Amsterdam’s Red Light District feels somewhat like a theme park. Groups of grown men regress to children with some literally skipping about the streets giddy with glee. There are bright lights, crowds and a simple yet powerful feeling of excitement surrounding the place. While I had heard some damning reviews about the intimidating and sometimes frightening atmosphere, I found no such thing. It is like being in a strange dream. Sex is round every corner. It is not shielded from the eyes of the young and there is no wall surrounding the area with a bouncer checking IDs at the gate. Sex is on display for all to see – it’s even in a shop window.
It is a perfect representation of Amsterdam’s openness and honesty around the subject of sex. Sure, this topic has become less and less of a taboo over the last half century or so, with greater acceptance of sex before marriage, same sex intercourse and the use of contraception. Still, there is a long way to go. While it may bring sadness to some that this city sees sex as a commodity, perhaps this sort of desensitisation of the subject of sex is positive.
Arguably, sex is talked about far too much in the UK; despite the progress made, shame is still put upon those who have had numerous sexual partners, myths surrounding HIV remain, and every time a naked picture of a celebrity is leaked online the world goes crazy. While sex seems inescapable here, ignorance remains high. It has been argued that sex education in schools in the UK puts too much emphasis on the negative aspects of sexual relationships, such as the risk of STIs and the dangers of teenage pregnancy. Coming from an all girls’ school I can only agree with this; the fear of contracting chlamydia or conceiving a child haunted me and my friends throughout our teenage years. We in turn viewed it as a high risk activity, with many girls in my year shunning anyone who was sexually active. This sort of ‘slut-shaming’ was harmful not only to those who bore the brunt of it, but to the rest of the school community as well. Sex was something that was talked about a lot, yet remained a dangerous mystery. From what I have read, the Dutch take a different approach; with less emphasis on the scary stuff and more honesty about the positive aspects of sexual relationships. The impact of this approach can be seen when comparing teenage pregnancy rates in the Netherlands to those in surrounding European countries, like the UK. While Dutch girls are much less likely to have an unwanted pregnancies in their teens, girls in the UK are at a much higher risk.
It might seem that Amsterdam takes this normalisation too far when we look at the rather extreme example of the Red Light District. Here, sex is for sale and is a product like any other – and yet I found it difficult to condemn the women I saw. The status of the prostitute has been brought to a certain level of respect in the city. The sale of sex for money has become a normalised profession, with the women who work here abiding by the rules and regulations set for any other employees in the city. They even pay income tax. It is tempting to pipe up about the blatant objectification of women’s bodies but it cannot be denied that they are businesswomen making an honest living. Whatever you might say about the sale of women’s bodies for money, these women appear to hold their own; just like any other worker who experiences harassment, they have every right to turn away customers who they feel are being abusive. They command a type of respect, and at the end of a shift the majority of these women go home to their long term partners or families.
This is not to say that all of the women are happy and that the Red Light District is without its problems. The issue of human trafficking remains. It is difficult to determine how many of these women are being forced to work here but estimates range from 10% to 90% depending on the definition of ‘forced’. There have been campaigns such as ‘Stop the Traffic’ to raise greater awareness of the issue, and a call for vigilance on behalf of the public if they suspect somebody is working against their will. The photo below is a still from the familiar advert launched to highlight concerns over the many girls who are coaxed to the Netherlands with the promise of a dance career and instead end up being forced to work as prostitutes.
Clearly the Red Light District is not always the theme park that it seems. Nevertheless, the city is taking steps towards eliminating human trafficking. As for the subject of sex, maybe it’s time for the Netherlands to teach our schools something about education.
Images:My own but last picture is from: http://elitedaily.com/news/world/this-video-will-change-what-you-think-about-the-red-light-district-in-amsterdam-video/