The Equality Model
What is the Equality Model?
The Equality Model is not a trafficking law but a prostitution law.
The Equality Model is a 4-prong legal framework that recognizes prostitution as a form of violence, in particular, male violence against women. It ends the criminalization of anyone engaged in prostitution, offers them comprehensive and trauma-informed programming, holds sex buyers accountable for the crimes they perpetrate and educates the public about the harms of prostitution and to society.
Sweden was the first country to enact this law in 1999 (known then as the “Swedish Model”, followed by Iceland and Norway in 2009 (known as the Nordic Model). Since 2014, six other jurisdictions have followed suit with Northern Ireland, Canada, France, the Republic of Ireland, Israel and the U.S. State of Maine, now known as the “Equality Model”.
Recognizing the inherent harms in prostitution brings attention to the need for specialized programming, access to resources and options.
Studies indicate that while most people in the sex trade want to leave, they face significant barriers that make safe and permanent exits difficult.
The goal is to recognize prostitution as a harmful practice.
Sweden’s Model Policy
Sweden was the first country to introduce the Sex Purchase Act in 1999 after decades of public debate. Ending violence against women has always been a goal within Sweden’s gender equality policies, along with addressing prostitution as a form of violence and the law as a tool to prevent sex trafficking. The law has been successful in changing people’s perceptions of prostitution and has had a significant impact on reducing male demand for prostitution, along with reducing their prostituted people.
Measurable Results from Sweden
In 2009, the Swedish government established an inquiry on how the law worked and the effect it had on both prostitution and trafficking.
- Street prostitution in Sweden was reduced by 50% since the introduction of the law.
- There was no evidence that prostitution went underground.
- There was no indication that it increased the risk of violence or worsened the conditions of those exploited in prostitution.
- Trafficking in women and girls was reduced and considered to be substantially smaller in scale than in other countries.
- One of the biggest achievements was the change of attitude to the purchase of sexual services and how young boys now grow to view prostitution as harmful. There is still strong support for the ban on purchasing sexual services in Sweden, 70-80%.
Global Adoption of the Equality Model
Since 1999, other countries have adopted this same legislation, Norway and Iceland in 2009, Canada 2014, Northern Ireland in 2015, France in 2016, Ireland in 2017, Israel in 2020 and the U.S. state of Maine in 2023. France has the strongest Equality Model law and is an inspiration to other jurisdictions; it also included provisions for nationwide exit programs. Since its enactment in 2016, no person purchased in the sex trade has been arrested and 1,247 accessed services.
A Cautionary Tale: Legalization in Germany
In comparison, Germany made buying sex, selling sex, pimping and brothel keeping legal in 2002. This triggered an unstoppable growth in the sex trade and sex trafficking. It also created the opening of Europe’s largest brothels, and Germany is now considered the “brothel of Europe”, which has also proven the correlation between legalized prostitution and sex trafficking.
Reports and stories from survivors have highlighted the atrocious conditions under Germany’s legal system. Many involved have been young women from Romania and Bulgaria, having to serve dozens of men through flat rate deals, getting very little money, and often not being allowed to leave the brothels.
We know decriminalizing or legalizing prostitution doesn’t make it safer; it only normalizes the sexual violence inherent in prostitution. When male demand increases, trafficking increases, as it has always disproportionately impacted the most vulnerable.
