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103-669: The X-Rated Critics Organization ( XRCO ) is a group of writers and editors from the American adult entertainment industry who each year present awards in recognition of achievement within the industry. After the controversy and criticism of the Best Erotic Scene win for the movie Virgin in 1984 at the Adult Film Association of America awards, the XRCO and its "Heart-On Awards" were founded. The organization

206-493: A Stepping-Stone to International Migration" anthropologist Denise Brennan cited an example of prostitutes in the Dominican Republic resort town of Sosúa , where some female prostitutes marry their customers in order to immigrate to other countries and seek a better life. The customers are, however, the ones that hold the power in this situation as they can withhold or revoke the sex worker's visa, either denying them

309-546: A bouncer. The typical brothel contained several bedrooms, all furnished. Some upscale brothels were much larger; such is the case with that owned by Mary Ann Hall of Arlington, Virginia . It is described as "a rather grand house with twenty-five rooms and was enclosed by a brick wall. The interior was elegantly furnished. The principal rooms on the first floor contained large oil paintings, Brussels carpets, red plush 'parlor furniture', étagères (a shelf for small ornaments), and numerous items of silver plate." An archeological dig of

412-542: A child engages in sexual activities to have key needs fulfilled, such as food, shelter or access to education. It includes forms of transactional sex where the sexual abuse of children is not stopped or reported by household members, due to benefits derived by the household from the perpetrator. CSEC is prevalent in Asia and parts of Latin America . Thailand , Cambodia , India , Brazil , and Mexico have been identified as

515-579: A decrease in the level of sexual offending. The question of whether pornography consumption affects consumers' happiness was addressed by a 2017 meta-analysis. It concluded that men who consume pornography are less satisfied with some areas of their lives, but pornography consumption does not make a significant difference in other areas, or to the lives of women. Additionally, a sample of Americans revealed in 2017 that those who had viewed pornography were more likely to experience romantic relationship breakup than their non-pornography watching counterparts, and that

618-568: A global concern. As a result of Southeast Asia's lax policies regarding prostitution, the region has also become a hotbed for sex tourism, with a significant portion of this industry's clients being North American or European. Pornography is the explicit portrayal of explicit sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction . A pornographic model poses for pornographic photographs. A pornographic film actor or porn star performs in pornographic films. In cases where only limited dramatic skills are involved,

721-431: A good businesswoman, Mary Ann purchased a lot and built a brick house. That would be the location of an upscale brothel for another 40 years, sitting right at the foot of Capitol Hill. Her brothel was very lucrative, and Mary Ann was able to buy multiple enslaved people and a summer home. She was responsible for the behavior of her prostitutes, which could prove challenging since drug abuse was common. A large focus for madams

824-449: A keeper could open a brothel. These sections of town were the precursors to so-called "red light districts". Not only did the towns restrict where a keeper could open a brothel, but they also put constraints on when the brothel could be open. For example, most brothels were forbidden to be open on Sundays and religious holidays. Some scholars believe these restrictions were enforced to make the prostitutes go to church but others argue that it

927-596: A large number of brothels and prostitutes in China. After the founding of New China, brothels were closed and prostitution and whoring were made illegal. New China treated prostitutes for sexually transmitted diseases, provided psychological counseling, taught them work skills, and arranged legitimate jobs for them to change careers. Yūkaku ( 遊廓 ) were legal red-light districts in Japanese history, where both brothels and prostitutes , known collectively as yūjo(遊女),

1030-447: A larger advance payment would often be received. Though contracts of indenture often did not last more than five to ten years, the debt sometimes accrued by these women could keep them working there for much longer. Many women also died of sexually transmitted diseases, or following failed abortions, before completing their contracts. The Yinjian teahouse (阴间茶室) refers to a male brothel that provided same-sex sexual services to men during

1133-434: A line of research which has been critiqued in "The effects of Pornography: An International Perspective" on external validity grounds, while others claim there is a correlation between pornography and a decrease of sex crimes . Some customers see sex workers from other countries as exotic commodities that can be fetishized or exploited. Many producers and proponents of pornography featuring gay actors claim that this work

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1236-406: A parked car, or on the street. Often this is arranged through a pimp or an escort agency . Prostitution involves a prostitute or sex worker providing commercial sexual services to a client. In some cases, the prostitute is at liberty to determine whether she or he will engage in a particular type of sexual activity, but forced prostitution and sexual slavery does exist in some places around

1339-531: A particular district. Louis IX (1226–1270) designated nine streets in the Beaubourg Quartier where it would be permitted. In the early part of the 19th century, state-controlled legal brothels (then known as " maisons de tolérance " or " maisons closes ") started to appear in several French cities. By law, they had to be run by a woman (typically a former prostitute) and their external appearance had to be discreet. The maisons were required to light

