What is authority?

A couple months ago a very popular “self-improvement” blogger wrote a post that mentioned prostitutes in Vegas. Although he knows it’s illegal in Vegas, he was under the impression (like most people) that the laws weren’t enforced much. He toyed with the idea of interviewing a prostitute and posting the interview on his blog. He was sure it would get a lot of Digg hits. And that’s the important thing.

I’m sure he wouldn’t have offered to pay for her time (What? Pay for anything with a sex worker? Doesn’t that incriminate you?), but would happily pick her brain for as long as it took him to run through his questions (most of which she’s probably tired of answering), just so he could get a lot of Digg hits and bring lots of traffic to his blog. Hopefully some of that traffic would click on his AdSense ads and affiliate links and bring him some money. That’s the really important thing.

This isn’t to pick on him specifically. There’s nothing out of the ordinary here at all. What made me stop and think is that he’s hailed as an “authority” on anything he writes about and would get quoted all over the Web. (He’s considered an “authority” on his own life and personal experiments. One day I also hope to be considered an expert on myself.) His one sex worker interview would make it onto all sorts of Web sites and blogs and be linked to ad-nausem. Because he’s an “authority.”

Bound, not Gagged, however, is clearly chopped liver.

Prostitution and Terrorism

Google the phrase prostitution and terrorism (with or without quotes). It’s amazing what comes up. One rabid Congressional candidate tries to link porn, prostitution and drug use to terrorism. There’s also a somewhat tongue-in-cheek look at prostitution and terrorism in the US.

I’m waiting for a propaganda poster that says “When you jerk off alone, you jerk off with Osama bin Laden.”

Tangled Trafficking Laws

Young Sook Kim, a cook of about 60, was swept up in a raid on a massage parlor and detained for a month at the Regional Correctional Center in Albuquerque. She was transferred to a privately run detention center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she died due to a stunning lack of care.

Though I have no information about this particular massage parlor raid, I have no doubt she was picked up not only as a presumed sex worker but also as a presumed sexual trafficking victim.

And simple immigration cases can end badly (Kim’s case is reported here too).

Contrast rabid law enforcement for immigrants and over-enthusiastic hunts for sexual trafficking victims with this story of authorities routinely ignoring trafficked US teens. Although more cases of teenage exploitation are being prosecuted, there is still a lack of care and support for trafficked teens. They also seem to get far less media attention (and grant money) than immigrants.

And contrast all this with the recent attempts to clamp down on sexual trafficking laws and create trafficking victims out of all sex workers. I think few of us are strong enough to withstand such “care.”

None of this is news. Well, it was, but I forgot that I wanted to post it. So now it’s just food for thought.

Negative Consequences of Swedish Prostitution Legislation

Some have lauded the Swedish legislation which criminalizes paying for sexual services as excellent legislation, but SANS, a sex workers’ rights organization in Sweden, says otherwise.  I think that we need to listen to the voices of the actual workers rather than just the government and the sex work prohibitionists.  Those who laud this legislation do so without any regard for what the sex workers say about it or how it endangers workers in prostitution.   Here is a link to the SANS website, which addresses the negative consequences of this legislation:

http://www.sans.nu/engelska/consequences.htm

Also, it has been reported that this legislation drastically decreased prositution in Sweden, but there are sex workers who have disputed this claim, saying that prostitution hasn’t decreased, but rather has gone further underground and become more clandestine.

