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San Francisco Sex Workers Fight to Decriminalize Prostitution
By Lily Garza
September 18, 2008
A moral battle that has been fought for hundreds of years arises once again and this time the city of San Francisco is the battleground. Sex workers in the city are fighting for what is known as the "oldest profession in the world." They want to decriminalize prostitution.
This faction has already made some headway. Local sex workers joined forces with health officials and the Democratic County Central Committee to create a petition and gathered 12,000 signatures to support Proposition K, which would shift the legal focus from prosecuting prostitutes to pursuing people who prey on those "in the business." The proposition also promotes public health outreach and personal safety for both sex workers and their clients. Supporters claim that the change in law will reduce violence against women and improve public health. The success of the petition has guaranteed that the proposition will be put to a city-wide vote on the Nov. 4 ballot.
"It's a morally based, antiquated law," one sex worker said in a Los Angeles Times article. "Decriminalize prostitution and you bring it out of the underground and off the black market. That way you can start organizing, clean up the dangerous elements. Sex workers want safe streets like everyone else."
The proposition has some very powerful supporters, including many in the city's health department, especially those concerned with STD control and prevention. Health Department workers feel that many prostitutes would be more forthcoming and practice better preventative measures if they were not so afraid of prosecution.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the city's Erotic Service Provider's Union, which spearheaded the initiative, argues that in countries such as the Netherlands, New Zealand and Thailand, where payment for sex is allowed, sex workers are more likely to use condoms and have lower rates of sexually transmitted infections.
While many Proposition K supporters argue that it will create a safer environment in the city that is infamously liberal and free-thinking, others fear that such a change will attract more crime and make efforts to fight human trafficking even more difficult.
"Prostitution is not a victimless crime," Kamala Harris, San Francisco District Attorney said. "It's a crime that victimizes neighborhoods and plagues communities and compromises the quality of life of the people who live in those neighborhoods. This measure would prohibit us from putting public resources into helping those residents. And that's not acceptable in this community."
This is not a new debate in the Bay Area. A similar measure was voted on in 2004 but was not passed. Sex workers also tried to get a proposition on the ballot two years ago but did not get enough signatures on their petition. If the proposition is voted into law, San Francisco will join 11 counties in Nevada and the state of Rhode Island in decriminalizing prostitution.
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