Red Light District Research Articles

‘Public prostitutes and private prostitutes’: A study of women's perceptions of transactional sex in Cameroon

ContextAlthough AIDS-related deaths continue to decline, there are more people living with HIV than ever before. Sub-Saharan Africa remains disproportionately affected by the epidemic, with women aged 15–24 being over three times as likely to acquire HIV than their male counterparts. One reason for this disparity is that those engaging in ‘transactional sex’ do not benefit from governmental HIV prevention efforts. Transactional sex is both less well understood than sex work and more common, suggesting the need for further research. MethodTo this end, we interviewed eighteen women engaging in transactional sex in Yaoundé, Cameroon using snowball sampling. Participants were recruited using respondent-driven sampling, with the help of a nongovernmental organisation that works with women engaging in transactional sex. The objective of this study is to understand how transactional sex differs from commercial sex according to women engaging in transactional sex. ResultsWe found that participants distinguished themselves from sex workers, but only in a limited sense. They referred to themselves as ‘private prostitutes’, meaning those who sell sex in all but name. ‘Private prostitutes’ avoid red-light districts and do not wear revealing clothing, but exchange sex for money all the same. They are no less profit-oriented than their ‘public’ counterparts (i.e., sex workers), reminding us that the two activities have a lot of similarities in as far as public health is concerned. DiscussionWomen engaging in transactional sex would require equal attention than FSWs in terms of HIV prevention. Like FSWs, they have multiple sexual partners and unprotected sex. They should be considered a ‘key population’ for HIV prevention. This would improve public health outcomes, suggesting the need to target women engaging in transactional sex on a greater scale than previously attempted in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Intersection of Queerness, Disease, and Tropics: Walking the Streets of Anosh Irani's ‘The Parcel’

This paper provides an analysis of Anosh Irani's novel The Parcel, with a particular focus on queerness and disease within the Hijra community of prostitutes in the tropical setting of Kamathipura, the notorious red-light district of Mumbai, India. The paper delves into the novel's nuanced portrayal of queerness, exploring how it intersects with the theme of disease within the tropical milieu. Extending the theoretical works of Elizabeth Outka on disease, and Erving Goffman on stigma to the queer tropics, the study explores how these elements interact and influence the lived experiences of the Hijra community. The paper highlights how the novel presents contagion and disease as a pervasive aspect of the characters' lives, shaping their experiences and identities. The tropical enclave of Kamathipura is examined for its role in compounding the challenges faced by the Hijra community, including health disparities and social stigma. This study contributes to literary scholarship on queerness and health in the Indian tropics, offering a deeper understanding of the realities faced by marginalized communities.

Patriarchy, Power and Prostitution in Lahore’s Red Light District: A Feminist Study of Fouzia Saeed’s Taboo

In her 2002 book Taboo: The Hidden Culture of Red Light Area, Fouzia Saeedexplains how patriarchal norms in Pakistani society rigidly categorise women into‘pure’ and ‘polluted’, shaping perceptions of prostitution and human trafficking. This article argues that patriarchy has its roots in materiality, and plays anindispensable role in pushing many women into the dreadful practice of prostitution or trafficking for sexual slavery through the structural andinstitutional flaws threaded within Pakistani culture. Women in Pakistan yet alsohave internalised the deep-rooted patriarchal ideologies and sexism that lead to a holistic understanding of what this patriarchal culture entails. Focusing on HeeraMandi – Lahore’s traditional red light district as depicted in Saeed’s ethnographic book, this textual cum descriptive analysis contributes to unveil the dilemmas of women engaged in prostitution who are constantly under threat frompatriarchyand other institutions. While unfolding men formulated cultural norms throughradical feminist analysis of Taboo, this article concludes that the patriarchal metamorphosing of women into valueless commodities perpetuates the practice of prostitution and trafficking in Heera Mandi. The study also suggests that, toeliminate female inferiority, feminist activism in Pakistan requires measures torestructure patriarchy together with consciousness-raising and political educationof women in all respects.

