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Global Sex Workers
Global Sex Workers presents the personal experiences of sex workers around the world. Drawing on their individual narratives, it explores international struggles to uphold the rights of this often marginalized group.
306 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1998
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January 10, 2016
Trafficked women are first and foremost migrants-- persons seeking economic, social, and political opportunities away from home--yet, due to restrictive laws and policies and limited opportunities for women, are relegated to informal sector work. ... Migrant women find themselves in trafficked situations precisely because they are enterprising and courageous agents, willing to take initiatives to improve their living conditions-- quite the opposite of the 'passive victim' stereotype that is widely circulated about them. (p. 32)
This anthology is written by sex workers and sex workers' perspectives. It addresses how laws which criminalize sex work keep the work dangerous. Articles look into how prevailing virgin/whore stereotypes of sex workers as passive Third World victims or oversexualized Western 'voluntary whores' obscures a more complex truth of people looking for money, independence, and work, and denies sex workers self determination and human rights. Finally, a large section of the book describes examples of how sex workers around the world are organizing themselves for better working conditions, higher pay, and healthcare.
Sex work can be good work: it gives the workers a lot of self control over their time, money, and bodies. It's got a lot of problems, too, including pimps, corrupt bosses, and little recourse against clients who don't pay, plus risk of STDs, sexualized violence, and arrest. But these issues-- violence, health risks, poor working conditions-- are inherent in any criminalized profession. Sex work is unique in the way it relates to gender and sexuality. But questions of patriarchy need to be asked head on. The current paradigm views sex workers as victims instead of agents, which avoids tackling patriarchy as it simultaneously silences workers' struggle for better working conditions and patronizingly decides what is moral and best for the workers. This book articulates this pro-sex worker analysis clearly and strongly.
I followed up this book with a field trip to a dungeon in midtown Manhattan where a friend works as a dominatrix and is involved in organizing sex workers in New York. =)
This anthology is written by sex workers and sex workers' perspectives. It addresses how laws which criminalize sex work keep the work dangerous. Articles look into how prevailing virgin/whore stereotypes of sex workers as passive Third World victims or oversexualized Western 'voluntary whores' obscures a more complex truth of people looking for money, independence, and work, and denies sex workers self determination and human rights. Finally, a large section of the book describes examples of how sex workers around the world are organizing themselves for better working conditions, higher pay, and healthcare.
Sex work can be good work: it gives the workers a lot of self control over their time, money, and bodies. It's got a lot of problems, too, including pimps, corrupt bosses, and little recourse against clients who don't pay, plus risk of STDs, sexualized violence, and arrest. But these issues-- violence, health risks, poor working conditions-- are inherent in any criminalized profession. Sex work is unique in the way it relates to gender and sexuality. But questions of patriarchy need to be asked head on. The current paradigm views sex workers as victims instead of agents, which avoids tackling patriarchy as it simultaneously silences workers' struggle for better working conditions and patronizingly decides what is moral and best for the workers. This book articulates this pro-sex worker analysis clearly and strongly.
I followed up this book with a field trip to a dungeon in midtown Manhattan where a friend works as a dominatrix and is involved in organizing sex workers in New York. =)
Displaying 1 of 1 review