Opinion Piece: Is sex work consensual?
- Prisha
- Oct 11, 2023
- 6 min read
Is sex work consensual sex, or a form of sex trafficking? This question is one that lacks a consensus in the feminist community. According to many Western feminists, sex work is a consensual affair, even empowering for women. In contrast, other feminists view sex work as essentially the same as sex trafficking. To understand the argument, it is necessary to first define these terms. Sex trafficking is defined as "...the crime of using force, fraud or coercion to induce another individual to sell sex." Sex workers, on the other hand, are "adults who receive money or goods in exchange for consensual sexual services or erotic performances." From these definitions, it can be surmised that sex trafficking can be a circumstance that leads someone to participate in sex work. It is important to note that even though the definition of sex work involves consent, the concept of consent is complex. Consent is usually defined as when an individual agrees to do something without being coerced to do so. The definition of coercion is to impose a circumstance upon someone that would cause them to do something they would not under normal circumstances. Because of this definition, a person's circumstances can also be coercive forces; though no one is imposing those circumstances on an individual, they exist nonetheless and can negatively affect a person. A simple example would be that although the force of poverty is not direct coercion, it is still a circumstance that could lead someone to do something they would not usually do.
The source of disagreement about sex work is often the following question: Is sex work independent from sex trafficking, and can it be empowering? The idea that sex work is a form of consensual sex and that it can exist without trafficking is flawed for the following reasons:
The Western Ideal Of Empowerment: Often, the idea of female empowerment in the West is synonymous with the expression of sexuality. Thus, many feminists claim that sex work is empowering for the workers. Though an individual's expression of sexuality is a valid mode of empowerment, this is a flawed argument for this context. Empowerment implies that women are doing something so that they have more control of their lives. However, in this context, that word is being used to describe an action that allows others to use women for their bodies. Even if the women decide to be used, they are relinquishing control, and hence, this cannot be empowerment. The fact that participating in sex work allows women to be used as a service takes away their autonomy in choosing their expression of sexuality, even if they make the choice to give that up. To put it succinctly: if someone objectifies themselves for someone else, the fact that they had a choice in the matter does not make the objectification empowering.
The Expression Of Sexuality: Another argument that could be made in favor of sex work as a choice is that the women performing it are expressing their sexuality. A very simple rebuttal here is -- that is simply not true. If a woman is a sex worker, the desires and sexuality of her client trumps hers; she would most likely be unable to express her desires and would be conforming to her clients. The simplest way to view this is by realizing that she is providing a service, and hence, the service must be in accordance with her client's desires, not her own.
The Commercialization Of Sex: A basic reason that sex work is not empowering is because it commercializes sex. One of the main goals of the feminist movement has been to stop the objectification of women. However, if sex work is defined as a consensual transaction between two individuals, that makes sex a service that can be received. If sex is a service, and women are usually the providers, their feelings about the service do not matter. A layman's analogy would be that when one goes to a restaurant, they are being provided a meal by a server; the meal is a service, and the chef or server is the provider, and the provider's thoughts on the service are irrelevant. The provider's only role is to provide the service. Hence, commercializing sex purports the idea that women exist only to provide it, and also objectifies them as a source for sex rather than someone with thoughts and feelings on the matter.
The Illusion Of Consent: One popular argument that purports the idea that sex work is a consensual form of sex is that women expressly consent to have sex by choosing to work in the industry. In fact, according to Human Rights Watch, "When an adult makes a decision of her, his, or their own free will to exchange sex for money, that is not sexual violence. " Even if the person making the choice is an adult, arguing that they did in fact have a choice is not correct, because it assumes that sex workers have the free will to choose another profession. That option does not exist for many, for various reasons. Sex work is not something chosen as a more favorable option compared to another profession; it is a last resort, which means that they had no choice, and thus did not have the free will to begin with. This argument also turns a blind eye to the circumstances that lead a woman into sex work. In the United States alone, 40% of prostitutes are forced into their work by a sex trafficker. This illusion of consent also only exists for the West: it is preposterous to insinuate that one could choose to participate in sex work in many other parts of the world. For instance, many 'sex workers' in South Asia have been sold into the profession by their families or otherwise forced into it. Girls as young as seven years old as forced to live in brothels. For these women, sex work is synonymous with sex trafficking. Implying that there is a difference between the two belittles their experiences, as it insinuates that they had a choice in the matter.
Worker Demographics: A point to be noted is that the vast majority of sex workers are marginalized groups. In the words of South Asian victims of sex trafficking "... [the] women of discriminated caste, poor men and women and women and men from minority groups are the majority of the prostituted.” If sex work was a choice and not a forced decision by any means, the demographic of sex workers would be more diverse. The fact that the majority of sex workers are marginalized populations shows that sex workers do not choose the job, but are forced to do it due to their circumstances.
The solution to this, however, is not to criminalize sex work. In contemporary society, sex work is often stigmatized for various reasons, but this generally leads to worse conditions for the workers. It is also important to note that experiences vary from person to person; it is unfair to paint the experiences of all sex workers with the same brush. However, one thing that is common across most experiences is that sex workers currently experience higher levels of abuse than many other jobs. The reason for this lies in the fact that the workers are dehumanized for their jobs; society may view them as inferior on moral grounds, or clients feel that they have a right to abuse the workers because they are paid for it.
Disregarding any objections on moral grounds, in order to change the view society has on sex workers, it is important to dismantle the system that causes it to exist as an industry for those with no other options. If sex work is meant to be a harmless act, then it is also important to dismantle the ideals associated with it that lead women to be objectified because of it. With more equity for all groups of people, there would not be circumstances that would force people into sex work, and only then could it truly be a consensual affair. This may sound quixotic, but the fact that it is not immediately achievable should be a reason to not strive for it. However, until the time that everyone who works in the sex work industry has a choice in the matter, sex work will not be consensual and cannot exist independent of sex trafficking.
factual
so true bestie
Very informative!