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Sex Work and the Politics of Space: Case Studies of Sex Workers in Argentina and Ecuador

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  • Jessica Van Meir

    (Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA)

Abstract

While many studies examine how different legal approaches to prostitution affect sex workers’ living and working conditions, few studies analyze how sex workers’ physical workspaces and the policies regulating these spaces influence sex work conditions. Based on interviews with 109 current or former sex workers, 13 civil society representatives, 12 government officials, and 5 other actors in Ecuador and Argentina, this study describes sex workers’ uses of urban space in the two countries and compares how they experience and respond to government regulation of locations of prostitution. Argentina and Ecuador took different approaches to regulating sex work space, which appear to reflect different political ideologies towards prostitution. Sex workers expressed different individual preferences for spaces, and government limitation of these spaces represented one of their major concerns. The results illuminate how sex workers’ workspaces influence their working conditions and suggest that governments should consider sex worker preferences in establishing policies that affect their workspaces. Abstracto: Mientras que muchos estudios examinan cómo las diferentes estrategias legales respecto a la prostitución afectan las condiciones de trabajo y de vida de las y los trabajadores sexuales, pocos estudios analizan cómo los espacios de trabajo físicos de las y los trabajadores sexuales y las políticas que regulan estos espacios influyen en las condiciones del trabajo sexual. Este estudio, basado en entrevistas con 109 trabajadores sexuales actuales o anteriores, 13 representantes de la sociedad civil, 12 funcionarios gubernamentales y otros 5 actores en Ecuador y Argentina, describe los usos del espacio urbano por parte de las y los trabajadores sexuales en los dos países y compara cómo experimentan y responden a la regulación gubernamental de lugares de prostitución. Argentina y Ecuador adoptaron diferentes estrategias para regular los espacios de trabajo sexual, las cuales parecen reflejar diferentes ideologías políticas hacia la prostitución. Las y los trabajadores sexuales expresaron diferentes preferencias individuales por los espacios, y la limitación gubernamental de estos espacios representó una de sus principales preocupaciones. Los resultados ilustran cómo los espacios de trabajo de las y los trabajadores sexuales influyen en sus condiciones de trabajo, y sugieren que los gobiernos deben considerar sus preferencias en el establecimiento de políticas que afectan sus espacios de trabajo.

Suggested Citation

  • Jessica Van Meir, 2017. "Sex Work and the Politics of Space: Case Studies of Sex Workers in Argentina and Ecuador," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-40, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:6:y:2017:i:2:p:42-:d:96170
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Phil Hubbard & Teela Sanders, 2003. "Making space for sex work: female street prostitution and the production of urban space," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 75-89, March.
    2. Jason Prior & Spike Boydell & Philip Hubbard, 2012. "Nocturnal Rights to the City: Property, Propriety and Sex Premises in Inner Sydney," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 49(8), pages 1837-1852, June.
    3. Nussbaum, Martha C, 1998. ""Whether from Reason or Prejudice": Taking Money for Bodily Services," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 27(2), pages 693-724, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Gillian Abel & Melissa Ludeke, 2020. "Brothels as Sites of Third-Party Exploitation? Decriminalisation and Sex Workers’ Employment Rights," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-15, December.

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