should prostitution brothels be legal?

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

No (feminist)

I would like to hear your reasoning.

Put shortly: Feminism, being a radical critique of the power relations inherent to sexuality within a patriarchal society, can only abhor the idea of a state-sanctioned commodification of (almost exclusively female) bodies.

so much sage

[Goldwater]

Yes (misogynist)

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Let's just say I fail to see anyone who benefits from criminalization.

Jailers.

However, the question asked by the OP leads me ask one in return.  Since you are specifically asking about the legality of "prostitution brothels", I wonder what exactly is a "non-prostitution brothel"?

[AkSaber]

Why would it being legal/regulated/taxed mean guys wouldn't try to attack prostitutes?

They would have some recourse to incarcerate their attackers. I wonder how many prostitutes haven't reported abuse cause they were afraid to admit what they do.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Why would it being legal/regulated/taxed mean guys wouldn't try to attack prostitutes?

Brothels have security, medical testing, and a manager who will be held responsible under the law, unlike street pimps.

[IceSpear]

Yes. Keeping them illegal hurts women much more than regulating and taxing them would, for reasons many others have already stated.

[danny]

Yes (pro freedom)

[H. Ross Peron]

No (feminist)

BTW, I thought windjammer would be opposed to prostitution legalization...

[TDAS04]

Yes, with taxes. 

[TNF]

Yes (feminist)

Sex workers should not be subjected to the abuse and degradation that comes with working outside the law. Even if you believe that sex shouldn't be commodified and transformed into a product for sale, you should at least not support the right of pimps to rake in boatloads of cash while abusing women and subjecting them in some instances to outright slavery. Brothels should be made legal, sex work legalized, and sex workers given full agency over the work they do. Make pimping illegal and allow sex workers to form cooperative brothels or, barring that, form unions and give them all rights accorded to free working people.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Let's just say I fail to see anyone who benefits from criminalization.

Jailers.

Not even them since prostitutes and johns virtually never get jail sentences (unless minors are involved but that's a very small percentage of cases.) Pimps and traffickers might but that'd still be happening under legalization. And the costs of enforcement and trials can't be more than what's collected from fines so the state doesn't profit either. So yeah, no one benefits.

[angus]

yes, and they should be taxed and regulated.  (Not particularly heavily, but like every other transaction, the sex services might reasonably be taxed.)

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

Let's just say I fail to see anyone who benefits from criminalization.

Jailers.

However, the question asked by the OP leads me ask one in return.  Since you are specifically asking about the legality of "prostitution brothels", I wonder what exactly is a "non-prostitution brothel"?

Perhaps they sell broth?

[dead0man]

Yes, and I wouldn't support taxing them.

[ElectionsGuy]

Yes, and I wouldn't support taxing them.

[DC Al Fine]

God no! I mean, prostitution is frankly repellent, unchristian, and, to me anyway, the government has no place sanctioning this type of commerce with regulation. Ban it, and hope to ensnare was many of the pimps, prostitutes and whoremongers as possible within the thicket of the law.

This.

The German experience tells me that legalization doesn't really do much for the trafficking problem and can possibly make it worse.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

No, but pimps should be illegal. Brothels should only be allowed to be mutually owned co-operative ventures by the prostitutes themselves.

[Deus Naturae]

No, but pimps should be illegal. Brothels should only be allowed to be mutually owned co-operative ventures by the prostitutes themselves.

Not all brothels operate under a pimping business model. In some cases, the brothel simply provides sex work facilities which prostitutes pay a fee to use. In these cases, the brothel has no involvement in the transaction or contract between the prostitute and the client.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

No, but pimps should be illegal. Brothels should only be allowed to be mutually owned co-operative ventures by the prostitutes themselves.

Not all brothels operate under a pimping business model. In some cases, the brothel simply provides sex work facilities which prostitutes pay a fee to use. In these cases, the brothel has no involvement in the transaction or contract between the prostitute and the client.

That seems good to me, but could it be exploited by human traffickers? They could bring women over, force them to join the brothels etc. Possibly not, but there have been several well-meaning attempts to regulate prostitution in the continent which have been utterly undermined by traffickers, ugh.

[Hatman 🍁]

Yes (feminist)

It's issues like this that radical feminists give feminism a bad name.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Yes (feminist)

It's issues like this that radical feminists give feminism a bad name.

Radical feminists giving feminism a bad name by being anti-male, but you don't need to be anti-male to be concerned about women being exploited by brothels.  How would brothel legalization poll among the general public?  20% or so?

I'm somewhere near CrabCake on this one.

[Ebowed]

Yes (feminist)

[Hatman 🍁]

Yes (feminist)

It's issues like this that radical feminists give feminism a bad name.

Radical feminists giving feminism a bad name by being anti-male, but you don't need to be anti-male to be concerned about women being exploited by brothels.  How would brothel legalization poll among the general public?  20% or so?

I'm somewhere near CrabCake on this one.

A) Being against brothels is anti-male (and anti-female).
B) Worried about exploitation? Then regulate them. Ever heard of workplace safety?
C) Who cares how it would poll. One shouldn't make public policy decisions based on opinion polls alone. For the record though, I suspect brothels would poll somewhere in the 30s. At least it would here; there's likely at least a 10 point gap between Canada and the US.
 

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Yes (feminist)

It's issues like this that radical feminists give feminism a bad name.

Radical feminists giving feminism a bad name by being anti-male, but you don't need to be anti-male to be concerned about women being exploited by brothels.  How would brothel legalization poll among the general public?  20% or so?

I'm somewhere near CrabCake on this one.

A) Being against brothels is anti-male (and anti-female).
B) Worried about exploitation? Then regulate them. Ever heard of workplace safety?
C) Who cares how it would poll. One shouldn't make public policy decisions based on opinion polls alone. For the record though, I suspect brothels would poll somewhere in the 30s. At least it would here; there's likely at least a 10 point gap between Canada and the US.
 

As I said, I'm undecided on the issue, but it's definitely not as black and white as you claim:

A - Legalisation would inflate demand. The lack of penalties, the legitimisation of the business and the loss of stigma would mean more people would want prostitutes.

B - Being a prostitute is not really a desirable job for anybody...

C - ...so, the vulnerable would be pushed into it...

D - ...especially vulnerable trafficked peoples

E - regulation isn't magic. Regulators are human, people fall through the cracks

F - Most legal brothels in Amsterdam, and such, tend to be fronts for criminal organisations.

It's a really murky area, with so many shades of grey. We shouldn't be hasty in considering either side ultimately right or wrong.

[DC Al Fine]

Yes (feminist)

It's issues like this that radical feminists give feminism a bad name.

Radical feminists giving feminism a bad name by being anti-male, but you don't need to be anti-male to be concerned about women being exploited by brothels.  How would brothel legalization poll among the general public?  20% or so?

I'm somewhere near CrabCake on this one.

A) Being against brothels is anti-male (and anti-female).
B) Worried about exploitation? Then regulate them. Ever heard of workplace safety?
C) Who cares how it would poll. One shouldn't make public policy decisions based on opinion polls alone. For the record though, I suspect brothels would poll somewhere in the 30s. At least it would here; there's likely at least a 10 point gap between Canada and the US.
 

Yeah I mean fracking is regulated and it totally solves all the issues associated with it.