Prostitution in the United States: Sex, Drugs, Alcohol & America's Moral Outlook

Prostitution is the oldest profession in the world.  Our government leader, sports heroes, and celebrity icons have been caught engaging in prostitution’s illegal “activities”.  The media is obsessed with its both seedy and glamorous appeal.  Heidi Fleiss, the Madame to the stars, has risen to the heights of national celebrity, which helped to launch her own line of clothing.  Prostitution and prostitutes have been under moral and political fire since the time of Jesus Christ; yet the profession remains.  

Hypocrisy rightcheousness, and radical political activism have all guided the plight to keep prostitution illegal and its workers unseen; however in many cases it is the very people that lead the fight against it that have partaken in its lure, whether it be government officials, religious family men, or the police.  The issue of prostitution exists in a dichotomy of ideals, practices, and perception.  There is the dichotomy of street hooker versus high priced whore, of feminist theory and the issue of women being either exploited or liberated, and the ideals behind criminalizing prostitution-who are we punishing? Who are the real victims?  

Does prohibition really work, and do we as a society truly have the right to criminalize a consensual act between to adults?  This paper will mainly address these issues and questions in relation to the adult female prostitute and the male “john”.  This must be specified because so many sub-layers of prostitution exist with their own set of problems concerning them, such as child prostitution, male prostitution, and the small but ever present female clientele of both male and female prostitutes.  There is also the issue of sex surrogates, a legal profession where a doctor can prescribe a man or woman to visit a professional sex surrogate to have sex with in cases of impotence, disability, etc.