What use are sex worker stereotypes?
Posted at 2:08 PM May 27, 2008
Sex Worker Rant runs on Tuesdays and is written by Renegade Evolution, a sex worker, sexual mercenary, and all around fan of “The Sexy” living somewhere near our nation’s capital. Quirky might as well be her middle name.
Over at the sex workers blog, Bound, Not Gagged, there has been some interesting (and heated) conversation on The Image of Sex Workers and how sex workers rights organizations do- or do not- address the needs of all sex workers. It is my humble belief that sex workers rights organizations need to take sex workers of all stripes into consideration when formulating policy or organizing outreach and activism, and it is also my humble opinion that the needs of those in less fortunate conditions should hold some precedence over- yet not eclipse the needs of- those who are content…yet for me, a question lingers…
Why does there have to be "an image"? A stereotype? A caricature that is "sex worker"? Why is it that people have the need to paint sex workers as the optionless, impoverished, uneducated, drug addicted person with no other choice, or the trafficking victim, or the over the edge, over the hill, drugged out party girl gone wrong, or the happy, selfish, devil may care dilettante, or the cut throat by any means necessary amoral sexual warlord? The victim, the unicorn, the puppet, the soul-dead?
Why must there be an effigy that people can gaze upon in some Ozymandian fashion: "Look upon Sex Workers, ye mighty, and despair! Nothing besides remains."
I understand that for a variety of people, using the stereotypes is beneficial. I realize that the stereotypes are based in reality, and because of that, they are excellent for feeding agendas. The anti-sex work side needs its forced victims in order to have a cause. The moral crusaders need their wanton, devious sluts in order to have a cause. The pro-sex work side needs their independent, autonomous business people to have a leg to stand on. The world in general needs someone to blame, question, use as a monster and punching bag. Sex workers, or at least the stereotypes they are pushed into, fit the bill.
Yet another thing that rarely happens to accountants.
But considering how many different types of people engage in different types of sex work for different types of reasons and in different types of conditions under different sets of circumstances I am left wondering why sex workers, especially amid ourselves, feel the need to get into the stereotype game at all, except to combat it on all fronts. Because each and every one of us is a person, not a cartoon, and we all have thoughts, ideas, hopes, motivations, and histories which differ from the way those who need to would like to paint us. We all have something to say, without our words going through anyone's filter.
It's vast and not monolithic out there, and it is populated by all kinds of people, none of them one-dimensional walking stereotypes. So why the need, especially amid ourselves, to pretend otherwise?
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Exactly! You nailed it. There's not a single organization that is going to serve every person who has ever done anything sexual in exchange for something of value. We're all way too different and our needs, desires and priorities are different. That's the point of collaborating isn't it?
Posted by: Karly Kirchner at May 27, 2008 6:02 PM
My impression of sex worker activists is that they are trying to dismantle those stereotypes.
Posted by: Emilie at May 30, 2008 3:10 AM