1442-403: A performer in pornographic films may be called a pornographic model . Pornography can be provided to the consumer in a variety of media, ranging from books , magazines , postcards , photos , videos , sound recording , sculptures , drawing , painting , animation , films , or video games . However, when sexual acts are performed for a live audience, by definition it is not pornography, as

1545-515: A practice called sex tourism , and can have a variety of different socio-economic effects on the destinations. Male sex tourism can create or augment demand for sex services in the host countries, while female sex tourism tends not to use facilities that are specifically devoted to that purpose. Like tourism in general, sex tourism can make a significant contribution to local economies, especially in popular urban centers and places particularly known as sex tourism destinations. Sex tourism may arise as

1648-460: A price. She also makes the point that prostitution and many other sex industries reinforce the idea of male ownership of a woman. On the other hand, some other feminists see the sex industry as empowering women. They could be seen as simply jobs. The woman who is working them are breaking free from social norms that would previously keep their sexuality under wraps as immoral. Based on these arguments, Sweden , Norway and Iceland have criminalized

1751-429: A profession became more common, rather than just occasionally necessitated soliciting. As a result of these changes, the way prostitution was practiced changed. Many prostitutes still practiced their trade independently, but the new class of professional prostitutes created a demand for a location to do their regular business, and the brothel served this purpose. Visitors could easily find disorderly houses by opening up

1854-672: A professional field. In ancient China, brothels had different names, and each dynasty may have different names. There were also singing and dancing places in ancient China. These singing and dancing places also had different names, and the names also changed in different dynasties. Song and dance venues in ancient China were not brothels. Gējì were professional female song and dance performers, they were not prostitutes, most Geji did not engage in prostitution. Geji in ancient China catered to famous poets and nobles. In addition to performing songs and dances, they would also have these men talk about poetry and have pleasant conversations. Prostitution

1957-552: A prostitute. Women who worked in these brothels were denied Christian burial and buried in the unconsecrated graveyard known as Cross Bones . By the 16th century, the area was also home to many theatres, (including the Globe Theatre , associated with William Shakespeare ), but brothels continued to thrive. A famous London brothel of the time was Holland's Leaguer . Patrons supposedly included James I of England and his favourite, George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham . It

2060-399: A red lantern when they were open (from which is derived the term red-light district ) and the prostitutes were only permitted to leave the maisons on certain days and only if accompanied by its head. By 1810, Paris alone had 180 officially approved brothels. During the first half of the 20th century, some Paris brothels, such as le Chabanais and le Sphinx , were internationally known for

2163-576: A result of stringent anti-prostitution laws in a tourist's home country, and although it may contribute to the destination economy, it can create social problems in the host country. Prostitution is extremely prevalent in Asia, particularly in Southeast Asian nations such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. Due to the longstanding economic instability of many of these nations, increasing numbers of women have been forced to turn towards

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2266-425: A shared goal: quick money. Many found themselves always indebted to their mistresses. Lack of credit made a prostitute unable to buy items necessary for her trade (powder, cosmetics, perfumes, and evening wear), and she was forced to buy them through her madam. Some madams, often former prostitutes themselves, rose to become independently wealthy. One was Mary Ann Hall of Arlington, Virginia. Clearly attractive and

2369-579: A small fishing community developed an advanced commercial sector and a correspondingly large sex industry. A large portion of China's sex workers are immigrants from other Asian nations, such as Korea and Japan . In spite of these circumstances, most Asian countries do not have strong policies regarding prostitution. Their governments are challenged in this regard because of the differing contexts that surround prostitution, from voluntary and financially beneficial labor to virtual slavery. The increasing economic prominence of China and Japan have made these issues

2472-473: A variety of harmful effects on society, such as encouragement of human trafficking , desensitization, pedophilia , dehumanization, exploitation, sexual dysfunction , and inability to maintain healthy sexual relationships. Feminism is divided on the issue of the sex industry. In her essay "What is wrong with prostitution", Carole Pateman makes the point that it is literally the objectification of woman. They are making their bodies an object that men can buy for

2575-560: Is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes . However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors , bars, strip clubs , body rub parlours, studios, or by some other description. Sex work in a brothel is considered safer than street prostitution . On 2 December 1949, the United Nations General Assembly approved the Convention for

2678-423: Is complicit in violence against women, both in its production (where they charge that abuse and exploitation of women performing in pornography are rampant) and in its consumption (where they charge that pornography eroticizes the domination, humiliation, and coercion of women, and reinforces sexual and cultural attitudes that are complicit in rape and sexual harassment ). They charge that pornography contributes to

2781-428: Is correlated with sexual aggression. However, it is unknown if pornography promotes, reduces or has no effect on sexual aggression at an individual level, because this correlation may not be causal. In fact, counter intuitively, pornography has been found to reduce sexual aggression at a societal level. A 2009 review stated that all scientific investigations of increases in the availability of pornography show no change or

