ALBANY, N.Y. — New York state would legalize the buying and selling of sex under a proposal introduced in the state Legislature Monday that would lift criminal penalties for sex work.
The bill isn’t expected to get a vote before the Democrat-led Senate and Assembly plan to adjourn for the year next week. But supporters still hailed the announcement of the bill as a critical step toward repealing criminal penalties for sex workers and their customers.
Speaking at a press conference in Manhattan on Monday, former and current sex workers talked about being forced into the industry as minors.
TS Crandii, a former sex worker and current leader in the effort to decriminalize the industry, said she started selling sex at age 13 as a matter of survival.
The bill’s sponsor in the Assembly, Manhattan Democrat Richard Gottfried, said outlawing prostitution has only forced sex workers into the shadows, where they can be exploited, trafficked and then punished for breaking the law.