HOW

'fair'

IS FAIR?

A Critical Essay on the Gendered Realities of Women and Prostitution

We have been bounded with several questions asking the exact definition of gender and sex, the underlying differences between gender equity, equality, and women empowerment. The principal mechanism through which women are subjugated is the construction of sexual objects. It's the glue that holds together the myth with the actual, the spoken with the written, the built with the expressed— thus,

subject

FUCKS

"THE MAN

THE WOMAN" object

in language is subject - verb - object.

verb

Bombardment of different solutions and reasons have been emerging in today’s context which holds different truth and narratives of the so-called “advocates” which only seeks for power and attention, forwarding their very own agenda while making the actual problems as a mere tool. Planning and construction require attention to the gender perspective. This article provides a lens through which to emphasize the impact of gendered social norms and hierarchies on the lives and opportunities of various subsets of men and women particularly on the topic of prostitution. Going through the facts, there are more women in poverty than males do over the world. Women also have a lower chance of obtaining a college degree and holding public office at the national and international levels. Realizing that males and females, as well as boys and girls, experience poverty in distinct ways and face distinct obstacles to gaining access to services, economic resources, and political chances allows for more precise targeting of relief efforts.

However, the context of prostitution as the oldest form of sex-based abuse, exploitation, and subjugation of women by males (Stivens, 1994) and is mostly driven by poverty. Clients' perspectives, experiences, and contributions are often downplayed, sheltered, and ignored in discussions of prostitution.

But the beginning premise of this predicament must be grasped:

“There is no supply without demand.”

Throughout history, women have been greatly linked towards the concept of prostitution when in fact, men, too, are indulging in the industry. The way how society throws the entire contentions of prostitution towards women simply provides the conception of how men shift the narratives to put the blame to women and put a shadow to their lustful actions. Prostitution is viewed as a kind of slavery and genderbased violence against women (Rubio Castro, 2008; Dez, 2009; Pérez, & Quintero, 2010). Pérez, & Quintero (2010) provides that it is possible to summarize the main arguments in this dispute by referring to three distinct stances: the regulationist, the prohibitionist, and the abolitionist. This stance is situated within the regulationist discourse as a self-styled progressive one due to the “defense of sexual freedom” argument and the idea that not all prostitution is imposed but may be freely selected. The liberal perspective is linked to the discourse on regulation because it has a businesslike attitude toward prostitution, refers to those who engage in it as “sex workers,” and treats it like any other industry.

Contrarily, the prohibitionist position is indicative of a conservative worldview that is intrinsically related to “Catholic” morality. This stance has some protectionist underpinnings, but it rests mostly on the double standard that prostitution is acceptable so long as it is not openly performed in front of others (the so-called “implied consent”). Lastly, feminist abolitionists see prostitution as a way for men to control and sexually subjugate women. They also see it as something that hurts not just the women and girls who do it, but all women in general, because it supports and reinforces the idea that women's main job is to serve men sexually. The unavoidable truth that “if there wasn't so much demand, there wouldn't be so much supply” is the starting point for any discussion of men's roles in the current state of prostitution. Men as a social group want this “trade” and teach new generations how to “use” it. This makes sure that women and children will always be the victims of this kind of violence based on gender. First, we start with an idea that most people have, whether they say it or not: that every man should be able to get sexual at any time and for any reason. Lorenzo Rodrguez-Armas (2008) says that most men think prostitution is unavoidable because it is a part of society. The “client,” or person who gets prostituted, is the main character and the main reason why other people get prostituted. This is because he or she is the most protected, invisible, and guarded character in the story. Even though his role is often played down, the client is the most important person in the exploitation of women and children.

Most research hasn't looked into this problem, and people who pay for prostitution have a hard time admitting and accepting their own responsibility.

These narratives imply that the social margin is extending embracing women and children alike and if not addressed, the cycle won’t stop.

Silvia Chejter's report in the UNICEF National report on sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in Argentina (September 1999) said that out of 300 news stories about this topic, only two mentioned the clients, and even in those two stories, the clients were only mentioned in passing. In its 1998 Geneva AIDS report, the World Health Organization spent several pages talking about the socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds of prostitutes. However, it only took one paragraph to say that “clients are more numerous than providers of sexual services; the factors that lead people to become clients are mostly unknown.” This tacit defense of male sexual habits and privileges is nothing more than a refusal to look at prostitution consumers, who are by far the most important link in the system, critically or give them any responsibility.