2884-410: Is illegal nearly everywhere in the world. Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) is the "sexual abuse by the adult and remuneration in cash or kind to the child or a third person or persons. The child is treated as a sexual object and as a commercial object". CSEC includes the prostitution of children , child pornography , child sex tourism and other forms of transactional sex where

2987-463: Is liberating and offers them a voice in popular media while critics view it as a degradation of the eroticization of inequality and that advocates for this new line of cinema are only creating a new barrier for gay people to contend with. The sex industry also raises concerns about the spread of sexually transmitted infections . Brothel A brothel , bordello , bawdy house , ranch , house of ill repute , house of ill fame , or whorehouse

3090-667: Is no uniform policy and no consensus on the issue; and laws vary widely from country to country. Germany and the Netherlands have the most liberal policies; in Sweden (and in Norway and Iceland outside the EU) the buying, but not selling, of sex, is illegal; in most former Communist countries the laws target the prostitutes; while in countries such as the UK (except Northern Ireland), Italy, and Spain

3193-788: Is well known for its red-light district and is a destination for sex tourism . Germany also has very liberal prostitution laws. The largest brothel in Europe is the Pascha in Cologne . Although the Dumas Hotel in Butte, Montana operated legally from 1890 until 1982, brothels are currently illegal throughout the United States , except in 10 rural counties in Nevada . Prostitution outside of

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3296-749: The First World War , the Second World War and the First Indochina War to supply sex services to French soldiers who were facing combat in areas where brothels were unusual, such as at the front line or in isolated garrisons. Brothels were outlawed in France in 1946; but the French Foreign Legion continued to use mobile brothels until the late 1990s. During the Second World War , women drawn from throughout

3399-698: The Ontario Royal Commission on Violence in the Communications Industry ( LaMarsh Commission ) quoted author Peter McCabe as writing in Argosy : "Ten years ago the sex industry did not exist. When people talked of commercial sex they meant Playboy ." A 1976 article in The New York Times by columnist Russell Baker claimed that "[M]ost of the problems created by New York City 's booming sex industry result from

3502-856: The lower caste Cheonmin who were trained to provide entertainment, conversation, and sexual services to men of the upper class. In South Asia, castes whose females are involved in prostitution by tradition, sometimes called Intergenerational prostitution , include the Bedias , the Perna caste , the Banchhada , the Nat caste and, in Nepal , the Badi people . Some researchers have claimed that sex workers can benefit from their profession in terms of immigration status. In her essay "Selling Sex for Visas: Sex Tourism as

3605-408: The "Swedish Model" of criminalizing the buying, but not the selling, of sex. Prostitution and the operation of brothels is illegal in many countries, though known illegal brothels may be tolerated or laws not strictly enforced. Such situations exist in many parts of the world, but the region most often associated with these policies is Asia . When brothels are illegal they may nevertheless operate in

3708-769: The 1860s. The British Raj enacted the Cantonment Act of 1864 to regulate prostitution in colonial India as a matter of accepting a necessary evil so that the British soldiers could seek sexual gratification when away from their homes. The Cantonment Acts regulated and structured prostitution in the British military bases which provided for about twelve to fifteen Indian women kept in brothels called chaklas for each regiment of thousand British soldiers. They were licensed by military officials and were allowed to consort with soldiers only. Brothels in India came into life in

3811-577: The 19 licensed brothels operating in 6 of those 10 counties is illegal throughout the state. All forms of prostitution are illegal in Clark County , which contains the Las Vegas–Paradise metropolitan area . The earliest recorded mention of prostitution as an occupation appears in Sumerian records from c.  2400 BCE and describes a temple-bordello operated by Sumerian priests in

3914-812: The Edo period in Japan. Male prostitutes in brothels mainly serve male customers, but occasionally there are a few female customers. Male prostitutes in male brothels are generally between 13 and 20 years old. In Japanese history, many geishas were not prostitutes, and geisha houses were different from brothels. The geisha of Japan emphasized good table manners, artistic skills, elegant styling, and sophisticated, tactical conversational skills. In Korean history, there were brothels where prostitutes worked as prostitution. There are also kisaeng performing arts venues that provide performances. The governments of many Indian princely states had regulated prostitution in India prior to

4017-561: The Far East were forced into sexual slavery by the occupation armies of Imperial Japan in brothels known as Ianjo . These women were referred to as " comfort women " (kanji=慰安婦; hiragana=いあんふ; Korean=위안부). During the Second World War in Europe, Nazi Germany created military brothels where an estimated 34,140 enslaved women from Nazi-occupied Europe, particularly Poland, were forced to work as prostitutes in brothels. After

