The Women of Little Lon - Sex work and the law, then and now. With historian Barbara Minchinton

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Done By Law

News & Politics


This week on Done by law, we are talking about sex work. Currently in Victoria there is a review of the sex industry laws underway. Decriminalisation is on the table. There is a really interesting history to the way sex work has been dealt with by our justice system. Tess and Su chat with Barbara Minchinton, an expert on this history. Barbara's new book, Women of Little Lon, is focussed on the sex workers of Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne during the early 20th century. Part of that history is the law that surrounded sex work. We discuss connections between the old days and the 21st century situation, including what lessons we've learnt from the past, and what decriminalisation might achieve.