The Women and Children of India's Red-Light Brothel Districts: An Exploratory Investigation of Vulnerability and Survival During a Global Pandemic.

Globally, women and children were disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Vulnerable populations of women and children-including those who live in poverty, lack access to health care, have little informal support, and who face stigma and discrimination-were particularly susceptible to harm incurred by the pandemic. Using social determinants of health framework, this investigation sought to understand the lived experiences of women and children residing in an impoverished, resource-poor, urban brothel red-light brothel area district in India, at the outset of the pandemic and following the national lockdown(s). Four questions guided the investigation: (1) How did participants first hear about COVID-19 and what was learned regarding self-protective measures? (2) What daily life challenges were posed by the national lockdown? (3) To what extent were participants able to access or rely on informal supports support during the initial stages of the pandemic? and (4) What types of assistance, if any, did participants receive from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or other (e.g., governmental) sources? This is one of only a handful of empirical investigations elevating the voices of children residing in urban brothel-based red-light districts. Findings pose significant implications for practice, policy, and continued research.

Beyond marginalisation: The changing dynamics of communication post‐COVID‐19among the female sex workers of Kolkata

AbstractThe lives of sex workers feature varying issues of marginalisation. Regardless of the geographical location and surrounding culture, sex work and sex workers face a huge amount of stigma throughout the world. Over time, this prevailing stigma creates stereotypes that mainstream society reinforces through their attitude and daily discourse. Moreover, the inception of the COVID‐19 pandemic has deepened the inequalities and marginalisation experienced by this population group. This ethnographic research explores the changing dynamics of communication post‐COVID‐19 among female sex workers in the Kalighat red light district of Kolkata. To conclude, the researcher engages in audio‐recorded in‐depth interviews with 15 female sex workers chosen with the help of the snowball sampling technique. The findings of this research add to the almost non‐existent literature concerning sex work and communication and are also helpful to bureaucrats and other policymakers formulating policies for the vulnerable and marginalised. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article'sCommunity and Social Impact Statement.

Editors’ Introduction

Abstract “Troubling Terms and the Sex Trades” assembles writings from scholars, sex workers, and activists, each of whom interrogates a troubled term and its place in the history of prostitution. This introduction discusses the “keyword” tradition of historical genealogies advanced by Raymond Williams and its utility for assessing critical categories that inform historical studies and current political debates on prostitution. The essay reviews the historiography of prostitution as it has focused on troubling terms, mostly centered specifically on the categories of sex work and trafficking. The essay goes on to introduce the components of this special issue: the first section, Reflections, presents short first-person accounts by sex worker activists, advocates, and scholars regarding a critical keyword they have worked with or resisted. The second section, Features, presents longer essays that interrogate the terms sex work, demand, white slavery, red-light district, restricted area, and decriminalization. Finally, Curated Spaces explores the history of the red umbrella as a visual term that has developed as a global symbol for sex worker rights.

Naming the Zones of Sexual Commerce

Abstract This article examines the historical origins of the term red-light district. It argues that red lights became associated with prostitution in the United States not only because of red’s popularity in the decor of nighttime businesses but also because of color symbolism popularized by the transportation revolution. As red signal lights on railroads came to indicate “stop—danger,” people accustomed to viewing prostitution as a moral and physical threat read that symbolism onto nighttime businesses’ existing practices of display. Meanwhile, places of prostitution that were located near railroad tracks in the American West embraced the red light as a form of advertising. The red light’s simultaneous status as a lure and warning captured ambivalent responses to prostitution. As a result, it became a potent symbol of late nineteenth-century efforts to keep the sex trade at arm’s length while also treating it as ineradicable. When city officials tried to control the harms of prostitution by segregating it, the products of their efforts came to be known as “red-light districts.” Although the term has in some ways transcended its roots, scholars should be conscientious about their use of it given its implicit moralization of both the sex trade and urban space.

