Prostitution: The Great Debate

I saw the saddest post on Instagram of a trans woman who said, “idk if I wanna spread my holes every day anymore just to survive”.

And I knew what she meant. You see, the problem is that since so many transgender women are denied employment, they turn to “sex work” as a way to pay the rent and bills and buy food. They are forced into a life of sexual slavery because they are discriminated against and can’t get regular jobs like cisgender men or women can.

And, of course, in many places, prostitution is illegal. Some want to legalize it because this is how they make their money. However, as a transgender woman and a celibate, I not only don’t agree with the legalization of prostitution, also called sex work. I have my reasons for this, which I will write about here.

First, the idea of sex work is a form of allowing yourself to be raped. You may say that it’s consensual because you have agreed to do something for money. The problem is that you are saying that money generates consent. If money generates consent, then literally all anyone has to do is give money to anyone that they have raped, and all of a sudden, it is a consensual agreement! But how much money is required? This idea opens up a huge list of problems and undermines consent.

I don’t buy that idea. Maybe my opinion doesn’t count for much since I’ve never had sex, but I know that sex is not the same as a regular job. It comes with the risk of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancy. No, it’s not the same as being a stocker, sacker, or cashier in a grocery store. It’s not the same as running a business with actual products that you create and sell. Doing those things doesn’t give you STDs or get you pregnant like sex work does.

Second, to call prostitution a normal job is an insult to all people who do work that takes actual effort and talent. Sure, you may put some effort into it, but it’s not something that you will be proud to put on a resume because it’s not experience that qualifies you for any other job. Don’t compare it to work that takes serious mental and physical strength, like the jobs I have done.

Third, the presence of so many trans women in the sex industry is giving people the idea that transgender women are all sex objects to be used or that they are, by nature, extremely sexual. Many people think only of pornography when they see trans people because that’s the only place they have seen them before. For this reason, I don’t approve of prostitution or pornography because it further damages my reputation. I am tired of people asking about my private parts or asking me if I “suck dick” or “take it in the ass”.

Because of transgender women in the sex industry, people assume that I am like that. I am not, and I will not be silent as you wreck my reputation.

Fourth, there is one more problem with prostitution: it feeds the abortion industry. The majority of the people doing sex work are going to be straight people, and the unwanted pregnancy that results will just be an obstruction to business. I believe that the sex industry is behind the legalization and promotion of abortion.

So the interesting thing is that pro-life laws will affect the sex industry because those women who make a living off prostitution will no doubt not be able to do so the same way.

I imagine I am not the first person to make this connection, but I have never written about it before. I think it is something that needs to be part of the discussion on abortion. My position is that prostitution is never ok. It’s understandable when it is the only way to make money. Still, it’s not ethical or consensual, nor is it something a pro-life person should have a favorable view of because it only keeps the abortion industry making tons of money as they are paid to kill babies that will result from the sex trade and pornography.