If there’s anything we can learn from capitalism, it is that everything can be a commodity. From food to the privatisation of water, if it can be accessed for free, it can be monetised. So what makes sex any different?
Sex has long been separated from other emerging markets, often due to its supposed immorality. Despite its opposition and the banning of sex work in most countries, it continues to exist covertly — so why not legalise it? As movements regarding the rights of sex workers continues to globalise, it seems the right time for us to discuss sex as a product and its implications.
“Sex was created for marriage, selling it devalues the sanctity of the act”
While religion is still an important institution to many, ones’ beliefs are not sufficient grounds to restrict the implementing of legislature, especially as the world is becoming increasingly secularised. If a Catholic, for example, contends the legalisation of prostitution, said individual does not have to be a sex worker — it is not the role of the state to cater to each individuals’ specific ideologies. Moreover, there are several legal acts that also threaten the sanctity of marital sex, such as casual sex, these things are only subjectively “bad” — we cannot ban all actions based on individual objections, it sets an unobtainable precedent.
“It is wrong to sell yourself in the way sex work requires; it seeks to objectify women”
Sex is often believed to be more deeply tied to one’s self than any other potential ‘product’ and thus, to sell sex is to sell themselves to an extent. No other career allows a woman to give themselves in the way that sex does, a way which is more intimate than working in an office or a restaurant expects or requires. The argument of selling sex would therefore be objected to by some due to it normalising the selling of yourself to satisfy the desire of a market.
Additionally, as most prostitutes are women, the legalising of ‘sex for sale’ could entrench patriarchal notions of female servitude to men on an institutionalised level. This could add to the already disparate ways in which women and men are viewed as sex workers, where women are scorned for their roles.
However, the idea that selling sex is a) solely for the benefit of men b) intrinsically non-beneficial for women is a fallacy. This argument supports the notion that women are mere sex objects supporting male pleasure and cannot enjoy the act too. This perpetuates the narrative of female servitude for it implies that sex is an inherently male dominated act.
Furthermore, a woman does not sell herself when she sells sex, she sells a service. Just as any other occupation, we are not the product, we sell it as members of a capitalist driven economy. We can understand how a doctor being paid to use their expertise to help patients does not equate to selling themselves, yet the core difference between this and sex work is the way in which they’re viewed socially . The process of becoming a doctor is seen as wholesome, while prostitution connotes impurity — neither are inherently consistent of the characteristics attached to them. If selling a product is equivalent to selling self, then we are all prostitutes to the economy, and thus, we must outlaw all markets to preserve ourselves; which as it sounds, is impractical.
Additionally, if we were to humor this logic and offer the contribution that the selling of sex is the equivalent to a woman selling herself — why is this bad? Women have long been sufferers of body shaming and not fitting the male ideals of perfection; why not reclaim and monetise from these patriarchal narratives? Rather than a career path that belittles, it could potentially empower women.
If morally you’re unconvinced, think of the ‘practical’ (not in Marx’s terms but, alas) benefits of selling sex. Firstly, the taxation of sex would allow for a greater contribution to state run organisations. It’s no secret that services such as the NHS and state schools are currently underfunded, what do we lose from creating a new sector that helps allow said services to run more efficiently?
Additionally, it allows for greater scrutiny of sex workers and its consumers. A 2016 investigation into the lives of sex workers found 74% of those studied has been a “victim or witness to a [work related] crime” — a statistic which also disproportionately affects sex workers of colour and those within the LGBTQ+ community. In legalising sex work we can facilitate greater checks and balances. Checks which potentially reduce the likelihood of that such as trafficking and sexual assault as there would be levels of accountability, unions and systems put into place to know whom consumers are, helping protect sex workers from exploitation.
We already know of sex being sold in different ways. Pornography is one of the largest industries in the world and the sex toy industry is a $15bn market. Why? Because sex is enjoyed and there shouldn’t be embarrassment or humiliation in this. The socially constructed shame that comes with sex should not stop the selling of it.
So long as there is consent and individual autonomy, why should we legally (or socially) restrict what anyone wishes to do with their bodies?
