FROM PROSTITUTION TO THE JOB

THE ROMANTICIZATION OF FEMALE SEX WORK IN THE DIGITAL AGE FROM A HUMAN RIGHTS PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the romanticization of female sex work in the digital age within the Brazilian context, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, from a Human Rights perspective. The research seeks to understand how the transition from street prostitution, historically stigmatized, to the digital sex work model often referred to as a job and associated with discourses of glamour and freedom on online platforms has taken place. Through a historical and comparative approach, the study contextualizes the evolution of sex work in Brazil, highlighting the social, legal, and symbolic impacts of this shift to the digital environment. It also examines the absence of specific regulation, which contributes to the precariousness and invisibility of sex workers’ rights in Brazil. The study concludes that, although the digital environment has enabled new forms of work, it also reinforces inequalities and obscures the real conditions faced by these women, making the development of inclusive public policies and a Human Rights-based approach urgent.