Demanding Sex: Critical Reflections on the Regulation of Prostitution

Reviews / Votes

'This text cleverly deconstructs concepts such as exploitation and trafficking which have captured the political and moral imagination. Its first-rate legal analysis provides theoretical clarity regarding the concept of exploitation to expose the highly moralized and politicized context in which contested claims are made about these issues. It also explores the economic and social burden of punitive and coercive regulation in sex work to provide the analysis necessary for policy reform. This is not only one of the best feminist books on sex work policy I have read but also the best critical criminological edited collection on sex work there is and certainly the most articulate analysis of the current debate.' Belinda Brooks-Gordon, Birkbeck, University of London, UK '...[this] collection brings a range of perspectives tied together by a critical focus on the supply/demand dynamic in the regulation of sex work. It provides incisive criticism of current law and policy and a nuanced approach to the understanding of sex work, illustrating some progressive possibilities for the conceptualisation of sex work and sex work law and policy, both nationally and internationally.' Feminist Legal Studies 'In a field where the quality of scholarship is, at times, questionable, I must say that the quality of the papers in this collection is excellent...I would recommend this collection for the insight it provides into current regulatory frameworks in Europe and the UK. Policy-makers may also find the collection useful as most of the papers would assist in the development of sex industry policies. ' Intersections: Gender and Sexuality in Asia and the Pacific