which of course I know well, I can not see how it could hurt business other than perhaps agencies would make less money, but not necessarily.

Since I know it well I use Canada as an example. The typical cost say $200/hr.  The agency pays the driver about $20, the agency makes $20-30 and the escort gets the rest.

No 50% going to agencies.  BUT they may make just as much since they have a lot higher volumn since when you take away the legal issues you have zillions more customers.

Or like the strip clubs.  Instead of like here they mostly have to growl for tips since the house gets most of the dance fees.  In Ontario where full contact nude is totally legal (I love doing breast massage and get great reponse) the dancer pays a nightly stage fee of $20-$50 depending on the night.

Dances are long uncut songs at $20.  No tips crap expected.  She keeps ALL of the $20.  But some clubs have close to 100 dancers a night and packed houses.  So they make money on the dance fees but its far more fair to the dancer than the U.S. system.

To me this provides more honest business opportunities and personal goals of those in the Community vs in the U.S. where some agencies make millions they have to hide and launder breaking more laws vs everything being honest, legal and in my view far more fair.

prices would bottom out and there would be a large contraction at the top end of the scale.

the high prices we pay in the USA are from the illegality and the artifical price supports it gives the pus..err product.

ive been to many parts of the world where its either legal or ignored and top dollar is around 250 or so pretty much anywhere except for japan.

Often actually usually its much much less. take Amsterdam a city were it is legal you pay around 150-200 euros for an hour at the top of the row where the young pretty girls are and if your nice its often less than that since they set their own prices.
In germany the street scene is pretty twisty the girls we would see all work out of apartments with prices at about 25 euro for 15 minutes depending on what your after.

Ill leave out the third world nations other than to say thailand and or phil are both one hell of a good time at an awesome price hehe.

this is a country built on puritanical ideals........

we still havent been able to over come this.  You would think all the baby boomers that grew up in the 60's...that are now in power would've eased things.

There are sound public policy reasons why every state  has prostitution laws and none of these reasons includes any moral objection to sex for pay between consenting adults. I don’t want my next door neighbor doing incall nor I want streetwalkers near schools or churches. Nor do we want agencies or pimps running this business bc of the potential for abuse of the ladies and other crimes they commit.

        But there is one form of prostitution where there really is no public nuisance –outcall by educated, health conscious, internet focused, independent ladies who discreetly visit clients in the privacy of their home or apartment. There really is no meaningful public policy reason for making this conduct illegal. The real significance of Lawrence v. Texas is not that it provides a rationale for the legalization of all prostitution activities – it does not- but that it holds that advancement of a moral code is NOT a legitimate state interest that overcomes the individual's liberty right to engage in intimate conduct in private.


       What is needed is an advocacy group that focuses on this discreet segment of the sex for pay industry and can establish a statistical record showing that allowing outcall by independents implicates no public nuisance concerns. With this empirical evidence, statutes that criminalize all forms of prostitution are almost certainly overbroad and unconstitutional under Lawrence.

        So what is really needed is (1) a more wide spread understanding of the difference between the hapless sex workers on the street and in brothels and the more educated, health conscious, and law abiding independent escorts who operate primarily on an outcall basis; and the (2) the arrest and prosecution of such a lady in an outcall setting who defends on constitutional grounds -rather than "I was charging for my time"- and has the resources to litigate this defense all the way to the Supreme Court.

      This is the only realistic way that there will be a change in prostitution laws in our lifetime.