ABSTRACT

We extend the previous chapter’s discussion of structural issues related to commercial sex by providing an overview of institutional violence experienced by those who sell and trade sex. We discuss forms of police violence which include harassment, physical abuse, threats, and demands for (free) sex in exchange for refraining from arrest. We highlight forms of sexual misconduct by law enforcement, including rape, sexual assault, and instances where law enforcement paid for sexual contact as part of their investigations. We address overcriminalization of sex workers through a brief exploration of Crimes Against Nature by Solicitation (CANS) statutes. We talk about institutional harms experienced by young people who engage in survival sex, as well as institutional violence experienced by trans people who sell sex, and disparate treatment based on race. We close the chapter with an extreme example—law enforcement downgrading of murdered sex workers as “no humans involved” (NHI), which some believe enabled serial killers to continue targeting those regarded as “disposable people,” sometimes for decades. This chapter demonstrates how stereotypes and stigma inform often violent institutional responses to those who sell sex.