4120-619: The Germans for their exclusive use; some had made a great deal of money by catering for German officers and soldiers. One brothel in the Montmartre District of the French capital was part of an escape network for POWs and downed airmen. Italy made brothels illegal in 1959. The 2010s decade has seen the introduction of sex dolls and sexbots on the premises of some brothels. Prostitution has existed in ancient China, but it

4223-575: The Hotel Marigny were, however, subject to frequent police raids, perhaps indicating less tolerance for them from the authorities. In most European countries, brothels were made illegal after World War II. France outlawed brothels in 1946, after a campaign by Marthe Richard . The backlash against them was in part due to their wartime collaboration with the Germans during the occupation of France . Twenty-two Paris brothels had been commandeered by

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4326-565: The Japanese surrender following the Second World War, the Japanese government formed the Recreation and Amusement Association and recruited 55,000 of its "patriotic women" to "sacrifice themselves" to the G.I. occupation, to protect the chastity of pure Japanese womenfolk. In South Korea, women who worked as prostitutes for UN forces were called Western princesses . Between the 1950s and 1960s, 60% of South Korean prostitutes worked near

4429-466: The Nordic model and attempts to criminalise those paying for sex, saying that it pushes the industry underground and makes work more dangerous for sex workers and increases violence against women , instead supporting the full decriminalisation or legalisation of sex work. Some feminists , such as Gail Dines , are opposed to pornography, arguing that it is an industry which exploits women and which

4532-770: The Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others . The convention came into effect on 25 July 1951 and by December 2013, had been ratified by 82 states. The convention seeks to combat prostitution, which it regards as "incompatible with the dignity and worth of the human person." Parties to the convention agreed to abolish regulation of individual prostitutes, and to ban brothels and procuring . Some countries not parties to

4635-708: The US military bases . Since the mid-1990s, Filipina women have worked as prostitutes for U.S. servicemen in South Korea. In 2010, the Philippine government stopped approving contracts that promoters use to bring Filipinas to South Korea to work near U.S. military bases. A number of brothels offering only sex dolls exist in Japan. There is also one in Barcelona, and one named Bordoll opened in Germany. Another

4738-401: The United States has been cited as a reason for the prevalence of sex workers who are Black or other people of color, as this leads to inequality and a lack of access to resources. The legality of prostitution and associated activities (soliciting, brothels, procuring) varies by jurisdiction. Yet even where it is illegal, a thriving underground business usually exists because of high demand and

4841-519: The ability to immigrate or forcing them to return to their country of origin. Sex workers are also at risk of judgement from family members and relatives for having been associated with the sex tourism industry. Migrant sex work happens due to globalization. Globalization has produced growth both in sex tourism and in the migration of women to places where the sex industry thrives. Additionally, some researchers claim that pornography causes unequivocal harm to society by increasing rates of sexual assault ,

4944-482: The achievements of performers, directors and movies. The first XRCO Awards were presented in Hollywood on February 14, 1985. Until 1991, the awards were presented on Valentine's Day each year. The award program also includes a Hall of Fame ceremony and inductions. Adult entertainment The origins of the term sex industry are uncertain, but it appears to have arisen in the 1970s. A 1977 report by

5047-518: The act of prostitution is not itself illegal, but soliciting, pimping and brothels are, making it difficult to engage in prostitution without breaking any law. The European Women's Lobby condemns prostitution as "an intolerable form of male violence" and supports the "Swedish model". In February 2014, the members of the European Parliament voted in a non-binding resolution, (adopted by 343 votes to 139; with 105 abstentions), in favor of

5150-527: The adult business, still qualified, and still participating in the XRCO Award nomination and voting processes. Anyone not participating is placed on an "inactive" list for one year and, if found to still be lacking and not participating after that time, are then dropped. There is no membership fee to be an XRCO member. There are currently 27 award categories, including the XRCO Hall of Fame , which honor

5253-550: The age may vary. Some countries prohibit particular sex acts. In some countries, brothels are subject to strict planning restrictions and in some cases are confined to designated red-light districts . Some countries prohibit or regulate how brothels advertise their services, or they may prohibit the sale or consumption of alcohol on the premises. In some countries where operating a brothel is legal, some brothel operators may choose to operate illegally. Some men and women may travel away from their home to engage with local prostitutes, in

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5356-500: The appearance of effective contraception , infanticide was common in brothels. Unlike usual infanticide—where girls were more likely to be killed at birth— a brothel site at Ashkelon in Israel revealed that nearly all of the babies were boys. Cities first began setting up municipal brothels between 1350 and 1450 CE. Municipalities often owned, operated, and regulated the legal brothels. Governments would designate certain streets where

