HISTORY
PROSTITUTION AT ITS EARLIEST:
Prostitution dates back to 2400 B.C. in the ancient Sumerian society in Mesopotamia. In this society they were in the very bottom class of society, even lower than women slaves. In Sumerian society it was custom for women to cover their head and face much like it is in many Middle Eastern countries today, even slave women were allowed to cover themselves. However, prostitutes were prohibited from wearing veils or covers (Carrasquillo, 2014).
PROSTITUTION IN THE UNITED STATES:
Due to the fact that prostitution thrives on commercial businesses which are generally located in urban areas, the United States only saw prostitution in what little urban areas there were through the 1800’s. Most prostitutes were unmarried young women that were immigrants. Prostitution was not supported by American societies but like many in the past saw it as a necessary evil. Industrialization saw a rise in prostitution in the United States, many brothels opened, streetwalkers became common, and there were even advertisements in the papers (Carrasquillo, 2014).
Prostitution was legal in the United States through the 19th Century but there were “criminal laws in place to help regulate” (Carrasquillo, 2014) it. There were vagrancy laws which for example criminalized night walking, and brothels were regulated under public nuisance laws. Eventually articles became widespread that contributed the spread of venereal disease to prostitutes and more and more laws were created to restrict prostitution (Carrasquillo, 2014).
State laws regulate prostitution and as of 1971 it is illegal in all 50 states with the exception of a few counties in Nevada. Furthermore it is both illegal to be a prostitute and illegal to purchase sex from one. There is no one law or act the made prostitution illegal because of this but rather a series of laws the built upon each other starting in the 1800’s that resulted in it becoming illegal (Carrasquillo, 2014).
PROSTITUTION AT ITS EARLIEST:
Prostitution dates back to 2400 B.C. in the ancient Sumerian society in Mesopotamia. In this society they were in the very bottom class of society, even lower than women slaves. In Sumerian society it was custom for women to cover their head and face much like it is in many Middle Eastern countries today, even slave women were allowed to cover themselves. However, prostitutes were prohibited from wearing veils or covers (Carrasquillo, 2014).
PROSTITUTION IN THE UNITED STATES:
Due to the fact that prostitution thrives on commercial businesses which are generally located in urban areas, the United States only saw prostitution in what little urban areas there were through the 1800’s. Most prostitutes were unmarried young women that were immigrants. Prostitution was not supported by American societies but like many in the past saw it as a necessary evil. Industrialization saw a rise in prostitution in the United States, many brothels opened, streetwalkers became common, and there were even advertisements in the papers (Carrasquillo, 2014).
Prostitution was legal in the United States through the 19th Century but there were “criminal laws in place to help regulate” (Carrasquillo, 2014) it. There were vagrancy laws which for example criminalized night walking, and brothels were regulated under public nuisance laws. Eventually articles became widespread that contributed the spread of venereal disease to prostitutes and more and more laws were created to restrict prostitution (Carrasquillo, 2014).
State laws regulate prostitution and as of 1971 it is illegal in all 50 states with the exception of a few counties in Nevada. Furthermore it is both illegal to be a prostitute and illegal to purchase sex from one. There is no one law or act the made prostitution illegal because of this but rather a series of laws the built upon each other starting in the 1800’s that resulted in it becoming illegal (Carrasquillo, 2014).