Subjects in prostitution

The phenomenon of prostitution lies at the center of many debates within feminist movements. On the one hand, radical feminism considers prostitution an emblem of patriarchal oppression over women; consequently, it calls for the abolition of the phenomenon. On the other hand, pro–sex work movements usually maintain that this activity is indeed embedded within an oppressive intersectional system; however, they argue that the best way to address these structural oppressions – without worsening the lives of sex workers, the subjects directly involved – is to grant them labor rights that would allow them to exercise this activity like any other profession. This paper aims to compare the most recent legal models addressing this issue and to highlight the risks that arise when the law produces and reinforces monolithic and static identities, relying on a stereotypical understanding of the subjects involved in this phenomenon. On the one hand, the person who offers sexual services is often reduced solely to a victim or perceived as a socially deviant subject to be monitored and controlled. On the other hand, the client is identified either as an oppressor/rapist or simply treated as a consumer