Identidades in English No 3, September 2014 | Page 27

whore and asserts that prostitution is often a
choice.
Hopeful Alice declares: “None of us thinks: ‘I
love being a prostitute.’ We all have dreams.
There are a lot of girls who need to be coached
and oriented regarding the world of professional
sex, and above all about sexually transmitted diseases. Didn’t the Phoenix rise from the ashes? I
think these difficulties are just a normal part of all
this. We should not back off without facing the
situation like a challenge that could bring with it
great progress or improvement” (CECCOM
2014).
A domestic employee who prostituted herself
near the Castelão Stadium8 so she could contribute to her family’s income, recounted, as she became increasingly saddened: “I even feel good
about it, because of the money but, on the other
hand, it is terrible because of my children and
husband. My fear is that my oldest daughter, who
is 16, will find out and want to do the same thing.
If that happened, who could judge her?” (Pavarini
2014). These are two contrary stories and ideas
from people who practice the same profession.
Then there is the issue of why opinions about this
are also divided by religious and non-religious
legislators involved in the Law’s approval process. Prostitution, the stigma that goes with it, and
the proposed Law will not contribute to overcoming this division. Sex professionals believe the
law will garner them dignity. They are also certain that the feminist sector—which I also believe
to be civil—doesn’t support it or represent it because it does not understand their world. Gabriela
Leite strongly believes it will not be approved by
the Congress on account of conservative, feminist, religious and civic groups. According to Dr.
Rubens Teixeira and the opinion of some prostitutes, they don’t want to identify as such when
they demand their social rights because it would
make it obvious that many families would not
want to have prostitutes in them or be proud of
them. This is why they don’t support the proposed
law. Regarding its legalization and existence, it
may protect them from violent acts such as those
described by a prostitute: “According to Alice de

Oliveira, the increase in the number of registered
tourists during the Federation Cup’s debate in
Fortaleza was difficult and hard to even be aware
of during the vacation period, which traditionally
brings an increase in tourists. Yet, the Spanish
delegation got into the spotlight when a confusion
with young escorts took place at a Fortaleza hotel,
which was evidently denied by those who employed their services” (CECCON 2013).
The prostitutes were abused by the Spanish delegation and were ignored (they were treated negligently) with respect to any kind of protection or
denunciation. In this case, patriarchy won out; the
players subordinated the prostitutes to their masculinity in a hostile manner. Had the law been approved, that would not have happened because
there would have been legal institutions to intervene in the case, according to Gabriela Leite. But
the feminists and women’s collective CUT reassured that the legislation would further crystalize
patriarchy and capitalism, and inspire a false
sense of protection, empowerment and control
over their bodies. In reality, if brothels were legal,
it would leave them in the hands of the capitalist
oppressors who would benefit from their services,
leaving them doubly exploited. This is why feminists Pagu and Rocha (201