Modern society, as we know it, is bereft of social justice and fairness. We live comfortably in a world where nearly everything has a price i.e., water, land, education and even human attention. Yet, we suffer tall panic the moment a woman says “Nope, this one is not for free.” Suddenly, morality wakes up like a church elder who has just heard that popular Sister Bethina song at the nearby tavern. 

For centuries, men have behaved as if they are the natural custodians of the female body. Almost as if the vagina is a public utility, like a municipal tap that must flow freely, especially for those who arrive with nothing but confidence and vibes. The idea that a woman can say, “access denied unless there is compensation,” shakes something deep in the patriarchal system. It disturbs an old, comfortable lie. 

Our society generally has no problem with people using their bodies to make a living. In fact, that is exactly how the economy works. 

The educated class sells brain power. The working class sells muscle. We all understand that survival under capitalism means converting parts of ourselves into value. But when women seek to derive a livelihood from their own bodies, suddenly the rules change. 

We even buy water now, something many still call a gift from God. It falls from the sky, sustains life and belongs to no one. Yet we bottle it and sell it. Nobody is marching in the streets saying, “water must not be commodified”. We swipe our cards and move on.

But a woman cannot sell access to her own body? 

That contradiction cannot be explained by morality alone. It must be located within the broader system of patriarchy and misogyny; a system that has always depended on controlling the female body and prescribing choices for it. 

Patriarchy is not just about individual attitudes; it is an economic and social order. It assigns value unevenly. It decides whose labour counts, whose bodies are regulated and whose autonomy is negotiable. In a patriarchal society, the female body is treated as a site of control to be regulated through culture, religion, law and social expectation. 

As Angela Davis reminds us, women’s unpaid labour has long been a foundation of economic systems. The home, often romanticised as a place of love, is also a site of extraction where cooking, cleaning, caregiving and emotional support are provided without wages. This is not incidental; it is structural. 

Capitalism and patriarchy have worked hand in hand to naturalise women’s exploitation by making their labour appear as duty rather than work. If it is love, it need not be paid. If it is nature, it need not be questioned. 

Bell Hooks was correct in insisting that patriarchy survives by normalising domination while disguising it as order. Women are expected to give, to nurture, to provide but not to set terms. Not to negotiate value. Not to withdraw. 

This is where misogyny enters, not just as hatred of women but as punishment for women who refuse their assigned roles. A woman who complies is celebrated. A woman who resists is labelled immoral or deviant. 

And so, the criminalisation and stigma around sex work are not isolated phenomena. They are extensions of a broader system that polices the autonomy of women. The issue is not simply the exchange of money for intimacy; it is the fact that women are asserting control over access to their bodies. 

And that is intolerable in a system built on entitlement. 

Because once a woman can say “this is mine and this is the price”, she disrupts the entire logic of patriarchy. She challenges the idea that men are entitled to access, whether through marriage, romance and/or economic dependency. She transforms what was assumed into something negotiated. 

The discomfort with sex work is not really about sex. It is about power. 

It is about a system that is comfortable commodifying everything, from water to wisdom, but draws the line when women claim ownership over their own bodies. It is about a society that allows men to sell their minds and muscles, but demands that women offer themselves within boundaries defined by others. 

Until we confront patriarchy and misogyny at their root, until we accept that women are full agents capable of defining the terms of their own existence, this contradiction will stubbornly remain. And we will continue to live in a world where everything can be bought, except a woman’s right to decide her own value.

*Tshediso Mangope moonlights as a social commentator in his spare time and writes in his personal capacity…  

**The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of this publication (Journal News).