Vice and Immoral Spaces

Abstract In the aftermath of the Second World War, local authorities across West Germany implemented Sperrbezirke, or restricted areas for prostitution. These restricted areas became a central element of Germany’s system of managing commercial sex. This article considers both the legacies of former systems of state-regulated prostitution in the development of Sperrbezirke and regional variations in restricted-area regulations since the 1960s. It examines their relation to red-light districts through regulations on brothels and tolerance zones, as well as the common associations of Sperrbezirke with vice in popular culture. The article then uses prostitutes’ responses to restricted-area regulations to assess their impact in practice.

예술가 없는 예술지구

In the process of revitalizing hateful spaces in cities, cultural urban regeneration is known to play a positive role in fundamentally renewing the old negative image of an area. While the voluntary closure of Seonmi-Village, a notable red-light district in Jeonju City, through the implementation of cultural governance, is well-documented, little attention has been given to the operations and policy implications of Seonosong Arts Village. This study thus examines the transition from Seonmi-Village to Seonosong Arts Village, employing data collection and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, including women’s rights advocates and local arts actors, with a focus on creative placemaking. As a result, it was stated that although the Women’s Rights Center’s solidarity activities with local artists in the process of publicizing women’s rights discourse showed tangible results, there was a relative lack of communication and solidarity between the actors. Furthermore, it was noted that artists tended to prioritize business endeavors over developing a comprehensive understanding of their locality. Hence, this study underscores the importance of nurturing a community of artists as local stakeholders for the sustainable implementation of cultural regeneration initiatives.

Research on the Status and Types of Cultural Urban Regeneration in Red-Light Districts, Korea

Research on the Status and Types of Cultural Urban Regeneration in Red-Light Districts, Korea

PERAN EDUKASI KEAGAMAAN DALAM MEMBENTUK KEPRIBADIAN WANITA PENJAJA SEKS DI INDONESIA

This research aims to describe and analyze the role of Islamic religious education conducted by religious counselors in shaping the personalities of female sex workers in Kediri Regency. The classic problem of prostitution persists without a solution. Islamic religious counselors in Kediri Regency attempt to provide a solution through religious education for female sex workers (FSWs). This study is based on the social control theory, employing a qualitative phenomenological approach. Data collection methods include observation and interviews, with phenomenological data analysis. The research involves Islamic religious counselors and female sex workers in Kediri Regency. The findings of this study conclude that: First, Islamic religious counselors conduct religious education for female sex workers by establishing Islamic boarding schools in the midst of red-light districts; Second, the implementation of religious education utilizes methods, materials, and strategies tailored to the needs of FSWs; Third, religious education transforms the personalities of female sex workers, leading them back to the right path, fostering a more religious lifestyle, and transitioning to different professions.

From “Sin Street” to “Education Street”: Music, Politics and Transgression in Maputo’s Red-Light District, Mozambique (c.1960–86)

ABSTRACT This article analyses the cultural practices developed within a particular street in Mozambique, Rua Araújo, once the symbol of colonial nightlife, transgression, pleasures and excesses, but renamed Rua do Bagamoyo after independence in 1975, signifying a shift towards FRELIMO’s education values. By focusing on “transgressive” expressive practices developed within a specific street, as a privileged locus to re-evaluate various aspects of Mozambique’s cultural history, this article differs from most studies focused on music and politics in Mozambique. Using the “ethnography of the past” as our primary methodological strategy, and drawing on interviews and documentary sources, this article includes three main sections: the first presents a brief historical contextualisation of the street; the second delves into the musical, expressive and performative dimensions that took place during the late colonial period; while the third focuses on the so-called “socialist experience”, namely Samora Machel’s term as the first president of the country (1975–86), when this street underwent a “purification process” that aimed to “purge” its so-called “maligned” cultural practices.

