Sex Work, Stigma and Racism
Commissioned by Brass Monkey Magazine.
I am always selective about when I choose to talk about my experience as a sex worker, because I want the discussion to be on my terms.
I have worked in the Erotic Labour industry for six years now, and I find that I am very protective of our industry because unless you’ve worked in it, you can never truly understand the dynamics. I hate it when civilians try and enter our world to produce work about us from their gaze, not really understanding the harm misrepresentation and exploitation does to our communities. I never watched strip down rise up, because I just assumed it would be trash for these reasons. The only good work about Sex workers is by sex workers, period.
I think as sex workers we often find it hard to discuss the hardships that come with sex work around civilians because people already have a predetermined idea of what sex work is like, and they’re ready to project a particular narrative onto you before you’ve even opened your mouth. Because of this, I often find it hard to talk about all aspects of sex work, because if the nuances aren’t understood then people either end up thinking it’s all bad and we’re all victims, or it’s all good and we all make loads of money all of the time. Both notions are harmful because one ignores our agency and the joy and power we have as sex workers, and the other minimises how hard our jobs are. What I really want is for people to actually take the time to listen to sex workers and understand what we’re actually saying, rather than listening to the parts of our stories that fit their assumptions and ignoring all other aspects.
An important aspect of Sex work that needs to be understood, is that the stigma surrounding sex work stems from centuries old hatred of women and femmes who express their own sexual agency and dissent from patriarchal ideals. Society hates this because women were historically seen as property and sex was something done to us and not something that we were meant to enjoy or take ownership of. The consequent harmful stereotypes are that we’re all spreading STIs through unsafe sex, and that we’re thieves, drug addicts, and unintelligent scroungers with traumatic pasts. Firstly, I need to address that those who do Full Service Sex Work (FSSW) are often the most hypervigilant when it comes to sexual health, because having sex is their literal job. It’s like saying all mechanics do not know how to look after cars, it doesn’t make sense! Also, people in every industry struggle with addiction and have traumatic pasts, and the majority of us are intelligent beyond your wildest dreams. Sex workers are a multifaceted community, like a lot of people sex workers have families, friends, hobbies, degrees, and 9-5 jobs. Despite this, sex workers experience a disproportionate amount of violence, over-policing, financial discrimination, medical discrimination, and many other barriers to accessing essential services. The system works against sex workers at every opportunity and compromises our safety. If you’re Black or a POC on top of this the dangers are much worse, and the darker you are the worse it gets.
Often when sex work is publicly discussed white sex workers are centred or sought out to provide their input. BPOC sex workers are often erased when sex work is given a public platform. There is a lot of privilege when it comes to whiteness in sex work and my experiences as a Black, Queer sex worker are starkly different. Black sex workers often have to work ten times as hard to do half as well. Racism and colourism severely impact your earnings as a Black sex worker, because customers and management often treat you awfully in comparison to white counterparts, and colourism means that darker skinned sex workers are disregarded, undermined, underestimated, and abused. Being Black in this industry means you must find yourself in the right environment if you want to thrive. Dark-skinned Black Trans FSSWers are the most marginalised and endangered members of society and they always have been.
The pole industry needs to do better when it comes to supporting sex workers. Sex work is not easy, and it is dangerous because of other people’s views. I would encourage pole dancers to not only educate themselves on sex work, but to stand up for sex workers especially BPOC sex workers, to pull their MPs up on harmful legislation, and to donate to fundraisers in support of BPOC sex workers, especially Black trans sex workers.
One of the best ways to support sex workers other than obviously listening to us and voting in accordance with what is best for us, would be to financially support organisations that help us like the Black Sex Workers Relief fund UK, SWARM, Decrimnow, National Ugly Mugs, and donate to SWer-led organisations creating art and showcases like Sexquisite events and Blackstage.
https://uk.gofundme.com/f/42w8fm
https://uglymugs.org/um/donate/
https://www.swarmcollective.org/donate
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/sexquisite-digital-devised-theatre-show
https://uk.gofundme.com/f/blackstage039s-first-event
