Economic growth and influx of money during Gold Rush years (1820-1900) created opportunities for enterprising women who were not afraid to go against social norms. Widespread media coverage of prostitution occurred in 1836, when famous courtesan Helen Jewett was murdered, allegedly by one of her customers. Soon after first anti-prostitution city ordinance followed. The Lorette ordinance of 1857 prohibited prostitution on the first floor of buildings in New Orleans. I wonder what the logic was there ...


In 1873  the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice was created as first institution dedicated to supervising the morality of the public. Because we all know that left unsupervised that public can get quite frisky!

In less than two years  the United States Congress jumped on morality bandwagon and passed  the Comstock Law, which made illegal the delivery or transport of "obscene, lewd, or lascivious" material and birth control information. In 1875, Congress passed its first anti-trafficing law. The Page Act of 1875  made it illegal to transport women into the nation to be used as prostitutes.

33 years later, the Bureau of Investigation was founded by the government to investigate "white slavery" by interviewing brothel employees to find out if they had been kidnapped. Out of 1106 prostitutes interviewed in one city, six said they were victims of white slavery.  Makes you wonder if after interviewing 1100 willing sex workers they did not make up extra six.

The White-Slave Traffic Act (Mann Act) of 1910 prohibited so-called white slavery. It also banned the interstate transport of females for “immoral purposes”. What was the primary purpose of this law? Well, the goal was to address prostitution and immorality. Just to be on the safe side, the Supreme Court later included consensual debauchery, adultery, and polygamy under “immoral purposes”.  Legal prostitution in form of brothels became public enemy and pretty much gone underground.
 
What else was taking place then?  In late 19th century, same time as Whores were investing in property with money earned in brothels, proper  women finally figured out that it would be nice to have some rights. Like right to own property, or vote, or even get an education. First waves of feminism rose.

By 1920 women won their freedom and the "new woman" was born. A Woman who rejected the moral and social rules of the older generation, smoked and drank in public, had casual sex, and embraced consumer culture.  Married and single women finally got a chance to live like Whores! Interesting that demise of legal prostitution and birth of a "New Woman" took place pretty much at the same time.

Next 40 years our country kept itself busy with more changes. World war II, second wave of feminism and the Pill kept reshaping social interactions between men and women. Good Girls no longer had to fear unplanned pregnancy and the Whores kept low profile.

Naturally there is a lot more to this ...

Christian values voters.

Seriously.  Why?  In your opinion...

BULLSHIT! Get the fuck over yourself and get some goddamn knowledge of LDS history.

Of course this hobby is illegal. The Government don't want guys like us to bust nuts all over girls titties and in their mouths. They don't want to see us stick our dicks in a girls gapping asshole, they don't wanna see that. They don't want to hear me say, "Hot Damn Bitch, here it goess!!!!". They don't want me to slap my dick on 3 girls pussy at the same time. They ain't haven none of that.

They are too conservative. But no, realistically, it wasn't like that. During WWI-WWII, our privacy acts were being tested in the Constitution. They even made watching porn illegal at the time, and, homosexuals were also against the law. Another thing, they even banned unusually and strange sex behaviors. Luckily for us, those assholes in the Government lost that battle. It stated that what a person does behind closed doors is his business, and they were invading privacy acts.

Remember when they ban Alcohol, the alcohol prohibition? Remember that shit? If they tried that, they'll try anything man. This is a Evangelical society, and their laws were the foundation of the bible. "In God we trust", that pretty much summarize it all.

But, there are numerous reasons as to why they ban prostitution, some states allow it, but the government consider it illegal. If you research the reasons why, there will be many reasons as to why that is, I just gave you a few.

Religious beliefs and desire to legislate morality play a big part in keeping sexual activities illegal.

Historically we have had laws against extramarital sex, homosexuality, swinging, oral sex, sex toys, pornography, and others.  
Many have been repealed or at least not enforced between consenting adults.  But laws governing commercial sex continue to be enforced.

To begin with prostitution itself is not a Federal Offense with one exception, and that is the distance from a military base law. RICO, Transportation and exploitation are Federal Offenses but not the solitary act of prostitution. As an example the brothels in Nevada are a prime example.

Prostitution laws vary from State to State. They are as mild as disorderly conduct and as serious as a Felony.

Local politics along with State guidance set the stage for these laws. Obviously the voters themselves are a major factor as its the laws on a local basis that finally decide. I would also venture to say that organized religion plays a significant role in this arena as well. I would save this argument for the Politics and Religion board but suffice it to say that Organized Religion plays a significant role as well.

