Prostitution

Several terms redirect here. For other uses, see Prostitute (disambiguation), Whore (disambiguation), Harlot (disambiguation), Strumpet (film), and Hookers (song).

Prostitution
An illustration depicting street prostitution
Occupation
Activity sectors
Sex industry
Description
Related jobs
Stripper, porn actor
Sex and the law
Social issues
Specific offences
(varies by jurisdiction)
Sex offender registration
Portals

Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment.[1][2] The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penetrative sex, manual sex, oral sex, etc.) with the customer.[3] The requirement of physical contact also creates the risk of transferring infections. Prostitution is sometimes described as sexual services, commercial sex or, colloquially, hooking. It is sometimes referred to euphemistically as "the world's oldest profession" in the English-speaking world.[4][5] A person who works in the field is usually called a prostitute or sex worker, but other words, such as hooker and whore, are sometimes used pejoratively to refer to those who work in prostitution. The majority of prostitutes are female and have male clients.[6][7]

Prostitution occurs in a variety of forms, and its legal status varies from country to country (sometimes from region to region within a given country). In most cases, it can be either an enforced crime, an unenforced crime, a decriminalized activity, a legal but unregulated activity, or a regulated profession. It is one branch of the sex industry, along with pornography, stripping, and erotic dancing. Brothels are establishments specifically dedicated to prostitution. In escort prostitution, the act may take place at the client's residence or hotel room (referred to as out-call), or at the escort's residence or a hotel room rented for the occasion by the escort (in-call). Another form is street prostitution.

According to a 2011 report by Fondation Scelles there are about 42 million prostitutes in the world, living all over the world (though most of Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa lack data, studied countries in that large region rank as top sex tourism destinations).[8] Estimates place the annual revenue generated by prostitution worldwide to be over $100 billion.[9]

The position of prostitution and the law varies widely worldwide, reflecting differing opinions. Some view prostitution as a form of exploitation of or violence against women,[10] and children,[11] that helps to create a supply of victims for human trafficking.[12][13] Some critics of prostitution as an institution are supporters of the "Nordic model" that decriminalizes the act of selling sex and makes the purchase of sex illegal. This approach has also been adopted by Canada, Iceland, Ireland,[14] Northern Ireland, Norway, France and Sweden. Others view sex work as a legitimate occupation, whereby a person trades or exchanges sexual acts for money. Amnesty International is one of the notable groups calling for the decriminalization of prostitution.[15]

  1. ^ "Prostitution – Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  2. ^ "Prostitution Law & Legal Definition". US Legal. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  3. ^ "What counts as prostitution?" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  4. ^ Flowers 1998, p. 5.
  5. ^ Forrest Wickman (6 March 2012). "Rush Limbaugh calls Sandra Fluke a "prostitute": Is prostitution really the world's oldest profession?". Slate. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  6. ^ "There Are 42 Million Prostitutes In The World, And Here's Where They Live". Business Insider. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  7. ^ "There The prostitution statistics you have to know". 6 April 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  8. ^ Gus Lubin (17 January 2012). "There Are 42 Million Prostitutes in the World, And Here's Where They Live". Business Insider. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
  9. ^ "Prostitution Market Value". 25 March 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2010. This Business Insider article is citing this report (https://www.fondationscelles.org/pdf/current-assessment-of-the-state-of-prostitution-2013.pdf) by Fondation Scelles which is an anti human trafficking organization
  10. ^ Meghan Murphy (12 December 2013). "Prostitution by Any Other Name Is Still Exploitation". VICE. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  11. ^ Malika Saada Saar (29 July 2015). "The myth of child prostitution". CNN. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  12. ^ Carol Tan (2 January 2014). "Does legalized prostitution increase human trafficking?". Journalist's Resource. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Cho1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ (eISB), electronic Irish Statute Book. "Amendment of Act of 1993". www.irishstatutebook.ie. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
  15. ^ Q&A: policy to protect the human rights of sex workers. Amnesty International. Retrieved 23 November 2017.