Why this is needed:
Funding for police, jails, court systems and medical expenses due to this relatively benign activity that is currently considered a criminal offense, is a heavy financial burden for communities and taxpayers. Many sex workers are afraid to seek help regarding clients who are violent for fear of being dismissed or arrested; 80% of all sex workers have been a victim of violence. Currently, violence and drugs are closely associated with street-corner prostitution. While some may choose such a profession willingly, many prostitutes have effectively been forced into prostitution because of drug addiction and/or a family history of abuse, drugs and alcohol; others have been forced to it by poverty or by pimps. Governments and the public ignoring the situation is part of the problem, as is the blanket denigration and condemnation of all in the sex trade. As a result, it continues in the shadows on street corners of our towns and cities, with a lowering of property values and of safety, not only for the prostitutes but for the public as well.
Solution:
- Legalize and tax prostitution.
- Create safe environments, proper establishments in which it can be done in house and not on the streets.
- Engage former pimps and madams to run the houses of prostitution and safeguard the prostitutes.
- This can be set up as a co-operative business amongst the workers, and to hire out a co-operative based security team.
- Ensure medical monitoring and rapid treatment of sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s).
- Enact harsh penalties for those who stalk and/or assault prostitutes.
- Enact harsh penalties for forcing anyone into prostitution or the related pornography of children.
- No databases may be collected on clients or workers, a practice that has been used for purposes of extortion, and enact harsh penalties for blackmailers.
- Offer counseling and teaching programs so that people in the sex trade have the opportunity to learn new skills toward a different profession, trade or business.
- Place all the lead people arrested into the Full Disclaimer for Full Disclosure Solution.
Who gains:
The people pay reduced taxes for police, jails and court systems. Sex trade workers continue to gain revenue in what is now a legitimate job. Local and State Governments generate extra tax dollars. Thus, the healthcare system can receive funds to deal with sexually transmitted diseases and other health concerns. The extra taxes may also be put toward teaching programs made available to sex workers and to other adults.
Who benefits:
Sex workers add to their income, which gives them the opportunity for better life choices in jobs and health. They work in a cleaner and safer environment without mental and physical abuse. They can gain self-esteem and learn to make better decisions, pertaining to their life and health and can learn new skills. They can receive support to overcome any addictions. They are freed from threat of abuse, fear of incarceration and extortion. Police can focus on crimes involving physical harm and have time to interact more with the community in general, which improves community-police relations and enables police officers to view the public as people to protect, rather than as likely perpetrators or enemies. This, in turn, improves police officers’ ability to differentiate ordinary people from criminals. Further, enhanced public respect and improved community relations will ease pressure on police officers and improve their own mental health and family relations. Town and city dwellers benefit from cleaner and safer streets. Stalkers and violent persons can be identified and arrested, increasing public safety. Sexually transmitted diseases are treated early and reduced overall. Clients of sex workers are no longer under threat of extortion or incarceration. Because prostitution is now legal and carried on in proper establishments, the seedy street-corner dealings and crime prone districts are eliminated, which improves property values and community aesthetics. By bringing prostitution into the light, communities can work together on solutions for mental-health, drug and alcohol issues, that cause suffering not only to individuals but to society as a whole. When members of the sex trade can learn the skills to be better, more productive people, the quality of society improves.
