Sex work is one of the oldest hustles.
I do think it should be legalized in regards to decriminalization. Sex workers face persecution, violence, trauma and stigma. johns or "sex buyers" are also demonized and face stiff fines if "caught" in the act. Through legalization, sex workers and buyers would be protected by the state.
Now there's a downside to legalization. Sex work, the act of making a profit from ones own body and sexual prowess, is based on autonomy and agency. A persons freedom to have sex in exchange for money, gifts or other necessities is just that ...A freedom. when you legalize something it comes with limitations. It's taxed, there are rules, and it is commodified. Especially in a capitalistic society, you run the risk of people being expolited and the overall revenue that sex workers receive would reduce drastically. Cheap labor > cheap profit, so on and so forth.
Furthermore, I don't know if I would want the state to own a persons body. I don't know if I would want the state to say what a person can or cannot do with their own body. That's fucking weird to me.
Also an upside to sex work is that it blurs the lines of capitalism. Like drug dealing, it's an economic system within capitalism that is profitable and sustainable.
