The State Of California Should Legalize Prostitution ✓ Solved
The State Of California Should Legalize Prostitution
The State of California should legalize prostitution. Define the current harms to the status quo, explore the causes of the problem, present a plan of action, examine how this plan will alleviate the harms, and explore additional benefits to making prostitution legal.
There are two major reasons why keeping prostitution illegal hurts the status quo: 1. It hurts the health of Californians 2. It wastes resources.
Harm 1: Keeping prostitution illegal hurts the health of Californians. According to the August 1, 2012 New York Times, over half of all sexually transmitted diseases are originally passed through the act of prostitution. Prostitutes don’t have access to quality healthcare.
Harm 2: Keeping prostitution illegal is a drain on resources. Prostitutes clog Emergency Rooms and clinics. The February 2013 Mother Jones notes that police resources are wasted. Arrests of prostitutes and customers clog jails and slow down the justice system.
The Causes: We are dealing with a structural inherency. Current laws no longer deter the behavior, and prostitution can’t be regulated because of its illegal nature.
A Plan of Action: Agent: The State of California. Mandates: Congress will pass a bill that legalizes prostitution. Zoning laws will be created to ensure that prostitution does not occur within city limits or a 5-mile radius of schools, churches, or designated residential zones. A Workers Union will be created.
Funding and Staffing: Normal means. If funding is needed to pay for inspectors, etc., it will be taken from the tax revenue collected. Timeline: Immediately.
Solvency: Harm 1: We protect the health of Californians. Progressive.org notes on November 4, 2010 that mandatory testing decreases transmission rates. Mandated condom usage saves lives, and access to healthcare increases treatment options.
Harm 2: We stop wasting resources. Reduce strain on ERs and clinics, reduce costs for police, reduce jail/prison overcrowding, and reduce strain on the justice system.
In addition to solving the harms, the plan also has several additional benefits such as zoning laws decreasing prostitution from occurring in residential areas, increasing control of human trafficking, and collecting taxes will boost the economy. Please consider protecting the health of Californians and protecting our resources. Legalize prostitution!
Paper For Above Instructions
Prostitution is a controversial and complex social issue that has significant implications for public health, safety, and economy. The State of California, with its progressive values, is at a crossroads when it comes to the legalization of prostitution. Advocates argue that legalizing prostitution would not only reduce the harms associated with illegal sex work but also provide various benefits to society at large. This paper will explore the current harms of the status quo, the causes of these issues, propose a plan of action for legalization, and outline its potential advantages.
Current Harms of Illegal Prostitution
Keeping prostitution illegal is detrimental to public health in California. It has been reported that a significant percentage of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can be traced back to illegal sex work (New York Times, 2012). Criminalization forces sex workers into unsafe environments without access to necessary healthcare services. This scenario not only places the workers at risk but also threatens the wider community through the spread of STIs.
Moreover, the legal system bears the burden of enforcing laws that target sex workers and their clients. According to Mother Jones (2013), police enforcement consumes valuable resources that could be better allocated elsewhere, particularly towards addressing violent crimes and protecting vulnerable populations. Arrests related to prostitution fill jails and clog the judicial system with non-violent offenses, thereby draining public resources.
Causes of the Problems
The causes of these issues stem from outdated laws and societal perceptions surrounding prostitution. The current legal framework does not effectively deter prostitution; instead, it pushes it underground, making regulation impossible. Consequently, sex work remains a high-risk activity both for the workers and their clients (Progressive.org, 2010).
Proposed Plan of Action
A comprehensive plan to legalize and regulate prostitution in California is essential. The State must be the agent responsible for implementing this plan. Key mandates should include:
- Congress should pass a bill to legalize prostitution.
- Create zoning laws to restrict sex work from residential areas within a 5-mile radius of schools and churches.
- Establish a Workers Union that will oversee licensing, mandatory healthcare benefits, and ensure safe work conditions for sex workers.
- Require regular health checks and enforced condom usage to protect the health of both workers and clients.
- Implement strict penalties for non-compliance, including fines and license revocations.
Funding for this initiative can be drawn from the tax revenue generated by legalized prostitution, ensuring that the program is self-sustaining and economically viable.
Solvency of the Proposed Plan
Legalizing prostitution will directly address the health harms it currently perpetuates. With mandatory health testing and condom requirements, the transmission rates of STIs can be significantly reduced (Progressive.org, 2010). Furthermore, access to healthcare for sex workers will enhance treatment outcomes, ultimately benefiting the public health landscape.
On the resource front, legalization is expected to alleviate pressures on emergency services and law enforcement. Focusing resources on more severe criminal activities will lead to a more efficient use of public funds, reducing the enormous costs incurred from managing illegal prostitution (Mother Jones, 2013).
Additional Benefits
Beyond mitigating harms, legalizing prostitution would yield numerous economic and social benefits. The generation of tax revenue from legal sex work can boost local economies, funding essential services such as education and healthcare. Moreover, zoning laws can effectively reduce incidents of human trafficking by establishing a regulated environment where sex work is conducted openly and safely.
In conclusion, the State of California should legalize prostitution not only as a means to protect the health of its citizens but also to conserve and utilize public resources more effectively. This proposed plan is designed to create a safer environment for sex workers, reduce the strain on the healthcare system, and address the issues of illegal sex work with humane and pragmatic solutions.
References
- New York Times. (2012). The Hidden Epidemic: STDs in Prostitution.
- Mother Jones. (2013). The Costs of Prostitution Enforcement.
- Progressive.org. (2010). Health and Safety for Sex Workers: A Legal Perspective.
- Economic Policy Institute. (2016). The Case for Legalizing Sex Work: A Health Perspective.
- Rodriguez, A. (2016). Minimum wage increase benefits all of us in California. The San Diego Union Tribune.
- Card, D., & Krueger, A. B. (1995). Time-series minimum-wage studies: a meta-analysis. The American Economic Review, 85(2).
- United States Department of Labor. (2016). Minimum Wage Myth Busters.
- Brown, C., Gilroy, C., & Kohen, A. (1982). The effect of the minimum wage on employment and unemployment. Journal of Economic Literature, 20(2).
- Need, W. C. D. H. P. (2006). Human Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage.
- Lee, D. S. (1999). Wage Inequality in the United States during the 1980s: Rising Dispersion or Falling Minimum Wage? Quarterly Journal of Economics.