Violence and Legalized Brothel Prostitution in Nevada Examining Safety, Risk, and Prostitution Policy

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2005

Publication Title

Journal of Interpersonal Violence

Volume

20

Issue

3

First page number:

270

Last page number:

295

Abstract

This article examines violence in legalized brothels in Nevada. Debates over prostitution policies in the United States have long focused on questions of safety and risk. These discourses inevitably invoke the coupling of violence and prostitution, though systematic examinations of the relationship between the two are sparse. This article explores the issue of violence in the Nevada brothel industry. By drawing on interviews with prostitutes, managers, and policy makers, this article examines both prostitutes’ perceptions of safety and risk and brothel managers’ practices designed to mitigate violence. Discourses relate to three types of violence: interpersonal violence against prostitutes, violence against community order, and sexually transmitted diseases as violence. The authors conclude by arguing that the legalization of prostitution brings a level of public scrutiny, official regulation, and bureaucratization to brothels that decreases the risk of these 3 types of systematic violence.

Keywords

Brothels; Perception; Prostitutes; Prostitutes--Crimes against; Prostitution; Prostitution--Law and legislation; Violence; Women--Violence against

Disciplines

Community-Based Research | Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | Gender and Sexuality | Sexuality and the Law | Women's Studies

Language

English

Permissions

Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the item. Publisher policy does not allow archiving the final published version. If a post-print (author's peer-reviewed manuscript) is allowed and available, or publisher policy changes, the item will be deposited.

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