Rethinking force and consent, victimisation and agency: a feminist approach to prostitution policy

Abstract

Feminist approaches to prostitution tend to be highly polarised in their theo­retical premises and policy implications. Radical feminist perspectives represent prostitution as the cornerstone of women’s sexual exploitation, implying a strong call to eradicate sexual commerce in any form. On the opposite side are liberal perspectives emphasising women’s choice, autonomy, and control over their own body, advocating for the decriminalisation of sex work, and rejecting paternalist claims for State protection. The notion of “women’s consent” is crucial in both perspectives, being rejected as impossible or inexistent by those who reduce all sexual commerce to forced prostitution, and emphasized as a key discriminant by those distinguishing voluntary sex work from trafficking and forced prostitution, and sexual agents from sexual victims. In my contribution, I argue that the polarized nature of dominant feminist approaches to prostitution – especially concerned with defending theoretical stances on pros­titution – may decrease the impact of feminist-inspired policies and fail to address the needs and risks faced by those working in the sex market. Arguing that there is continuity rather than dichotomy between force and consent, I suggest more nuanced and problematic notions of victimisation and agency. Relying on ideas of human vulnerability, such as those developed by philosophers Judith Butler, Adriana Cavarero, and Martha Fineman, I present a feminist political approach to prostitution that, while rejecting any appeal to criminal laws against non-coerced adult sex work, criticises laissez-faire approaches, and advocates for social policies catering for sex workers’ material and symbolic needs.