An Analysis of dolly red-light district closure impact: 10-year post-transformation study on the psychological and economic vulnerability of susceptible women groups

The Dolly area, known as a former red-light district in Surabaya City, is closed, as instructed by local government policy in 2014. This transformation negatively impacted the psychological and economic of vulnerable community groups in the surrounding area, especially women. This research is conducted to revisit the impact of Dolly area closure instruction and policy after ten years. The research is done qualitatively in the Former Dolly red-light district, Surabaya City, by obtaining the primary data through focus group discussions (FGD) in 2023. The analysis method used is TNA (thematic network approach), which is processed and visualized using NVIVO 12 pro. Feminist Standpoint Theory (FST) is used as a theoretical framework to ensure that the knowledge produced involves the participation of individuals who experience it directly. The results show the majority of former sex workers' lives, mainly women, rarely experience a decent life of living after 10 years of Former Dolly red-light district closure. There are three main obstacles (theme) causing this, which is: social, economic and administrative. The poor welfare of this community group leads to discrimination and stigmatization of former Dolly sex workers, and they become more psychologically vulnerable, marginalized and rarely considered as strategic development subjects. Apart from that, excessive social problems such as discrimination and stigmatization affect their economic activity. They lost the freedom to enter a legal sector as labour. Instead, they were forced to enter the shadow economy sectors, such as returning as sexual workers illegally.

Dünden Bugüne Fuhuş Mekânları

Prostitution is considered the oldest profession in the world. Although the culture and date of its inception is not clear, there are various myths. It has different meanings and reflections in every culture and civilization. This situation causes it to take on different places. The beginning of prostitution is thought to derive from phenomenon of war; therefore, it relates to the settlement of the occupation forces in the cities. Economic reasons accompany the phenomenon of war. According to the type of prostitution, the phenomenon of religion also shapes prostitution. Social and cultural meanings attributed to prostitution, types of prostitution and sex workers, accessibility, urban politics and technology can be counted among the dynamics in the selection of spaces of prostitution. All these factors transform and diversify the places of prostitution. We will examine the changing places of prostitution from the past to the present including what these types of places are, both chronologically and thematically on the basis of countries. It is possible to collect types of spaces of protitution under eight different headings from design (planned and organic), settlement (urban and rural), religion (holy and non-religious), law (legal and illegal), and location in urban space (centre and periphery – scattered or combined), to access (virtual and real – mobile or fixed), continuity (legal and illegal) and front spaces (night club, pavilion, residence, hotel, massage parlor, Turkish bath and tourism). In this study, it is aimed to discuss the dynamics of choosing a place for prostitution, its concentration in the region where prostitution occurs, and the formation of prostitution in a region with activities of no prostitution. For this purpose, spaces of prostitution will be categorized. For the classification of spaces of prostitution, the phenomenon of prostitution in different countries will be analyzed. Key Words: Prostitution, Spacial, Red Light District, Sex Worker, Brothel.

Re-presenting Red-Light Districts

Seeing the social side of the sex trade.

Framing the Windows of Prostitution: Unfolding Histories in Amsterdam’s Redesign of Its Famous Red-Light District

AbstractIntroductionThis research is about the power of documents as recorders of history and preservers of institutional memory. Specifically, the study examines Project 1012, a municipal reform project in Amsterdam’s famous Red-Light District.MethodsWe performed a critical discourse analysis on 10 policy briefs leading up to and following the implementation of Project 1012 between 2007 and 2020.ResultsOur study reveals that the documents actively evoke certain narratives about sex work, its historical connections to the city, and its social problems to support the reduction of the industry. The documents omit other information about the history and origins of the problems experienced in Amsterdam’s Red-Light District, including policymakers’ own roles in the creation of these issues.ConclusionsThe research concludes that policy documents have deontic powers and can be considered “folded objects” that consistently present certain narratives as truthful by omitting or downplaying the historical context of social issues. By folding these narratives in themselves, they have the power to shape the futures of the city and its citizens, executing a myriad of changes that have significantly impacted the lives and work conditions of local sex workers.Policy ImplicationsThis research highlights the importance of being aware of the power and potential biases inherent in policy documents. Policymakers should strive to create policies that are based on accurate and comprehensive information and consider the voices of marginalized groups, such as sex workers, who are disproportionately affected by the policies.

