Prostitution's Legal Labyrinth Across History and Humanity
Prostitution's Legal Labyrinth Across History and Humanity Prostitution, dubbed the "world's oldest profession," has been illegal in most places for centuries due to intertwined religious moral opposition, social control imperatives, and fears of exploitation, disease, and trafficking. Historically, it was often legal, regulated, and taxed in ancient Greece, Rome, and medieval Europe as a "necessary evil" to manage male lust and preserve order. The shift to widespread criminalization accelerated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries via moral reform movements and anti-"white slavery" panics, culminating in laws like the U.S. Mann Act (1910). Today, no global consensus exists; four models dominate: Prohibition (full criminalization, e.g., USA, China); Nordic/Equality (decriminalize sellers, punish buyers, e.g., Sweden, Canada); Legalization/Regulation (licensed industry, e.g., Germany, Netherlands); and Decriminalization/Abolitionist (ac...