I recently read an interesting article on BBC news. It’s about male prostitutes in India (or gigolos as the author refers to them)..

The men being interviewed talk openly about their profession and what they’re required to do for their customers. They also mention that their male friends often envy them, assuming theirs is a pleasant and easy job.

But in reality, it isn’t nearly as pleasant as it might seem. The women – the preferred target group – often demand sexual acts that shock these men, who are of a predominantly middle class background. Many of these women want to stub out burning cigarettes on the prostitutes’ bodies. Usually, there’s an extra charge for that.

These days increasing numbers of the clients come from the middle classes. Until quite recently, only women from the upper classes paid for sex.

The men often come from ‘respectable’ professions, but became unemployed. They drift into prositution by accident. Their ages range from late teens to late thirties.They youngest are often school dropouts, who end up in massage parlors.

What these men complain most about, is the fact that their incomes from selling sex to women, usually aren’t enough. They often have to resort to male customers, to make ends meet.

My first reaction was: cool! Don’t get me wrong. I am not in favor of prostitution. It’s just that I get so tired of reading about women as objects and merchandise. Besides, I think that in order for the average man to begin to understand this situation, he has to realize that not only women sell sex. Many men of a suitable age, are – hypothetically – potential sex sellers.

Of course, this isn’t a fair comparison. The majority of women do not become prostitutes of their own free will. They were sold by their parents, abducted or driven into prostitution by drug addiction or extreme poverty.

Most men who sell their bodies do so voluntarily. They don’t risk violence, robbery or rape, to the same extent as women. After all, their physical strength is often equal to that of their customers.

Even so, this could be a good start. Some day we might be able to eradicate this sordid trade entirely. At least that’s my sincere wish.