Debunking Myths About Prostitution
Myth 1: Regulation/Legalization makes prostitution safe
If that would be the case it would be safe or safer in countries where it is already legalized but it isn't. Murder rates are higher in countries that have legalized prostitution than in those following the Nordic Model. For most women, proving rape is already difficult; for prostituted women, it is even harder. Since sex is considered their service, Johns face little risk of consequences, allowing violence against them to persist as they know they have nothing to worry about.
Read more in these articles:
MYTH: Regulation makes prostitution safe
MYTH: Legalisation makes prostitution safe
FACT: Prostitution is inherently violent
Myth 2: Johns respect the women they buy sex from
In a society where women are still judged for their sexual behavior and words like 'slut' and 'whore' are widely used as slurs against them, expecting Johns to respect prostituted women is highly naive. Most prostituted women have experienced violence while in prostitution, and numerous studies confirm this.
Check out John forums yourself to see what they really think about prostituted women—it will open your eyes. They don’t speak kindly about them, they don’t respect them, and they dehumanize them.
Read more in these articles:
MYTH: Punters respect the women they buy
The Case for Using John Forums as Evidence Against the Sex Trade
Check put this website for citations of German, Austrian and Swiss sex buyers from the years of legalized sex buying – almost exclusively concerning legal prostitution establishments: https://dieunsichtbarenmaenner.wordpress.com/menu/
Violence by clients towards female prostitutes in different work settings: questionnaire survey
Prostitute homicides: a descriptive study
Prostitution in Five Countries: Violence and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Prostitution and Trafficking in Nine Countries
Prostitution in Vancouver: violence and the colonization of First Nations women
Posttraumatic stress disorders in prostitutes: Results of a study in Hamburg in the context of an international project
Men who pay for sex in Germany and what they teach us about the failure of legal prostitution: a 6-country report on the sex trade from the perspective of the socially invisible 'freiers'
Posttraumatic stress disorder among female street-based sex workers in the greater Sydney area, Australia
Cumulative Violence and PTSD Symptom Severity Among Urban Street-Based Female Sex Workers
Myth 3: The Nordic Model is more dangerous for prostituted women than decriminalization
Murders of prostituted women are lower in countries that have adopted the Nordic Model. Furthermore, in these countries, prostituted women are not punished and can call the police on Johns, who are always held accountable. As a result, Johns are more likely to behave better to avoid being reported.
Read more in these articles:
MYTH: The Nordic Model is more dangerous for sex workers than decriminalisation
FACT: Decriminalising prostitution increases human trafficking
FACT: Buying sex makes men more prone to violence against women
Myths and misinformation about the Nordic Model (Booklet - PDF)
Myth 4: Legalizing Prostitution Reduces the Stigma
If that were the case, it would have happened in countries where prostitution is legalized, but that has never occurred. I live in Germany, where it has been allowed since 1927 and widely recognized and regulated legally since 2002, yet the stigma remains almost as high as it was decades ago.
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MYTH: Legalising Prostitution Reduces the Stigma
Myth 5: Prostitution is the oldest profession
Evidence shows that hunting, farming, and toolmaking date back to around 10,000-12,000 years ago, long before prostitution, which became documented in ancient civilizations like Mesopotamia (around 2,000 BCE). Therefore, basic survival activities came first.
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MYTH: Prostitution is the oldest profession
Myth 6: If you make prostitution or buying sex illegal Prostitution will go underground.
The argument that criminalizing the purchase of sex will drive it “underground” is not based on any evidence. On the contrary, in Sweden and Norway—where the purchase of sex has been criminalized—the number of men buying sex has declined. Therefore, prostitution on the whole has declined.
Germany where Prostitution is legalized has a legal market and an illegal market, and both have grown. According to the Federal Statistical Office, there were about 32,300 registered prostitutes in Germany at the end of 2024. However researchers assume that the number of unregistered prostitutes ranges from 200,000 to 400,000 at the low end to up to 1 million.
“Underground” is another word for “indoor,” “out of sight,” or “below the law.” Because the very nature of prostitution requires that it be visible to the clients who are seeking women for purchase, it is not possible for it to go so far underground that it can no longer be detected. If the men who purchase sex are able to find the prostituted women, then trained police can surely locate the activity and arrest the johns.
amandla
