The beliefs, taboos and false value that has been given to women’s virginity since time immemorial have been the cause of all kinds of atrocities. The exacerbated and imagined value given to the integrity of the hymen is still accepted and even established by many social and governmental institutions around the world, which has given rise to, In 2021, the sale of virginities continues to exist.
Virginity has even been referred to as “the only wealth that girls could offer”, it was (and continues to be for many countries) a passport to a marriage that would save them and even their families from poverty, or that would increase their social status.
The problem of its aggrandized value goes back for philosophers and anthropologists to the very definition of the concept, since while some people define it as never having had a sexual encounter, other definitions are limited to the integrity of the hymen. This increases the falsehood around the concept, since the hymen can break in a fall or a bicycle accident, just as there are procedures such as hymenoplasty, which reconstruct the hymen.
Sale of virginities: both voluntary and imposed
In recent years, there have been many cases around the world of girls who advertise, auction or sell their virginity publicly at high prices in order to pay for their studies or improve their own or their family’s economic situation. There are even internet platforms open to the public that offer this type of services.
This has given rise to interviews, studies and notes about the girls who are offering their virginity, but it once again becomes a patriarchal demonstration since the man who pays those high sums of money is not studied or interviewed, and who is clearly essential for these practices to continue, since there is no supply without demand.
These cases of girls who do it voluntarily (for whatever reason) are ironically those who have been lucky, since a high number of girls and adolescents fall into virginity trafficking networks or sex trafficking networks, including sexual tourism. , commercial sexual exploitation of children, boys and girls involved in prostitution, etc. All this due to traumatic childhoods, kidnappings, or even the sale of the girl or boy by the same family, almost always low-income.
Today, in the middle of 2021, the body continues to be seen as an assetand virginity as an “extra” value, an accessory that gives status to the merchandise and increases its value, not only because it is new, but because of the illusory virtue of exclusivity that it provides.
In Central America, Mexico and some parts of the United States, the sale of virginities, human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children are much more common than we know or what we would all like to think. There are girls being introduced to the world of prostitution from the age of 11, many times by their parents, who should protect them the most.
In Colombia, human trafficking, and with it The sale of virginities is the third source of income for transnational organized crime.and (around the world, not just in Colombia) is related to crimes such as kidnapping, extortion, money laundering, corruption, and trafficking of drugs and illicit migrants.
Most of the time, the victims of the sale of virginities are girls from rural areas or marginal neighborhoods, who belong to disintegrated low-income families seeking to improve their standard of living; Although lately adolescent girls with a desire to improve their studies or help their family financially have also been part of the profile.
The testimonies of girls who were forced to sell their virginity are heartbreaking, and it is heartbreaking to think that, both in Latin America and in many other countries around the world, it is enough to be part of a dysfunctional family or to have had the misfortune of being born in a of few resources to be at risk of being put up for sale.
There are movements like #YoDigoNoMás, which are dedicated to helping people who have gone through this and many other types of abuse. If you are interested in learning about the ways the movement helps, or if you are interested in contributing to this cause, visit /.
You can be part of the change, join this movement on their own behalf or on behalf of hundreds of victims who have not been able to find their voice to speak out against this scourge.
Find the multiple options we have for and do let your voice be heard.