Is it realistic to believe that legalizing prostitution would be a watershed moment in the fight for gender parity? Legalizing prostitution as a profession, promoting it, and advertising it are all necessary steps in a consumer society, and boys who are “socialized” in such an environment learn that women are or can be “objects” at their disposal, that their bodies and sexuality can be purchased, that there are no limits placed on the use of women, and that violence or force may be used against them. Therefore, it is fundamentally contradictory to talk about and advocate gender equality in the classroom while simultaneously encouraging relationships and areas of power that are exclusively male preserve and in which women seem to only be present when they are at the service of guys. In contrast, these norms provide the message to young males that they can get whatever they want, whenever they want it, and that they need not worry about the feelings of others if they have enough money.

We are teaching children distinctly different values; for example, we teach boys that as grown men they can pay for the use of women's bodies, attention, and time. And for girls, the only real choice they have as women is to be men's servants. As we have learned to see a society free of slavery, apartheid, gender-based violence, and the killing of infants and girls via practices like genital mutilation and circumcision, so, too, must we envision a world free of prostitution (Ilcan, 2015).

conclusion

Understanding what is the truth for oneself is a difficult task. What a writer omits might be just as revealing as what they do provide. Where does the page end, and what does it hold? What does the margin represent, and how long it extends? Solely, we believe that it is the writer's job to frame the world and the way we language things provides an impact. All we can do is say what we know will help, and we pray that it will calm the rest. The power of stories has a compensating effect particularly in a chaotic, unjust, and unpredictable place and matters.

We have been seeking for equality all of our lives and its frustrating that people still find a way to put the blame towards those who lies in the margins rather than being accountable of their acts. For society as a whole to thrive and for everyone to have their human rights protected, there must be gender parity. Equal rights, opportunities, and responsibilities for women and men are the end result of efforts to advance gender parity. When men, women, and members of the LGBTQIA++ community have equal opportunities for economic independence through employment or the creation of businesses; when they have equal access to education and the chance to develop their own aspirations, interests, and talents; when they have equal responsibility for the care of the home and children; when sex work is no longer stereotypically associated with women; when they are free from coercion, intimidation, and genderbased violence in the workplace and in society at large.

These are narratives of the real people who have been lurking behind the margins— ostracized by the society and are victims of the realities. When we tell a narrative, we use our powers of persuasion, but we do so in such a way that we leave a space, a doorway, open. Not the final version, but a version nonetheless. Perhaps we wait for someone to hear our silences so that the story might be recounted again. When narratives are provided and space were given, the only audible component of silence left is language.

ALLISON, M. C. (2014). (Not) Lost in the Margins: Gender and Identity in Graphic Texts. Retrieved from JSTOR: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44030722 Chejter, S. (2019). Trafficking of Children for Prostitution and the UNICEF Response. Retrieved from UNICEF: https://asiasociety.org/traffickingchildren-prostitution-and-unicef-response Flood, D. M. (2009). Men's roles in sexual violence and exploitation in prostitution and their. Retrieved from NCDSV: http://www.ncdsv.org/images/flood_men'srolessexualexploitation_2009.pdf Gutiérrez, E. J. (2014). Prostitution and gender-based violence. Retrieved from Science Direct: https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/277811/1-s2.0S1877042814X00571/1-s2.0-S1877042814061096/main.pdf?X-AmzSecurityToken=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjELb%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEa CXVzLWVhc3QtMSJGMEQCICIodkgvwMW0LRQNcnqNk4u3XG2Gk4X0Y PO5WXXdEusoAiBRzxXCxkLXM8Lh Ilcan, S. M. (2015). Occupying the Margins On Spacing Gender and Gendering Space. Retrieved from Alberta CA: https://sites.ualberta.ca/~rshields/sc/3%20Habit%20cd/ILCAN.PDF Justice, J. (2019). Negative Effects of Prostitution on Society. Retrieved from Jared Justice: https://www.jaredjustice.com/blog/negative-effects-ofprostitution-on-society/ OLIVER, H. (2010). Prostitution and Gender-based Violence. Retrieved from Science Direct: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814061096 Rodríguez-Armas, L. (2008). Constitución española, estado social y derechos de las mujeres que ejercen la prostitución. Retrieved from Feminismos: https://feminismos.ua.es/rt/printerFriendly/2008-n12-constitucion-espanolaestado-social-y-derechos-de-las-mujeres-que-ejercen-la-prostitucion Stivens, M. (1994). Gender at the margins: Paradigms and peasantries in Rural Malaysia. Retrieved from Science Direct: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277539505800445

references