Understanding Commercial Sex Policy -- Morning Speakers 1

SPEAKERS:

Emily Rothman, Associate Professor, Community Health Sciences, Boston University School of Public Health

SEXUAL COMMERCE IN NEOLIBERAL TIMES: POLICY, POLITICS AND NEVADA’S LEGAL BROTHELS
-- Barbara G. Brents, Professor, Sociology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas


GENDER EQUALITY AND COMMERCIAL SEX IN THE GLOBAL CONTEXT
-- Saniye Gülser Corat, Director, Division for Gender Equality, Office of the Director-General, UNESCO

The form of commercial sex that some people call prostitution and others call sex work is presently illegal to sell and to buy in the United States, with the exception of 11 counties in Nevada where it is legalized. The public health community is not unified in its perspective on policy options. The purpose of this symposium is to use a public health framework to consider the potential advantages and disadvantages of legalizing or decriminalizing commercial sex in the United States. Speakers will address the harms of criminalizing the buying and selling of sex as well as the need to reduce human trafficking. Lessons learned in the global context will be considered. The objective of the symposium is to equip attendees with a richer understanding of the issue and the likely implications of supporting the legislative options under consideration.