I think you are seriously underplaying the level of force in sex work. Are there Bunny Ranches and Sex work unions that are making positive strides. Sure enough.
And do you really not see how a limited horizon of choices for young queer kids who are on the streets due to asshole parents can be damaging? Sure, some may love having sex for money. Some may do it because they don’t feel as if they have other choices. Some maybe forced.
But what the fuck does this have to do with Miley Cyrus and Sinead O’Conner and the shit recording industry that treats women like a product to be shaped for sales?
It’s not about empowering women, it’s not about supporting their choices, it’s not about freedom… it’s about making money off an image of female sexuality that we are all expected to embrace because it is coded as “feminist” and “empowering”. It is just playing right into the narrative that corporate capitalism wants you to.
oh so your solution to "limited choices " is to shame them and take away ANY choice they might have at ALL??? What being patronizing is going to help here, really?
It’s about not shaming women or anybody for using or engaging in sexual activity. I never said it was feminist nor empowering. I don’t see why you have to be black and white about this. Do you really not see any other way of engaging except to be shaming and being against something?
If anything , women are being SHAMED more than “being forced to embrace” ANY sexuality. this whole topic included.
"I think you are seriously underplaying the level of force in sex work. " - in what sense? No one is forced any more than any other industry. I think you’ve been watching too many propaganda from NGO that wants to take money from you so they can “rescue” sex workers - in reality, raid brothels and put them in jail . I really wonder who is doing all the FORCING .
How is taking someone’s choice away to engage in sex work “expanding” choices? Oh- expanding the amount of people in industry YOU feel comfortable other people to be engaging in?
Okay. Whatever. You’ve mangled every word that I’ve written to you here and ignored all my arguments to construe me as a slut-shamer, when all I’ve been trying to do is point out how fucked up the music industry is in regards to how it constructs our identities (identities that are entirely based on being a consumer, not an actually human being), but hey, if not respecting me makes you feel so much better about yourself, then please. Go ahead.
And I wish I could say it didn’t matter, but it does. it fucking hurts. I work very hard to listen and understand other people. I am willing to admit when I’m wrong, which you aren’t. I feel as if our world is in a death spiral that is much bigger than singular issues, though singular issues are important. The more we are lashing out at each other, the more the bastards win, as I see it. It’s a shame that we can’t be allies and instead have to tear each other up over MILEY CYRUS…
how is what Cyrus doing “sex work”? how is ending human trafficking ending women’s choices? are you defending the trafficking of young women into sex work? Are you defending the use of force? That is limiting women’s choices. That is a big world of difference from a woman making a choice to do that job.
I never said Cyrus was doing sex work- I said to say "don’t prostitute yourself " is slutshaming and sex work is legit job that others have the right to engage in.
Trafficking is a big issue NGO came up with to raid brothels and harass sex workers and get money off of people who are gullible . See the video here http://vimeo.com/43262622
It all started with the Bush.
Since then the pledge has been over turned, but they still enforce it because free speech is not protected in foreign countries.
All peer based sex work orgs around the world are fighting the anti- trafficking industry that forcefully take them , put them in “rehabilitation” clinics, and send them to sewing factories. You’d be pissed too if people organized raids in your industry but never bothered to consult you as to what might be going on - or how the raid should go so no one is out of job or harassed by the police.
Yep. Because 12 year old girls can sure as hell make mature choices to engage in sex work. And I’m just as skeptical of NGOS as the next guy, but Jesus Christ on a Cracker, not everyone engaged in sex work does it of their own free will. 10 year old boys in South East Asia exploited by rich white business men are not making a “choice”. Albanian women being sent to paris by people who promised her a modeling career is not engaged willfully in that carerr.
I’m fine with and support the choices of those who want to do this as a trade. Fine. I never said otherwise. That doens’t mean that trafficking is not a problem.
I never said everyone does anything on freewill nor debating even what that means. I am saying everybody deserves respect and not be patronized. far too often , Privileged people assume non-agency of others and treat them only as victims. I am not even debating what freewill is - I am advocating for harm reduction and making safe space as best we can with what we’ve got. SHAMING or PATRONIZING people aren’t gonna do it. Nor is criminalization.
Further, NO SEX WORKER peer based orgs were ever consulted on matter of trafficking. This is my issue with anti-traficking efforts. It hurts sex workers and orgs all over the world are protesting.
but people , being prejudiced, patronizing and generally not OK with sexuality will NEVER listen to sex workers - because they automatically believe that they have no agency to start with.
I agree sex workers should be listened to. Not just the ones who agree with your view, too. We should listen to the ones who had bad and good experiences, and the ones who were indeed impacted by trafficking.
And sometimes, people really are victims. It’s true. Not all women in sex work are, but some are.
that’s the ONLY people that is on the TV - aren’t they? Sex work orgs represent people who are also in trafficking like situation as well. the effort of these anti trafficking orgs are NOT helping ANYONE.
By posing everyone as POOR WOMEN who needs RESCUING - and going over to raid brothels and hurt people - why not just go back to the old colonial days? As the posts suggests, these orgs makes NO distinctions and do not care if people are hurt by it- they just want to make money off of selling sex work victim stories.
Right! And whether you’re dancing to someone else’s tune or not, you’re still perpetuating and fortifying the very culture that leads people today to make teen-year bad choices that they then carry around for the rest of their life.
You mean any critics of any kind. You see, since Cyrus is being criticized by sexists pricks, that fact instantly invalidates any criticism of any kind. Because Cyrus is being criticized, and she’s female, nothing she does now, or will ever do, is stupid or harmful. Never mind that she’s exploiting a deeply sexist part of our culture that commodifies the female body because she has very little actual talent to gain attention with, thereby making it harder for actually talented female artists to get attention from the public without taking off their clothes, whether they want to or not. Did you actually read anything I wrote?