5459-510: The area outside of Mary Ann Hall's estate revealed refuse of a quality superior to that in surrounding working-class areas. This included many champagne bottles and corks, wire cages from such bottles, perfume bottles, high-quality porcelain with gilt edging, along with remnants of exotic foods—coconut shells and berry seeds, bones from beef, fish, and pork indicating that elegant meals were being eaten at this high-class brothel. These "five and ten-dollar parlor houses" attracted wealthy men, who used

5562-402: The brothel keeper for the basic necessities of room and board, clothes, and toiletries. Room and board pricing was often set by the local government but the price for everything else could add up to a common woman's entire earnings. Prostitutes were sometimes prohibited from having a special lover. Some regulations put on prostitutes were made to protect their clients. A woman was kicked out if she

5665-490: The brothel, including the sheets, which had to be changed several times in an evening, and a stock of wines and liquors for clientele. She was the boss of the brothel and so a madam fired and hired servants, maids, and prostitutes. New faces in the brothel were desired by patrons and so madams had to find new women to recruit. Sometimes, that meant taking in a less-than-desired woman but one with youth and good looks. The "new" prostitute received training, cosmetics, and clothes from

5768-403: The buying of sexual services, while decriminalizing the selling of sexual services. (In other words, clients and pimps can be prosecuted for moneyed sexual transactions, but not prostitutes). Supporter of this model of legislation claim reduced illegal prostitution and human trafficking in these countries. Opponents dispute these claims. Women's rights organisations and sex workers have opposed

5871-630: The city of Uruk . The 'kakum' or temple was dedicated to the goddess Ishtar and housed three classes of women. The first group performed only in the temple sex-rites; the second group had the run of the grounds and catered to its visitors as well, and the third and lowest class lived on the temple grounds but were free to seek out customers in the streets. In later years, sacred prostitution and similar classifications of women existed in Greece, Rome, India, China, and Japan. State brothels/bordellos with regulated prices existed in ancient Athens , created by

5974-410: The city of New Orleans as such: "The extent of licentiousness and prostitution here is truly appalling and doubtless without a parallel in the whole civilized world. The indulgence and practice are so general and common that men seldom seek to cover up their acts or go in disguise." The average house held five to twenty working girls; some higher-end brothels also employed staff servants, musicians, and

6077-410: The city's reluctance to treat it as an industry", arguing why sex shops constituted an "industry", and should be treated as such by concentrating them in a single neighborhood, suggesting the "sex industry" was not yet commonly recognized as such. Prostitution is a main component of the sex industry and may take place in a brothel , at a facility provided by the prostitute, at a client's hotel room, in

6180-432: The city." Brothels were commonly referred to as "disorderly houses", and their residents were called by many names, some euphemistic —e.g., abandoned woman , bawd good-time daisy , fallen angel , fille de joie , jeweled bird , lady of the evening , shady lady , soiled dove , wanton woman , and woman of the town —and some less kind—e.g., hooker , slut , and whore . As the 19th century went on, prostitution as

6283-475: The convention also ban prostitution or the operation of brothels. Various United Nations commissions, however, have differing positions on the issue. For example, in 2012, a Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) convened by Ban Ki-moon and backed by United Nations Development Programme and UNAIDS, recommended decriminalization of brothels and procuring. In the European Union , there

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6386-484: The demand for and consumption of pornography and erotica . Around 2009, the U.S. porn industry's revenue of $ 10–15 billion a year was more than the combined revenue of professional sports and live music combined and roughly on par or above Hollywood's box office revenue. There is mixed evidence on the social impact of pornography. Some insights come from meta-analyses synthesizing data from prior research. A 2015 meta-analysis indicated that pornography consumption

6489-629: The disease home and infect morally upright people. From the 12th century, brothels in London were located in a district known as the Liberty of the Clink . This area was traditionally under the authority of the Bishop of Winchester , not the civil authorities. From 1161, the bishop was granted the power to license prostitutes and brothels in the district. This gave rise to the slang term Winchester Goose for

6592-655: The early 1920s, when dance styles in states like Maharashtra , such as Lavani , and dance-drama performance artists, called Tamasha artists, starting working as prostitutes. Such professions were strongly connected to caste and income levels. From 1911 to 1913, the United States Department of Justice counted the numbers of prostitutes in brothels to use the data against the much-feared " White Slave Traffic ". This effort collected information from 318 cities of 26 Eastern states. It estimated about 100,000 women to be working in brothels, yet some estimated

6695-904: The effect was more pronounced with men. Adult entertainment is entertainment intended to be viewed by adults only, and distinguished from family entertainment. The style of adult entertainment may be ribaldry or bawdry. Any entertainment that normally includes sexual content qualifies as adult entertainment, including sex channels for television and pre-paid sex films for "on demand", as well as adult movie theaters , sex shops , and strip clubs . It also includes sex-oriented men's magazines , sex movies , sex toys and fetish and BDSM paraphernalia. Sex workers can be prostitutes, call girls , pornographic film actors , pornographic models , sex show performers, erotic dancers , striptease dancers, bikini baristas , telephone sex operators, cybersex operators, erotic massagers , or amateur porn stars for online sex sessions and videos. Other specialists in