Bound Not Gagged International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers Event

Today is December 17, which means that it is International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.  There are events going on in various localities to protest violence against sex workers and advocate for public policies that reduce such violence rather than encourage it.  We can do the same on Bound Not Gagged, and blog against violence.  Let’s devote today to doing that.  Of course, we can write about what our hearts and minds say to, but here are some ideas of things to reflect on and post about:

-personal experience with violence in the sex industry

-advocating for public policies that effectively reduce violence against sex workers, rather than prohibitionist policies

-research and the media’s portrayal of violence against sex workers

-recaps of today’s events and photos

-remember sex workers who we lost due to violence

-reflect on what this day means to you

SWOP East Int. Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers Two Part online event

**Please Distribute Widely**

 

For Immediate Release                              Media Contact: swopeast@gmail.com

December 13, 2007                                               

                                                             
Sex Workers Outreach Project East

International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers

Two-Part Online Event

1) Repository for International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers Projects/Pictures/Events …and…

2) Live Online Vigil

Who: Sex Workers Outreach Project East Two-Part Online Event

What: Repository for International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers Projects and Live Online Vigil 

When: Repository begins Saturday, December 15^th, 5:00 PM EST and continues through Monday;

Live Online Vigil Monday, December 17^th, 5 – 11 PM Eastern (2-8 PM Pacific)

Where: http://www.swopeast.blogspot.com/

Beginning Saturday, December 15^th, at 5:00 PM EST, the swopeast.blogspot.com will be available for posting pictures, events, comments, summaries, reactions, etc., to events related to the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. Please post any comments or artifacts that you’d like to share and visit our blogspot to view happenings related to the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers from around the world.

On Monday, December 17^th, beginning at 5:00 PM until 11:00 PM EST SWOP East will be holding a Live Online Vigil. Please join our virtual community to share your stories, mourn our sisters and brothers, and work toward a space where this violence is no longer tolerated.  

For questions or more information contact swopeast@gmail.com

 

Help! Contact your Senator

The following was a comment on another post, but I am reposting as its own comment because this is extremely important:

 

Lisa Roellig, on December 7th, 2007 at 5:57 pm Said:

TVPRA 2007/11 passed the house Tuesday. Below is the link for anyone who has the time to read it in in its entirety. The sections relating to the sex industry clearly conflate all sex work with sex trafficking and the consequences for all workers in our industry I believe could be quite horrific. I believe the passage of the TVPRA 2007/11 through the house should be considered an emergency and all workers and allies should mobilize before the legislation gets to the Senate for a vote.
I want to know if the porn industry has had any concerns with this legislation. In reading the legislation , I believe sex workers who work on camera have every reason to be as concerned as the sex workers who work “off camera.”
The most troubling aspect of this legislation is that not only does it conflate all sex work with sex trafficking but also that for the way our industry operates, where workers are frequently crossing borders to work, be it national or international, the potential for massive arrests and long periods of prison time are very distressing. Note, up to 10 years for the worker and up to 30 years for the support staff.
Any body else feeling this?

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:h3887rh.txt.pdf

Lisa Roellig
Erotic Service Providers Union

Suburban sex parties draw complaints

Suburban sex parties draw complaints

By PAUL J. WEBER, Associated Press Writer 31 minutes ago

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071207/ap_on_re_us/suburban_sex_club;_ylt=AmiIrY5B683Y3aLkfZjnLJus0NUE

DUNCANVILLE, Texas – The most popular address on Cedar Ridge Drive is Jim Trulock’s split-level home, which has a group sex room and attracts as many as 100 people to swinger parties featuring “Naked Twister” nights.

But the festivities could soon be over. In response to neighbors’ complaints, the city has outlawed sex clubs in residential areas. Citations have been issued, and search warrants may be next.

“It’s crazy that they want to force their morality down our throats,” said Dawn Burton, 45, a regular guest at the parties. “We’re all frustrated.”

So are those who complain of the noise, traffic and parking problems that occur in their otherwise quiet, upscale neighborhood every Friday and Saturday, when Trulock’s home is transformed into “The Cherry Pit.”

Duncanville, which proclaims itself “The Perfect Blend of Family, Community and Business,” is an unlikely venue for a neighborhood swinger club. The city of 36,000 just southwest of Dallas has about 50 places of worship and not a single registered sexually oriented business.

Duncanville officials insist they are not just another prudish Texas town giving the boot to spouse-swappers. They say it all boils down to a matter of law: Trulock is operating a business featuring live sex acts.

