Do you agree or disagree with the Nordic model for prostitution?
To date it's been adopted in eight different jurisdictions. You can read about it here, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_model_approach_to_prostitution
shareTheoretically, for sure. Prostitutes shouldn't be criminalised. The law should be designed to protect them.
Generally, I don't approve of the people who solicit the services of prostitutes, but, ultimately, my attitude is that as long as the 'punters' respect the prostitutes (in the sense of not going beyond anything that has been agreed between the parties, and stopping when asked to, as one would in *any* other consenting sexual relationship), then no-one needs to be prosecuted. What matters is that if a prostitute is abused/has been taken advantage of, they are able to go to the police/any other law-enforcement agency, without any fear of being punished themselves.
I certainly would punish the men who frequent red light districts, from a public order POV, but NOT the streetwalkers themselves, but I wouldn't necessarily pursue hefty punishments. The aim would simply be to move prostitution from the streets, whilst also ensuring that no prostitute is punished, and that wherever a prostitute operates, their safety is protected under all circumstances. That said, I also don't think it's too much for the rest of us to ask that it's 'not in our faces', so to speak, hence the desire to clamp down on men who use red light districts/solicit streetwalkers.
As per usual the men are the problem while the women are saints and victims that get a pass.
Why are you punishing the men. Punishing only the men who use prostitutes is unfair and discriminates against men. If the men are committing a crime, so are the prostitutes. They're both in on it. Prostitution should be legal for both parties. People have the right to do what they want with their bodies, including selling sex for money. No one has the right to interfere and impose their ideology on them. It's their body, their choice, and nobody else's business.
The real problem here is that society doesn't give people, especially women, enough opportunities to make a decent living. A lot of prostitutes are forced into the industry because they have no other options. Legalizing prostitution and regulating it would make it safer for everyone involved and help remove the stigma attached to the profession.
So instead of punishing people, let's focus on fixing the root causes — poverty and lack of access to education and healthcare. This way, everyone can have a fair shot at making a living, and people won't have to resort to selling sex to survive.
I pretty much agree with all of that, and bear in mind that I did say that I don't think punishment should be the focus, nor should the penalties be harsh, but as well as giving prostitutes better opportunities, we do need to challenge the trade too. If the demand is decreased, women, and indeed men/boys (i.e. rent boys) will be less likely to be exploited.
shareThe crux of the matter is how we decrease it. I don't believe in punishment as a deterrent. I believe that creating a society and an economic system where people can flourish will solve the problem. In a society where all your needs are met and you have plenty of opportunities, the only people who would be prostitutes would be people who enjoy it or are not interested in anything else, And if you enjoy making money selling sex then who am I to disagree.
share"And if you enjoy making money selling sex then who am I to disagree"
That's a fair comment. On the other hand proponents of the Nordic Model argue that the majority of sex workers don't and that they only do it due to marginalisation. I don't know if they're right or not.
Yeah, I don't know if we can completely get rid of marginalization. The only solution that might help is my Universal Basic Dividend idea. A dividend that is payed out to all citizens of a country based on a collective ownership of resources.
I expand on this idea in my article 'American Socialism':
https://inquiringmind001.substack.com/p/american-socialism
I believe that in this kind of model of society you have the best chance of being able to flourish. However, in practice, my impression is that there will always be some marginalized people, even if we had what we today would consider a utopia. There will always be some people who are on the margins, who don't fit, and who are deviants. All we could do as a society is provide everyone with everything they need to thrive (education, housing, food, income, healthcare, etc...), beyond that, it's on them. We can't live their life for them. Some people will always be fucked up and make poor choices. Such is life.