6798-698: The existence of licensed brothels does not stop illegal brothels from operating. According to a report in the Australian Daily Telegraph , illegal brothels in Sydney in 2009 outnumbered licensed operations by four to one; while in Queensland only 10% of prostitution happens in licensed brothels, with the rest being either independent sex workers (which is legal) or illegal operations. The introduction of legal brothels in Queensland

6901-410: The facilities much as a gentlemen's social club, where they made business and political connections, met with associates and had exquisite dinners with wine, champagne, and women. Brothels were not only for the wealthy. "One-dollar houses" were visited by those of the working class. A 1910 Kansas vice report compares the two: "A few brothels were equipped with expensive furniture and furnishings including

7004-439: The fact that many of these hostesses are also prostitutes and make up a significant part of the sex industry. They do not want China's image in the rest of the world to become sullied. Hostesses are given a significant degree of freedom to choose whether or not they would like to service a client sexually, although a refusal does sometimes spark conflict. In addition, like any other industry, there are people who work in or service

7107-694: The finest of upholstered chairs, well-done paintings, and costly rugs, while others were hovels of repulsive squalor." Women joined brothels from all walks of life. The average prostitute was approximately 21, but many were as young as 13 or as old as 50. Typically thought of as an escape for young, poor, troubled women, brothels sometimes attracted those less expected. Trained musicians and singers sometimes were lured into it by their interest in easy money and fun times. Some others turned to brothels to get out of boring, abusive, or otherwise unfulfilling marriages. Although they might be from varied classes, ethnicities, and ages, most women who began or joined brothels had

7210-530: The guise of a legitimate business, such as massage parlors, saunas or spas. In a few countries, prostitution and operating a brothel is legal and regulated. The degree of regulation varies widely by country. Most of these countries allow brothels, at least in theory, as they are considered to be less problematic than street prostitution . In parts of Australia, brothels are legal and regulated. Regulation includes planning controls and licensing and registration requirements, and there may be other restrictions. However,

7313-434: The high income that can be made by pimps, brothel owners, escort agencies, and traffickers. A brothel is a commercial establishment where people may engage in sexual activity with a prostitute, though for legal or cultural reasons they may describe themselves as massage parlors , bars , strip clubs or by some other description. Sex work in a brothel is considered safer than street prostitution . Prostitution and

7416-474: The higher ranks of which were known as oiran recognised by the Japanese government operated. Though prostitution was, officially, legal to engage in and pay for only in these areas, there were a number of places where prostitutes and brothels operated illegally. Yoshiwara was home to some 1,750 women in the 18th century, with records of some 3,000 women from all over Japan at one time. Many were typically indentured to their brothel; if indentured by their parents,

7519-444: The legendary lawmaker Solon . These brothels catered to a predominantly male clientele, with women of all ages and young men providing sexual services (see Prostitution in ancient Greece ). In ancient Rome female slaves were forced to provide sexual services for soldiers, with brothels being located close to barracks and city walls. Brothels existed everywhere. The custom was to display lit candles to signal that they were open. Before

7622-433: The living conditions of prostitutes in high-end brothels are better than those in low-end brothels. Prostitutes in high-end brothels sell sex to wealthy and educated clients, so some prostitutes will learn some art-related content. However, high-end brothels are still places of prostitution, and prostitutes also take prostitution as their main job. Their performances have a lot of pornographic content, and performances are not

7725-500: The local or statewide directories, such as the 1895 Travelers' Guide of Colorado . This 66-page manual helped the interested client decide which brothel was right for him. These manuals did not attract by using euphemistic language, and though bold by standards of the time, were not crude. Some examples read: "Twenty young ladies engaged nightly to entertain guest", and "Strangers cordially welcome". In some areas, brothels simply could not be ignored. A nineteenth-century authority describes

7828-603: The luxury they provided. The French government sometimes included a visit to the Chabanais as part of the program for foreign guests of state, disguising it as a visit with the President of the Senate in the official program. The Hotel Marigny , established in 1917 in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris , was one of several that were well known for catering to gay male clients. Premises suspected of being gay brothels, including

7931-573: The madam. A prostitute from Kansas City is recorded as saying that she is no match for the "proper" behavior and dress required for the famous Ice Palace in Chicago. Disorderly houses or any other dwelling used for purposes of selling sex or other lewd acts in the early 20th century were illegal with a few exceptions: the states of Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Mexico, and South Carolina. Penalties could range from $ 1,000 and time in jail to much smaller fines. Until recently, in several armies around