“It’s not trying to judge anyone or pass judgment on someone’s lifestyle,” city spokeswoman Tonya Lewis said.

To support its claim, the city notes that the Cherry Pit accepts money from guests and promotes the parties on its Web site.

“We’re not about infringing on the rights of the Cherry Pit patrons or owners,” Lewis said. “But now your right to have fun has infringed on everyone else’s. And now you have to draw the line.”

Other cities have wrestled with the same issue.

Phoenix, for example, prohibited live sexual performances in 1998, effectively outlawing swinger parties. An appeals court upheld the law in 2003, and Duncanville used it as a blueprint when passing a ban last month.

Retiree Jack Martin, who lives a block behind Trulock’s home, said he’s concerned that the parties will reduce the value of his property.

Others are annoyed by the procession of cars that crowd their street on weekend evenings, or the flood of strangers who descend on the neighborhood.

“If you’re going to do that, you should open a business,” Martin said. “Go somewhere where it’s allowed.”

Attorneys for Trulock, 59, say the Cherry Pit is nothing more than a private residence where a group of friends get together on weekends to socialize in whatever way they prefer.

While guests are encouraged to make “voluntary donations” to cover the cost of food and refreshments, organizers deny that anyone is being charged admission to his parties.

Ed Klein, an attorney for the Cherry Pit, said many guests give no money, but those who do often chip in $10 or $20. Klein said he plans to file a lawsuit next week that will challenge the constitutionality of the ordinance and seek a temporary retraining order against the city.

“I don’t think it’s persecution so much as an invasion of their privacy,” Klein said.

Arthur Leonard, a New York Law School professor who studies sexuality law, said the size of the parties might be a legal obstacle.

“It seems to me when you have that number of people involved, it becomes more like a public event,” Leonard said. “It seems unlikely that a court would find privacy protection for an event this large.”

The city has already cited Trulock with three violations, which carry a maximum $2,000 fine. Duncanville City Manager Kent Cagle this week pledged to continue enforcing the new law.

The case against the swinger parties “does appeal to a lot of people’s sense of morality,” said Lewis, the city spokeswoman. “That’s been a lot of complaints we’ve gotten from residents: ‘I came to Duncanville to have a family. I didn’t come here to live next to a sex club.'”

___

On the Net:

http://www.ci.duncanville.tx.us

Comments about “missing student/porn star”

Some unbelievably ignorant people are commenting on the Kansas City Star’s website’s story about Emily Sanders – the college student who had a porn site and is now missing (a body matching her description has been found). Below are some of the choice gems that are reinforcing (in my mind, at least) what sort of place Kansas is.

If you have the time and energy to voice an opinion, the article can be found here:  http://www.kansascity.com/657/story/381680.html

What a seedy shell of a person she was … no surprise end for her. She looks like she was wasted in most of her candid shots. Was she from an equally trashy family?

Posted by: Get Real

after a simple google search I discovered HUNDREDS of really trashy pictures even #### acts that this girl was engaged in so if she was only 18 I have to wonder if the reason several pages were immediatly pulled was possibly because she was also doing this as a minor? in any event many of her sex scenes involving actual intercourse involved NO protection so she would have more than likely died of AIDS anyway. Im sure that as her killer finds himself burning in hell he will have company there (HER) no way she can shake rattle and roll her way into the kingdom I assure you! HOT STUFF THEN HOT STUFF NOW AND FOREVER VERY VERY VERY HOT INDEED!!!

Posted by: GOD

Personally, I do not feel sorry for this girl. She obviously did not want to get a real job like a normal college student. Instead she made bad choices. It’s her fault that she’s dead.

