Nevada- Two UNLV authors discussed their new book about Nevada brothels Wednesday.
Dr. Joanne L. Goodwin, director of the Women’s Research Institute of Nevada, introduced Barbara G. Brents [pictured] and Kate Hausbeck, associate professors of sociology at UNLV.
They have co-authored a new book, “The State of Sex: the Nevada Prostitution Industry,” that will be released later this year. Brents and Hausbeck presented slides alongside the lecture, which represented an overview of the book.
The authors spent eight years in the field researching the sex industry in Nevada and conducted interviews at half of the state’s 36 brothels before writing the book.
They said that the sex industry in Las Vegas drives Nevada’s consumer economy. Phone sex, pornography, video sales, escort services, strip clubs and prostitution are all part of the sex industry.
Brents and Hausbeck noted three social trends: sex is now a part of popular culture, sex is an accepted part of commercial culture and the acceptance of sexual images in our culture is growing. American culture focuses on images on television and in print media that are tied to identity. The products that people choose to consume come to define them. Images in advertising that were once considered to be racy or obscene are now commonplace and accepted by the public.
Hausbeck said that sexuality has been normalized in America as the sex industry has become mainstream. Strip clubs are now glitzy establishments rather than sleazy. Housewives take stripper aerobics classes without thinking that it is deviant behavior. Porn stars are celebrities supported by mainstream businesses such as the Vivid nightclub at the Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino that markets to an upscale clientele.
They also said that the sex industry reinforces traditional gender norms. Women try to live up to an ideal body shape and appearance represented in commercials. Although most of the images in advertising are of women, male bodies are also sexualized to appeal to women and gay men.
Men are beginning to worry about their body images in the same way that women do, according to Brents and Hausbeck.
Although no men work in Nevada brothels, men own and manage the businesses and control the sex workers. The laws that regulate the brothels are mostly local, the authors said, and the state requires regular health tests. Labor laws are often not enforced because the owners have no public accountability.
The typical sex worker in Nevada brothels is 33 years old, divorced, has an average of two children, comes from a working class family and has previously worked in the sex industry. Many are college-educated, Hausbeck said.
Sex work can be lucrative. Workers earn a minimum of $100 for a party, and one worker reported earning $11,000 during one shift, Brents said. Sex work pays better than other service sector jobs, and the sex industry jobs have helped numerous women to escape welfare.
There are other advantages to having brothels. The authors found that the brothel industry generates large amounts of tax revenue for several Nevada counties.
Brents and Hausbeck ended their lecture by saying that the subject of the sex industry here is interesting because Nevada is the center of broad social changes.
“Living in Las Vegas gives us a unique setting for talking about gender,” Goodwin said.
Goodwin said that the Research Roundtable lectures help UNLV faculty and students to be more aware of women’s issues. The lecture series started last spring with 20 or 30 attendees and had over 50 audience members on Wednesday.