8034-473: The male-centered objectification of women and thus to sexism. However, other feminists are opposed to censorship, and have argued against the introduction of anti-porn legislation in the United States—among them Betty Friedan , Kate Millett , Karen DeCrow , Wendy Kaminer and Jamaica Kincaid . While the legality of adult sexual entertainment varies by country, the use of children in the sex industry

8137-480: The men who hire them. Although this is not done by every woman who works as a hostess in the bars of China, the hostesses are all generally labeled as "grey women". This means that while they are not seen as prostitutes, they are not considered suitable marriage partners for many men. Other woman who are included in the "grey women" category are the permanent mistresses or "second wives" that many Chinese businessmen have. The Chinese government makes efforts to keep secret

8240-453: The operation of brothels are legal in some countries, but illegal in others. For instance, there are legal brothels in Nevada, US , due to the legalization of prostitution in some areas of the state. In countries where prostitution and brothels are legal, brothels may be subject to many and varied restrictions. Forced prostitution is usually illegal as is prostitution by or with minors , though

8343-526: The patrons were not always enforced. Government officials or police would periodically search the brothels to reduce the number of prohibited customers. However, since the government was so closely related to the church, common punishments were minor. These restrictions were put in place to protect the wives of married men from infections. Multiple restrictions were placed on the residents of brothels. One limitation prohibited prostitutes from borrowing money from their brothel keeper. Prostitutes paid high prices to

8446-517: The price of prostitution, and their job content is to engage in prostitution. Male performers who are not involved in prostitution are often reluctant to associate with such male prostitutes and openly distance themselves from them. The number of male brothels and male prostitutes is far less than that of female ones, but male brothels only sell sex to wealthy male clients. During the Republic of China, due to social unrest and other problems, there were

8549-460: The primary countries where the commercial sexual exploitation of children takes place. Certain places around the world are recognized for child sex tourism. Castes are largely hereditary social classes often emerging around certain professions. Lower castes are associated with professions considered "unclean", which has often included prostitution. In pre-modern Korea, the Kisaeng were women from

8652-633: The sex industry as managers, film crews, photographers, website developers and webmasters , sales personnel, book and magazine writers and editors, etc. Some create business models, negotiate trade, make press releases, draw up contracts with other owners, buy and sell content, offer technical support, run servers, billing services, or payroll, organize trade shows and various events, do marketing and sales forecasts, provide human resources, or provide tax services and legal support. Usually, those in management or staff do not have direct dealings with sex workers, instead hiring photographers who have direct contact with

8755-483: The sex industry in China has been revived by the nation's recent economic success. The nation's liberal economic policies in the early 1980s have been credited with revitalizing the sex industry as rural communities rapidly expand into highly developed urban centers. A typical example of this can be found in the city of Dalian . The city was declared a special economic zone in 1984; by the twenty-first century what had been

8858-567: The sex industry there for work. According to Lin Lim, an International Labour Organization official who directed a study on prostitution in Southeast Asia, "it is very likely that women who lose their jobs in manufacturing and other service sectors and whose families rely on their remittances may be driven to enter the sex sector." The sex industry of some destinations has consequently grown to become their dominant commercial sector. Conversely,

8961-420: The sex workers. The sex industry is controversial, and there are people, organizations and governments that have objections to it, and, as a result, pornography, prostitution, striptease and other similar occupations are illegal in many countries. This is typically the case in countries with strong religious traditions. The term anti-pornography movement is used to describe those who argue that pornography has

9064-511: The term applies to the depiction of the act, rather than the act itself. Thus, portrayals such as sex shows and striptease are not classified as pornography. The first home- PCs capable of network communication prompted the arrival of online services for adults in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The wide-open early days of the World Wide Web quickly snowballed into the dot-com boom , in-part fueled by an incredible global increase in

9167-414: The total number of prostitutes to be as high as 500,000. During the late nineteenth century, brothels in the United States were no secret. George Kneeland articulated his growing concern about the organized sex business in America well, saying that prostitution had grown into a "highly commercialized and profitable business that penetrated the deepest recesses of the political, cultural and economic life of

9270-549: The wardrobe of proper women. The restrictions placed on prostitutes were put in place not only to protect them but also nearby citizens. Because of a syphilis epidemic throughout Europe, many brothels were shut down during the end of the Middle Ages. This epidemic had been brought on by Spanish and French military pillages after the return of Christopher Columbus from the newly discovered Americas. The church and citizens alike feared that men who frequented brothels would bring

9373-498: The wider industry include courtesans and dominatrixes , some of whom may hope to earn more by specialising in these niche markets . Other members of the sex industry include the hostesses that work in many bars in China. These hostesses are women who are hired by men to sit with them and provide them with company, which entails drinking and making conversation, while the men flirt and make sexual comments. A number of these hostesses also offer sexual services at offsite locations to

