Still other 19th century feminists, who were involved in the purity crusades that characterized the Progressive Era, vilified prostitution. In her essay Not Repeating History , the contemporary advocate for prostitutes' rights Gail Pheterson reflects on the advice offered by Josephine Butler. Controversy over the issue of prostitution has clouded feminist movements throughout history. The modern debate reveals deep and fundamental ideological conflicts. Liberal feminism is divided on the issue.
Some liberals carry tolerance one step farther into advocacy.
They defend prostitution as an extension of the right of consenting adults to perform whatever sexual acts they wish. Individualist feminists, arguing from the principle of self-ownership, also advocate the rights of prostitutes. To them, prostitution is the reverse of rape during which a woman's body is taken without her consent. In prostitution, a woman fully consents to sex and often initiates it. If society respects a woman's right to say 'no' to sex, they argue that society must also respect her right to say 'yes'.