Should Prostitution Be Legal?

  I was reading an article lately regarding prostitution, and the majority of the comments below were of the mindset that it's: two "consenting" adults, so what's the harm? That legalizing prostitution would provide "protection" for sex workers, and would promote women's health, etc., etc. All of which are extremely ignorant, and flat out false statements.

  Now these are just my thoughts, based on the research I've done, the stories I've heard from women who have experience in the sex industry, who have come out of it, and men who have solicited sex...

  Advocates for legalizing prostitution argue that prostitution is a "victimless crime." I know first-hand that it's not! The history of sexual abuse at a young age is rampant among women and men who work in the sex industry. It is in no way two "consenting" adults. It is one adult who most likely has experienced unspeakable abuse and trauma that has groomed them for this kind of work. And another adult who think it's okay to use someone else's body for their instant gratification, as long as they throw some money at it. Not to mention the violence and abuse they face while working. As we recognized in the Green River Killer, these women are viewed as valueless, disposable, worthless. You can do what you want with them for your own benefit and pleasure, and then you can throw them away. 

  Legalizing prostitution would only increase sex trafficking, which is modern-day slavery, which is exploitation. There's a reason we criminalized slavery long ago. It is a violation of human right to be able to purchase someone else's body to do with it what you want.

  Legalizing prostitution sends a message that it's okay to cheat on your wife, use a person's body for your own personal satisfaction, and as long as you "purchase" a person, you are free to make them do what you want.

  Legalizing prostitution would actually spread disease. That one's not too hard to figure out.

  Legalizing prostitution sends a message that a woman's value and worth are only in what she can do with her body. What message would we be sending our children? We would be teaching our young men that they can demand sexual favors as long as they front some cash, while encouraging our young women that they can devalue themselves by using their bodies for sex (because isn't that the only thing it's good for anyway?) And who knows what the ripple effects would be for the next generation. Increase in promiscuity, sexually transmitted diseases, violence... 

  Aside from the moral values I hold against legalizing prostitution - like sex being an intimate act which should only be between two people, not multiple men in the same night, or with one random stranger and then your wife later that night - no loving father would ever say of his daughter that he wouldn't mind if she chose prostitution as a profession. And no woman who knows her true value and worth, would ever think of prostitution as a viable option.

  I came across an interesting site about the pro's and con's of legalizing prostitution. A handful of the quotes from either side are from women formerly involved in prostitution. To me, it seems the "pro" side made weak arguments. What do you think?

  I would love to talk with anyone who would argue that prostitution should be legal. I personally know quite a few women who are in, or have come out of the sex industry, who would argue quite differently, and more convincingly, for that matter.