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Global Stratification

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Global stratification is the hierarchical set up of people and groups in the societies all over the world in terms of socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic status is the measure of economic and social statues of a person and where they lie in the class structure in the society. Societies all over the world reflect global stratification which puts the poor and vulnerable at the bottom and the strong and wealthy at the top. Global stratification can be examined from three levels namely; micro-level analysis which looks at the influence a person wields in the society leading to inequality; meso-level analysis where a person’s connection to organizations and other entities can lead to inequality; and macro-level analysis where international economic systems mold individuals resources and benefits thus creating inequality. Examples of how global stratification show themselves is slavery which even though is thought to have been eradicated, still continues to thrive in some part of the world.

Here is definitely a link between sex tourism and global stratification because as shown in the case, many people condemned to sex tourism are in the lower strata of the society thus making the powerless and vulnerable. The powerful and the wealthy can then take advantage of them in form of sex tourism. There are many aspects to the stratification of sex tourism, Most of it occurs in poor countries among the poor people and it is even worse that children are the ones targeted and not much is being done by the authorities to stop it. The classification system puts the sex tourists above the child victims and other poor prostitutes because they have money. From the pattern, most sex tourists are rich and come from rich countries which are an example of macro-level stratification where international economic systems grant individuals advantage over other individuals from poor countries. Prostitutes in poor countries resort to this activity to earn money as a livelihood while the sex tourists do it as a form of leisure. First, they can afford to travel all over the world then still spend money for sex with prostitutes.

Sex tourism is more globally stratified because the poor people acting as prostitute are subjugated by the rich and powerful. In the micro-level analysis of stratification, the powerful have influence in the society and they can wield this influence to get what they want. Rich people especially tourists in poor countries have too much power due to the amount of money they have and the control they have on the local authorities based on their races and the countries they come from. This is linked to the meso-level of analysis where the influential are able to compromise the organization and institutions like law enforcement entities. It has been known that the powerful people have used bribes and even threats to circumvent the law in sex tourism especially that involving children thus firmly maintaining the inequality between the rich and the poor and vulnerable.

Modernization theory is used in sociology to explain the process in which a society changes from traditional norms and systems to modern ones (Andersen, & Taylor, 2007). Modernization argues that more traditional societies can be modernized using the methods that other modernized societies used in order to achieve economic development and general advancement. Modernization theory has its own weaknesses in terms of exposure it brings to traditional societies and the cultural shock that these societies experience (Andersen, & Taylor, 2007). For instance, sex tourism is as a result of modernization aided by economic wellness of people who travel the world looking for prostitutes in places where it is legal to have sex with underage people or where the laws are too weak and are not enforced.

Many poor countries experiencing the brunt of sex tourism are just coming out of traditional societies and the sudden modernization in the sense that they are capable to earn money by selling their bodies raises a contentious issue of whether it is moral and whether modernization of societies is as good as purported by the civilized societies. Modernization was made possible by urbanization and industrialization. The rise of industries created economic development by providing jobs and making people capable of purchasing commodities and services. In the West, this was when prostitution boomed as miners would pay for sex with prostitutes who could not work in the mines. Urban centers formed around industries and the prostitution continued and morphed into a huge industry albeit underground.

The problem of sex tourism can be viewed from the angle of modernization because the enablers are all technologies and components of modernization like transportation, money, urban areas and systems. Sex tourism like in Thailand is concentrated in urban centers because these are the places where tourists visit and the prostitutes also coalesce here to ply their trade. Traffickers and peddlers of child prostitution are capable to use modern ways to facilitate their activities all over the world mainly through corruption that involves bribing officials. The trend is noticeable where most sex tourists come from modernized societies and countries like the United States, Germany, Japan, Australia and other European countries. Sex tourism also often occurs in less modernized societies like in Asia such as Thailand and Africa such as Tanzania and Kenya. The perils of modernization include permanently damaged generation of young boys and girls engaging in these activities and the spread of HIV/AIDS. The authorities are often slow to respond because of the economic benefits of these underground industries in form of taxes and expenditure of tourists mainly because the society is run on modernized systems like capitalism.

Reference

Andersen, M., & Taylor, H. (2007). Sociology: Understanding a Diverse Society, Updated (1st ed.). Cengage Learning.

Email ericshawd@gmail.com for originally written papers.