Reno Gazette-Journal

“A significant number of (poll) respondents opposed prohibiting legalized prostitution in brothels in Nevada. About 61 percent of respondents said they were against outlawing brothels in the state while 29 percent supported it. A majority of all age groups, genders, races and political parties all agreed brothels should not be outlawed in Nevada.”

Debbra King

“I have no problem with legalized brothels. If the community supports it and that’s within their values and it’s properly regulated so we don’t have 14-year-old girls in there, fine.”

Lee Herz Dixon, Reno Gazette-Journal editorial board member

“Do I think eradicating legal prostitution from all Nevada counties will erase the practice of the oldest profession in the state, or break the nexus of drugs, crime, and exploitation of the vulnerable? I do not.”

Barbara G. Brents, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

“Teams of scholars at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and I have conducted research on the brothels for nearly twenty years and have concluded that Nevada’s legal brothels provide a far safer environment for sex workers than the criminalized system in the rest of the United States.”

Writer, filmmaker and journalist Michael Cernovich

“It’s empirically proven that criminalizing sex work allows children to be sex trafficked more readily as they are afraid to turn to authorities and wonder if they will be arrested.”

Legal sex worker Christina Parreira

“As a licensed prostitute and PhD student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, I can tell you that what I want is to continue to have the freedom to choose to work in a safe environment, where I can practice a trade that I love, lawfully and prosperously. Sex work is definitely not my last resort or my only option – it is my CHOICE. I’d like to continue to have the opportunity to make that choice legally.”

Russell Greer

“I’m a young professional born with a disability. In my daily life, I endure unprovoked verbal harassment like ‘rat face’ or ‘dumb.’ I have found that inspiring affirmations recited to yourself can only do so much when you get down, but a touch of intimacy can save a life. When the world has rejected me, the brothels and the women have accepted me.”

Enrique Carmona & Sam Stynen, Reno Gazette-Journal editorial board members

“I feel that if we criminalize the sex industry, then we need to consider that it may cause more harm than good. We need to put aside moralistic prejudices, whether based on religion or an idealistic form of feminism, and figure out what is in the best interests of the sex workers and public interest as well.”

Legal sex worker Alice Little

“The [anti-brothel] movement has posted horrible ads that imply that legal sex workers are pieces of meat to be bought and sold. This group has never – not once – tried coming to the ranch to talk to the ladies and ask them about the working conditions there. This entire campaign is simply fueled by questionable religious morality, society’s stigma about sex, and misinformation.”

“It’s ILLEGAL sex work that exploits children. It’s ILLEGAL sex work that traffics. It’s ILLEGAL sex work that sees women exploited and abused by pimps. … Making alcohol illegal only created speakeasies, mobsters and dangerous moonshine. Making brothel work illegal only creates illegal massage parlors, violent pimps and unsafe sexual practices.”

Suzette Cole

“I am the general manager of all the Lyon County brothels and have been since Feb. 1993. I have a zero tolerance policy on all drugs. I do not allow excess drinking and any drug of any kind is intolerable. Even marijuana. I do not allow it on the property among the girls and clients. They are not even allowed to cuss in the parlor. This includes the clients as well.”

Brett McGinness, Reno Gazette-Journal opinion/engagement editor

“(E)radicating the state’s legal brothels only treats a symptom of the larger issues whenever women enter the sex industry for the wrong reasons, whether it’s abuse, financial need or past trauma. Earlier intervention into the lives of girls at risk is a far better use of our effort than the outright ban of brothels in Lyon County.”

Legal sex worker Paris Envy

“I’m very good at my job. As such, I make a very good living. And I’m very happy. I’m not ‘exploited.’ I’m not ‘trafficked.’ I’m not ‘brainwashed.’ I don’t need to be ‘saved.’ I’ve freely chosen this line of work, which is a legal, private transaction between consenting adults.”

Paul Bourassa

“Some people are just never given a chance in the dating scene, so brothels offer those of us with no experience a chance to learn what it’s like to be on a date.”

Legal sex worker Ruby Rae

“When I heard about the petition to put an end to the Lyon County brothels, I was angry, saddened and confused. To see this petition being started when none of us asked for it was a maddening realization. My roots and history are deep in this community, and I urge Lyon County, from one resident to another, please vote NO on Question 1.”

Mark Caeruleus

“I believe sex workers have just as much right to use their bodies to make their livelihood as athletes, ballerinas, or construction workers. Having it legal reduces the likelihood of organized crime or unprincipled pimps exploiting both sex workers and their customers.”

Lewis Dawkins

“It’s not always about sex. Little compliments and encouragements offered by the ladies help build my self-confidence. It’s a business, yes. But the ladies care personally about their clients. That means a lot.”

Destini Starr

Stop listening to the haters and what they assume about us Courtesan we are legit. We make our own hours, time off and much more. We are not held as hostages. We are regular workers and we are regular people. We pay taxes, mortgages & much more. Leave us alone we are not victims

Kiki Lover

“We are not packaged meat. We are human beings who chose to do sex work on our own free will. We get treated with respect and like family at the brothels. It’s a job just like any other job. We sell a service that all humans need.”

Avery Nelson

“It’s a safe and well-regulated way for sex workers to ply their trade, which is a noble trade. Not everyone has the time for relationships. Sex workers provide many with valuable services and should be appreciated. It’s safer for girls, safer for customers, and pushes out pimps.”

Brett Caton

“I think brothels provide an important function in society. Legal ones give a safe outlet to their customers and for some men it is the only way they get so much as a hug.”

Ronald Weitzer, professor of sociology at George Washington University

“The logic of legalization is similar to that for marijuana and casino gambling: the principle that tolerating consensual vice is far superior to criminalizing it, forcing participants underground and perpetuating the risks and harms inherent in any black-market enterprise.”

“Organized crime thrives where an activity is criminalized and clandestine, not where goods and services are lawfully exchanged. The history of alcohol and drug prohibition offers overwhelming proof of this maxim.”

“The brothels have little if any adverse effect on the surrounding community. Unlike illegal street prostitution in many other places, Nevada’s legal brothels do not disturb public order, create nuisances, or negatively impact local communities in other ways. Instead, they provide needed tax revenue for cash-strapped rural towns.”

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