Legal brothels have been shuttered for nearly a year, leaving sex workers to offer less-lucrative alternatives like online dates or nonsexual escort services. Those in the industry say many of the licensed prostitutes, who work as independent contractors, have struggled to qualify for unemployment benefits since closures began last March and some have opted to take their work into the shadows, offering sex illegally. Like other close-contact industries such as massage therapy and dental services, they contend brothels should be allowed to reopen with protective measures.
You can go to a tattoo parlor and get your face tattooed right now. You can get piercings put in your face. A state task force that makes recommendations on coronavirus restrictions hasn't responded to pleas from brothel owners seeking a way to reopen. And a lawsuit Little filed against Gov. Steve Sisolak last year fizzled. The Democratic governor recently said brothels, along with other adult entertainment like nightclubs and strip clubs, would stay closed at least through May 1.
After that, the state may let counties decide whether to allow those businesses to open, as long as COVID infections aren't surging. Nevada, like many states, saw a spike of coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths around the winter holidays, but since mid-January, those numbers have been steadily declining. Brothels and prostitution are illegal in the counties that include Las Vegas and Reno, but some brothels are a half-hour to an hour away.
Some offer free limo rides from the casino-heavy cities. I am able to pay my bills. Other brothel workers who are not comfortable linking their faces to online sex work have had a harder time pivoting to virtual services, she said. Finding a job outside the stigmatized sex industry also can be tough, Little said, because background checks can reveal the work authorization cards prostitutes must have in brothels.
Starr, like Little, started offering virtual dates, where she might share a glass of wine, dinner and conversation with clients. Starr said she's able to cover her bills but can no longer put thousands in savings. She moved to Pittsburgh to live closer to family and save on rent. Mustang Ranch, about 20 miles 32 kilometers east of Reno, appears to be the only brothel still offering some kind of companionship, taking advantage of an escort license it's had for about two decades.
