Welcome to\u00a0Vice City, 2026.<\/p>\n
NYC Democratic mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani <\/a>has been a passionate supporter of decriminalizing prostitution \u2014 leaving many critics fearful the Big Apple will devolve into a hedonistic den of iniquity if he wins November\u2019s general election.<\/p>\n As far back as when he was running for state Assembly in 2020, Mamdani has cheered that hookers should be able to turn tricks with impunity.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only must we decriminalize sex work, we need a comprehensive platform of justice for all,\u201d\u00a0Mamdani said on the campaign trail in May 2020.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n And as a Queens assemblyman, he\u2019s co-sponsored multiple versions of legislation to decriminalize sex work statewide that remain stalled,\u00a0<\/a>supports them annually, <\/a>and has\u00a0spoken out in favor of the proposed law change many times.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI would like to register my support for [decriminalizing sex work] legislation, my eagerness for that debate and for my fundamental belief that sex work is work,\u201d he said\u00a0at a February 2021 Assembly meeting.<\/a><\/p>\n Yet Mamdani has barely said a word on the topic during his mayoral run, leaving many critics fearful he\u2019s ready to roll out a Trojan Horse-style plan should he win the election.<\/p>\n NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has been a passionate supporter of decriminalizing prostitution but has remained on the subject while on the campaign. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cThe public needs to be fully aware that Mr. Mamdani wants a New York City where selling sex, buying sex, and promoting the sale of sex is completely normal and legal,\u201d warned Sonia Ossorio, executive director of National Organization for Women NYC,\u00a0which works to advance women\u2019s rights, policy and leadership.<\/p>\n \u201cBut unlike many of his most concerning and controversial positions, he\u2019s not out there talking about this because he knows it shocks the conscience.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe consequences\u201d of decriminalizing prostitution would mean the Big Apple \u201cbecoming a sex tourism destination,\u201d potentially rivaling the red-light district in Amsterdam and parts of Belgium and Nevada where selling sex is legal, she added.<\/p>\n Proponents of decriminalizing sex work claim allowing legal sex work leaves hookers \u2014 especially those who are trans, illegal migrants or people of color \u2014 less vulnerable to violence and exploitation by pimps, johns and even police officers.<\/p>\n But many studies of countries and cities where prostitution is legal \u2014 including in Europe and parts of Nevada \u2014 show it typically leads to increases in crime, including human trafficking, organized crime and violence against prostitutes. Similar studies that were inconclusive found no significant drops in crime.<\/p>\n Queens residents have complained about Roosevelt Avenue\u2019s \u201cMarket of Sweethearts\u201d and the quality-of-life issues stemming from it. For the New York Post<\/p>\n Ossorio said decriminalizing prostitution in other parts of the world has historically led to sex work and sex trade expanding there, something she fears could happen in the Big Apple if Mamdani becomes mayor.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happens when you have more paying customers?\u201d she said. \u201cYou have to go to the poorest neighborhoods and recruit young girls, and you have to import younger people from other countries. That is not in line with Mr. Mamdani\u2019s slogan [of providing] \u2018dignity for everyone.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n If elected mayor, Mamdani would still need to go through the state Legislature to decriminalize sex work, but he\u2019d be in a prime position to better advocate for such changes as well as ensuring that cracking down on prostitution is a low priority for the NYPD.<\/p>\n Mamdani noted his stance on decriminalizing sex work in his 2020 state Assembly campaign.<\/p>\n Clusters of New York City have been inundated with an influx of hookers and pimps brazenly peddling flesh on public streets since legislation repealing a state\u00a0statute prohibiting loitering for the purpose of prostitution was signed into law in February 2021 by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo,<\/a> critics said.<\/p>\n They include Queens\u2019 infamous migrant \u201cMarket of Sweethearts\u201d<\/a> along the Roosevelt Avenue corridor in Jackson Heights, Corona and other surrounding neighborhoods; seedy Penn Track<\/a> in East New York, Brooklyn; and a sleazy section of the South Bronx called \u201cThe Hub.\u201d<\/p>\n Both Rosa Sanchez,\u00a0president of the Restore Roosevelt Avenue Coalition, and former Queens Councilman Hiram Monserrate\u00a0\u2013 who used the represent the neighborhoods encompassing the \u201cMarket of the Sweethearts\u201d \u2013 said the area will only get worse under Mamdani.<\/p>\n \u201cI strongly believe crime will rise even more here,\u201d said Sanchez. \u201cOur community is already suffering with all the crime and prostitution and all the gangs affiliated with prostitution. We\u2019ve seen Roosevelt Avenue deteriorate with young ladies on corners. What example are we setting for our children?\u201d<\/p>\n