9476-462: The world, mobile brothels were attached to the army as auxiliary units, especially attached to combat units on long-term deployments abroad. Because it is a controversial subject, military brothels and the women who provided sex services in them were often designated with creative euphemisms . Examples of such jargon are la boîte à bonbons ( "the sweet box" ), replacing the term " bordel militaire de campagne ". France used mobile brothels during

9579-453: The world. Reasons as to why an individual may enter into prostitution are varied. Socialist and radical feminists have cited poverty, oppressive capitalistic processes, and patriarchal societies that marginalizes people based on race and class as reasons for the continued presence of prostitution, as these aspects all work together to maintain oppression. Other reasons include displacement due to conflict and war. Institutionalized racism in

9682-571: Was also a founding member of XRCO. XRCO's original Chairman, Jared Rutter, stepped down in 2004 and is now recognized as an "Honorary Chairman". The current co-Chairmen are "Dirty Bob" Krotts and Dick Freeman . In 2005, XRCO added its first European members. Its members now include writers from a wide range of adult publications and Internet sites. Many members work full-time at this occupation; some have university degrees with emphasis on Film Criticism. XRCO members remain active members after being evaluated yearly to determine if they are still active in

9785-491: Was found to have a sexually transmitted disease. The prostitutes were not allowed to pull men into the brothel by their clothing, harass them in the street, or detain them over unpaid debts. Clothing worn by prostitutes was regulated and had to be distinguishable from that of respectable women. In some places, a prostitute had to have a yellow stripe on her clothing while in others red was the differentiating color. Other towns required harlots to don special headdresses or restricted

9888-516: Was founded in 1984, consisting of writers from Los Angeles , New York City and Philadelphia . Jim Holliday , AVN Award -winning producer and historian, is considered the founding father of the X-Rated Critics Organization. After Holliday's death, the position of XRCO Historian was temporarily filled by XRCO founding member Bill Margold until 2006. James Avalon , a former editor of Adam Film World ’s special editions,

9991-529: Was keeping their business transactions discreet and staying on the good side of the law, which they did by contributing money to charitable organizations, schools, and churches. Despite those efforts, much of the profit still went to legal fines and fees, since prostitution was largely illegal. Timely payment of these fines could guarantee a madam that her business could continue without fear of being shut down, usually. Brothels were expected to pay significantly higher rent than other tenants. Another upscale bordello

10094-469: Was located in a street that still bears its name and also inspired the 1631 play, Holland's Leaguer . Charles I of England licensed a number of brothels including the Silver Cross Tavern in London, which retains its license to the modern day because it was never revoked. The authorities of Medieval Paris followed the same path as those in London and attempted to confine prostitution to

10197-610: Was rarely found, but they would also develop romantic relationships with these men. This Geji culture in ancient China died out systematically during the late Qing dynasty and the Republic of China. Male prostitution also existed in ancient China; open male brothels generally appeared in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and such male brothels were officially similar to semi-open in ancient times. Male prostitutes in male brothels will also learn some arts, but like prostitutes, they are not professional performers. Male prostitutes learn arts to increase

10300-581: Was the Big Brick in Charleston, South Carolina , built and operated by Grace Peixotto , the daughter of the Rev. Solomon Cohen Peixotto, and the madam of the most infamous brothel in the history of the city. A madam stayed involved in her business. Running a house with so many in it required skill. A brothel required the purchase of regular food and food preparation. A madam had to monitor the cleanliness of

10403-860: Was the politician Guan Zhong (管仲) who planned the brothel system. During the Spring and Autumn period in 645 BC, Qi politician Guan Zhong proposed to set up brothels in the city, and the operation of brothels was officially approved. As many as 700 women were entered into the brothels to work as prostitutes. Guan Zhong named this kind of brothel "Nvlv (女闾)". Most prostitutes in ancient China came from very poor families and were sold to brothels by their families to work as prostitution . Prostitutes may also be asked by their families to prostitution secretly outside brothels. Some girls are brought to brothels as children begging. There are also women who are resold to brothels by their husbands or lured to brothels by traffickers. The living conditions of prostitutes are not good, but

10506-516: Was to help improve the safety of sex workers, punters (customers of prostitution), and the community at large and reduce crime. This may have been successful in many ways in Queensland, with The Viper Room being one of the most well known, clean, safe and most highly regarded brothels in Brisbane and Queensland. The Netherlands has one of the most liberal prostitution policies in the world, and attracts sex tourists from many other countries. Amsterdam

10609-424: Was to keep parishioners in church and out of the brothels. Either way, it was a day providing no revenue for the keeper. Although brothels were set up as a sexual outlet for men, not all men were allowed to enter them. Clerics, married men, and Jews were prohibited. Often, foreigners such as sailors and traders were the main source of revenue. Local men who frequented the brothels were mainly single; laws restricting

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