Ontario Legalizes Brothels

Ontario has just made it slightly more difficult for Dominique Strauss-Kahn to get arrested within her borders: An Ontario court today overturned a ban on brothels, in a controversial move designed to minimize risks and safety threats to those who work in the world's oldest profession. The ruling will take effect next year, and will allow prostitutes to work under one roof protected by security and other support staff, reports the Globe and Mail.

“It’s so nice to feel that we have been brought into society,” says the legal coordinator of Sex Professionals of Canada. “I feel like a debutante. I feel like a citizen.” Other advocates concurred, saying that the move puts prostitutes on the path to becoming regular tax-paying citizens. “Any form of criminalization pushes the industry underground and gives opportunities for predators," she says. Of note, the court tweaked the pimping law to make it illegal “in circumstances of exploitation.” It also left standing a statute that makes it illegal to communicate in a public place for the purpose of prostitution. An appeal is expected. (More brothel stories.)