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Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

opinion oped

EDITORIAL: The Moonlite Bunny Ranch Brothel appeals to women as a solution to student debts

Bunny ranch

Student debt is a crippling burden for many college students and most will do just about anything in order to pay it off.

Some college students, like Krissy Summers who had $40,000 in student loans, are entering legal prostitution in Nevada to earn enough cash to pay off their loans.

Paying off student debt through legal prostitution gives a new meaning to the idea that students will do anything to escape serious amounts of debt.

Dennis Hof, owner of the Moonlite Bunny Ranch Brothel in Nevada claims 18 percent of his 500 employees have student debt and the student debt conversation comes up, “every day in the interview process,” according to CNN Money.

Hof also claimed more college students are applying to work for one of his many brothels than ever before.

Hof decided to give more assistance to these women by matching their payments for student loans. With Hof’s help, Summers had paid off her $40,000 debt within 60 days. The money Hof uses to match these student debt payments comes out of his 50 percent cut of the money the employees make.

Before we get into other details, we want to make sure the legality of this business is established. The owners of all brothels in Nevada must have a license to operate a brothel, according to 
criminaldefenselawyer.com.

All brothels reside in only eight counties in the state due to strict regulations on the location of these businesses. All sex workers are required by law to participate in regular HIV testing and use 
condoms.

Though entering into legal prostitution gives these students the ability to pay off massive amounts of debt rather quickly, we’re worried about other effects last-option prostitution can have on a person’s life.

Although all of the sex workers are required to have regular HIV testing, prostitution is still a dangerous profession. It is still possible for sex workers to obtain various sexually transmitted diseases. Though workers in legal brothels have more protection than others in their profession, abuse is still a possibility.

The Editorial Board believes Bunny Ranch owner Dennis Hof is helping his employees pay off their debts quickly.

However, we feel as though his method of help is rather manipulative, especially because Hof is 
advertising his business as a way to pay off student debt.

This type of advertisement makes prostitution a more attractive example to desperate students who cannot find another job that will help them pay off their debt as quickly.

We think legal prostitution is a profession that should only be considered an option if the person has a desire to be a sex worker. There’s nothing wrong with working in a brothel when it’s legal, safe and fair for those working there.

But from our vantage point, it seems as though most of these students are only seeking employment in brothels because they need a job where they can earn large sums of money quickly. Not because they desire to work there.

We hope students give more consideration to this entering sex work than just earning potential.

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