개항기~일제시기 평양의 유곽 형성과 시기별 양상

개항기~일제시기 평양의 유곽 형성과 시기별 양상

Experiencing Amsterdam’s Red Light District as a female resident: normalization, alliances and diversion

Every year, Amsterdam’s de Wallen neighbourhood attracts high numbers of tourists looking to experience a unique Red Light District (RLD). Yet de Wallen is a multi-use area, that combines sexualised consumption and leisure practices, with everyday residential urban functions and public spaces. This study investigated how female residents of this neighbourhood experience its sexualised nature, adjust their behaviour to it, as well as how they negotiate their feelings of belonging and being at home. Data was collected through in-depth interviews and focus groups. The results indicate that female residents navigate their ordinary lives in the neighbourhood with a sense of normality and familiarity, while acknowledging and maintaining a distance to the areas more extraordinary peculiarities, nuisances and darker, more unknown sides. They take ownership of their neighbourhood by creating a community, standing up for sex workers and reacting boldly towards sexual harassment. Becoming targets of objectification and sexualisation by male visitors to the area stimulates them to deconstruct power relations between genders. Generally speaking, this study shows how respondents residing in de Wallen manage to feel secure, spatially confident as well as attached and protective of an area that is both ordinary and extraordinary.

Affectation in the Affect Nation: The Re-arrival of Singapore's Affective Laborers

Abstract: Notorious for its ever-changing urban landscape, Singapore has seen plenty of projects in recent years to archive disappearing sites and the stories people have about them. While archival work and collective memory formations are commendable, the affective labor that goes into these projects risks uncritically reproducing existing structures of feeling that fuel the nation's postcolonial triumphalist narrative. This narrative is characteristically dependent on the planned obsolescence of these sites and the nostalgia that neoliberal industries then eagerly monetize. Through a close literary analysis of Charmaine Leung's 2017 memoir 17A Keong Saik Road , this essay builds on Raymond Williams' concept of structures of feeling and Sara Ahmed's notion of affect aliens to make sense of Singapore's affective regimes and interventions. I argue that place-based literature may reclaim the affects that are foundational to Singapore's postcolonial triumphalist narrative from the state's affective determinations. By highlighting the intergenerational, gendered, affective labors of those involved in the sex industry, Leung's recounting of her childhood in this historical red-light district frees the titular Keong Saik Road, the sex workers who formerly inhabited this site, and Cantonese—one of the undermined non-Mandarin Sinitic languages of Singapore—from the existing scripted affective discourses of the postcolonial nation.

The Indonesian Legal Policy on Prostitution, Could it be Legalized?

Prostitution is an eternal business throughout the history of human civilization. This activity has existed since the royal era until now. In terms of finance, the business of prostitution brings a huge turnover of money. Prostitute income per day is even higher than the applicable minimum wage in each district and city. This business continues to grow even though many countries prohibit prostitution. This study aims to examine regarding the causes and dimensions of violence in prostitution and the state's legal policy on prostitution. This research is a normative legal research that examines the possibility of legalizing or prohibiting prostitution. The research was conducted using statutory approaches, legal concepts and comparative law. The analysis was carried out qualitatively. The findings of this study are prostitution is influenced by educational, economic, social, legal and political factors. This activity can involve women, men, LGBT, both adults and children. However, the greatest involvements as the sex workers are women and children. Indonesia is a country that prohibits prostitution as regulated in Article 296 and 506 of the Criminal Code, as well as several other special provisions. To overcome prostitution, the Indonesian Government issued a number of policies to disband the red-light districts. There are countries in the world that prohibit prostitution like Indonesia, some allow it with strict restrictions, and some even allow state revenue from taxes.