Today, December 17, is the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.

Learn more about sex work, from sex workers.

Start with Power

POWER Ottawa has done the work for us already! They’ve created an awesome toolkit that includes common myths followed by facts. Check out the entire toolkit here.

Maggie McNeil has also created a fabulously researched tearing down of the most popular lies we’re taught about sex work. Read the it in its entirety here.

Myth: Sex Workers Can’t Date

Lusty Day and Beef Jerky made this great short video interviewing sex workers about what they wished their partners knew.

“I want you to know that even though part of my identity is being a survivor of sexual abuse, another part of my identity is being a sex worker, that the two aren’t related and there’s no cause between the two.”

Myth: All Sex Work is Trafficking

The difference is consent.

Created by the National Center for Transgender Equality

From EachOther:

Human trafficking is a horrific human rights violation that utilises threats, force, abduction, deception and coercion in order to control people and exploit them.

Sex work is a consensual transaction between adults. For many sex workers, this is their only means of survival.

The Global Commission on HIV and the Law states unequivocally that: “Sex work and sex trafficking are not the same. The difference is that the former is consensual, whereas the latter is coercive.”

Trafficking is also not unique to the sex industry; it exists anywhere that people work.

Created by Sex Workers of Winnipeg Action Coalition

Read more about why anti-trafficking has become such a huge issue and how increased criminalization hurts those who are most vulnerable in Robin Maynard’s (author of ‘Policing Black Lives’, available in the DWS Library) interview with Nandita Sharma:

Ultimately, if we want to end the exploitation of women, we need to challenge capitalism, which is the basis for all of our exploitation. Whether we’re working in the sex industry, a restaurant, or in a university, we’re being exploited by those who are benefitting from our labour. So, if we want to end exploitation, we don’t give more power to the state to criminalize workers, we give more power to workers to end their exploitation.

Myth: Sex Workers Aren’t Part of Our community

Sex workers are our neighbours, classmates, and coworkers. Often you know sex workers, but it’s not safe for them to let you know what their work is.

“Most of us want to earn some money and pay back debts. Pay for university and take care of our kids. This is the reason that most of us are working.”

Myth: All Sex Work is Violent

The illegality of sex work puts sex workers at risk, but the job is not always violent by default.

“I would have to say that being part of the sex worker rights movement and the struggle to fight for our rights is more stressful than sex work in general.” - Kate

Myth: There’s No Place for Non-Sex Workers in the Struggle for Sex Worker Rights

Any time that we have a position of privilege, it’s important to recognize that power, how we benefit from it, and how we can turn the mic most often to those impacted by oppression.

POWER Ottawa has an INCREDIBLE toolkit for folks to learn more about sex work, that includes these tips to being part of the solution:

People who do sex work need:

to be recognized as full citizens.
to be listened to without being judged.
to be taken seriously.
to be integrated into the community without fear of being ostracized.
to have our human and civil rights recognized and respected.
to have access to public, health and judicial services without discrimination.
to have access to the rights and protection afforded workers under provincial labour laws.
to have our work decriminalized and recognized as work.
to have our realities understood and not to be discriminated against on the basis of stigmatic assumptions.

Read the entire toolkit here.

Myth: Sex Work Isn’t Skilled Work

Communication, administration, planning, project coordination, calendar management, book keeping… Sex workers have to have a tremendous amount of skills to be able to work.

Madison Winter wrote about her experience of switching from a job on Bay Street in banking to becoming a sex worker:

Sex workers are also full-blown entrepreneurs. So many of the skills that I learned studying business and in my finance roles transferred to sex work.

Many of us have created a brand, identified a niche market, designed and directed our own content creation, maintain social media presences, answer all our own emails, and customize the experiences we provide to suit our clients. Additionally, many of us do our own web-design, SEO, and monitor our analytics.

MYTH: Sex Workers have nothing to teach us about consent

Sex workers often have been on the leading edge of conversations about consent!

Jessie Patella-Rey interviewed many sex workers for her article ‘Want to figure out the rules of sexual consent? Ask sex workers.’

“Something unique about sex work is that consent is seen as a collective responsibility. Sex workers organize to build their power and the ability to prevent abuse.” - Chanelle Gallant

“Stripping taught me how to value my time, my emotional energy and my body. It taught me how to stand up for myself. I never used to tell men who accosted me on the street to go away. Now it’s easy. I don’t feel bad about valuing my space and soul.” - Reese Piper

‘Here’s what sex work taught me: I can say ‘yes’ to a lap dance then say ‘no’ to kissing. I can say ‘yes’ to kissing, then say ‘no’ to a blowjob. I can say ‘yes’ to a blowjob, then say ‘no’ to intercourse. … Saying ‘yes’ to one sexual act is saying ‘yes’ to that particular sexual act, and nothing more. Sex workers navigate these waters all day, every day.”’ - Lola Davina

“I’d argue that we need to empower sex workers to continue to do the sort of valuable, consent-focused work that we are already doing. In relationship to consent, we need to stop thinking about sex work as the problem, and start thinking about sex workers as part of the solution.” - Jessie Patella-Rey

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