Posted by: Cary Tomlin

To all who are defending what this girl has done, (very explicit pictures,videos,etc) should be ashamed! Yes, all should be respectful, however…my daughter, sister, niece, or whatever, will never do what she did to make money, simply because MY family knows this is the wrong road to take! Do you actually believe this could have happened to ANYBODY in Eldorado? I can assure you in my 18+ years in Eldorado, this has never happened! A coincidence perhaps, that she was a trashy pornstar, and she got murdered…no way, how often has that happened? (note the sarcasm) She made a very poor choice, now her, and her family have to pay for it! While this may sound as if I dont care, I do…very sad indeed, poor girl made a poor choice, very sad her family didnt raise her better, she may still be here if they did! I blame the parents, or parent, of this poor girl…I am truly sorry Emily, that your Mom and Dad could not raise you with morals!

Posted by: Voice of Reason

SEX WORKERS’ LEADERSHIP CRITICAL THEME FOR WORLD AIDS DAY

     PRESS  STATEMENT

For Immediate Release:

Contact: Sapna Patel,
SWP, 646/602.5626,

spatel@urbanjustice.org

(New York City, November 30, 2007) – The Sex Workers Project at the

Urban Justice Center joins organizations and individuals in the U.S. and
around the world to observe World AIDS Day on December 1, 2007. The
theme for World AIDS Day 2007 is Leadership. This theme highlights the
fact that sex workers are imperative in the fight to prevent and treat
HIV/AIDS and must be at the forefront as leaders in local, national and
international efforts to stop the spread of the disease.

Sex work is universal and any successful effort to curb the spread of
HIV/AIDS must not only incorporate sex workers, but also place them in
leadership positions as educators and decision-makers in their
communities. Unfortunately, bias against sex workers the world over
often means that instead of being engaged as part of the solution to the
HIV/AIDS pandemic, sex workers are treated as part of the problem. They
are then punished rather than enlisted to help in HIV/AIDS prevention
and treatment programs. For example, the U.S. Anti-Prostitution Pledge
requires that health care and social service providers receiving
HIV/AIDS and anti-trafficking funding denounce prostitution. This policy
has been used to deny sex workers around the world the health services
they need to survive, the safe-sex education that could protect them and
their communities from HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted
infections, and the programs such as education and job training that
could give them more control over their lives.

The organizations with the most effective HIV-prevention programs build
their efforts on a sophisticated understanding of the social and
personal dynamics faced by sex workers, and start by building trust and
credibility among these groups. They recognize that it is necessary to
provide social, legal and health services to men and women in sex work
without judging them.  Basically, the Anti-Prostitution Pledge requires
groups to express the government’s viewpoint on a controversial subject
in order to remain eligible for funding. It even restricts the way
organizations use their own private funds. The language is so confusing
that organizations are unsure how to comply with it and government
officials are unsure how to enforce it. The Anti-Prostitution Pledge
unfairly vilifies sex workers and also forces organizations that treat
vulnerable people to take sides – either to condemn the people who need
their help or risk losing the funds that make their crucial work
possible.

Sex workers are often more knowledgeable about sexual health – and
practice safe sex more often – than the general population. They often
act as sexual health educators for their clients and should be
mobilized, not demonized, in the struggle to control HIV/AIDS. An
approach that recognizes sex workers’ human rights, addresses their
needs, promotes safer behavior and improves their access to health and
social services can empower them to overcome stigma and discrimination
so they can insist upon condom use by clients and also fight for safer
working conditions. This approach will attract sex workers’ support and
achieve the goal of helping to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Sex workers are individuals whose reasons for engaging in sex work – and
leaving it – are personal, economic and social – as complex as anyone’s
reasons for involvement in any type of work. Sex workers who have the
knowledge and necessary tools are able to protect themselves and their
clients. When they have the power to negotiate, sex workers are leaders
in practicing safer-sex methods. We call on States and non-governmental
partners to place sex workers in the forefront as leaders in this fight.

The Network of Sex Work Projects has produced a 13-minute video about
the effects of the pledge. Watch Taking the Pledge at
http://sexworkerspresent.blip.tv/file/181155 or at
http://www.sexworkersproject.org.

The Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center provides legal
services, legal training, documentation, and policy advocacy for sex
workers in New York City.  For more information, please visit our
website at: http://www.sexworkersproject.org.
###