I heard an explanation long ago, perhaps an urban myth but it went like this. In the old west the guys would come off the range and ride into town ready to party on a Saturday night. They would drink and party with the locals and then retire for a few hours with their companions. This would affect the local church, which has a moral and financial interest in the matter. The more hung over the locals are the less likely they were to go to church. The more they spent on alcohol and companions the less they would or could tithe. Bawdy young ladies were not illegal in those days. Not until the church decided that they were a detriment to to community and society. Of course they had opium dens as well back then, so take what I said with a grain of salt.

The gist of what I say is that the legality of the act is locally governed.

used too finance and suport the prison industrial complex. Resulting in the current state of injustice and and unrest of our nations working poor. €8•}

,or organized religion and all that sanctity of marriage bullshit it's been around a hell of a lot longer.

a certain % of single mothers get into it out of need to feed children. Of course there are equally many who do it because they truly enjoy the occupation and the upscale lifestyle it brings. The problem is that we don't know which is the majority so the government slaps it into one single category calling it illegal.

Some counties in DC area conveniently encapsulate it all into 'human trafficking' when it should really be differentiated. I avoid those counties like the plague.

DA

"I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate commerce."  J. Edgar Hoover, attributed

1. STD scare
2. Other crimes are usually associated with hobbying (rape, drugs, assault, human trafficing)

Because the Joseph Smith's wife decided she didn't like it anymore.  

The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world.  

It's not legal because the wives of men in power don't want it to be legal.

The first guy to be prosecuted under the Mann was the boxer Jack Johnson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mann_Act

Fallon Kelly, you have hit the nail right on the head.  Prostitution is illegal because the WOMEN in society do not want it to be legal.

99% (or more) of married women do not want their husband to spend the "family resources" (money) on other women.  98% of women that are not married but have a "significant other" man do not want that man screwing other women.  (Of course the same can be said of married women, but the money issue is generally more important to them.)  Woman rationalize that the threat of arrest (and thus exposure to the wife/significant other) will keep some men from seeking out providers.

Religious values are way, way in second place on this subject, and much overrated as far as an keeping prostitution illegal is concerned.  Ask any woman that is not a provider (or retired provider) what is the absolute lowest form of human being on the planet?  Number one will be child molester, but chances are prostitute will be NUMBER TWO!  I know some women (including some in my own family) that have never been in (or even near) a church in their lives, that consider anyone with any shred of religious faith to be nothing but a slope headed re-tard, but yet they think providers are the scum of the earth.  

Look what happened in San Francisco a few years back.  There was an initiative on the ballet to decriminalize prostitution within the city limits.  Yet, it was defeated, 25% for to 75% against.  That's San Fran-freaking-cisco, the most socially "liberal" city in the country.  (I know this, I grew up just across a bridge from San Francisco.)

In my time in the hobby I have gotten to know some providers closely.  One characteristic I have noticed about providers is that they have very few (if any) close women friends who are not also providers (or somehow in the "adult industry" as strippers, porn actresses, etc.)  They will have men friends who are not clients or otherwise in the hobby, but yet no women friends who are not.  Why is this?  Because women not associated with the hobby think providers are vile creatures to be ostracized.

Every time this subject comes up on this board, we have a problem.  This board is only made up of providers and people like me who adore and admire providers (rip offs, bait & switches, up sellers, pimped outs, clock watchers excepted, of course.)  We do not get the opinions of those not associated with the hobby.  And, the opinion of the vast, vast majority of women not associated with the hobby regarding this hobby is the lowest of the low.    

Congress passed law against plural mirages aimed at punishing the Mormons so the Mormons got a relation to quit having multiple wives. Joseph and most of his wives were long dead by then, including his first wife Emma.

You can't live in Utah without knowing a bit about Mormon history as they are very in your face about it. Now no more religious posts this is the wrong board for that.

Since when did any government have a problem tax or regulating anything?

Sex between man and women is always romanticized by the society -- legal, check; Money-trade is always glorified by the society -- legal, check.

Money-trade and sex mixed together -- not legal.

Then I guess, sex outside marriage is considered detrimental to family -- causing marriage breakups and society failure.

So, this comes down to a fundamental question to women: do you like being a wife/mother, or a provider?

Seriously. Check your history books and you will see it was legal until:

1. Women decided to organize against it and
2. Achieved the right to vote.

OK, who are you and what have you done with john?

I'm  not exactly sure what it is, but if women get everything they want, why is there still so much anti-women practices in society such as the wage gap, etc.?

Most Christian western democracies, and many Asian nations are fine with some sort of legal hobbying, so why not the US?

I find it rather baffling, and hope that someday it is legal.  (But I'm not holding my breath.)

They make the law and no-one here does.