15.9: Sex Worker Rights and Activism - The Decriminalization Movement

In order to understand the sex worker right’s movement, it is important to understand the differences between decriminalization, legalization, and what is referred to as the Nordic model, of sex work. With decriminalization, it would no longer be a crime to trade sex for money or other goods. No aspect of the transaction would be criminalized. Legalization, which is what we have in the United States in a few areas of Nevada, makes it legal to trade sex for money, but only under strict policies, and this excludes most people and keeps law enforcement in control. In fact, Nevada has the highest arrest rate for prostitution in the U.S. Finally, the Nordic model makes it a crime for the person purchasing the sex, but not for the person selling it. This model also does not protect sex workers, as people purchasing services are scared of arrest, and therefore, it pushes sex work into more desolate areas, leaving sex workers more vulnerable to violence and abuse (Decriminalize Sex Work, 2022). Most sex workers advocate for decriminalization over the other options.

"“Sex work is work” - Europride 2019" by Bojan Cvetanović is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

 Two new United States laws passed in 2018 known as the SESTA (Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers (SESTA) and Fight Online Sex Trafficking (FOSTA) Acts, have had a negative impact on the safety of sex workers in the U.S. The law shut down websites that sex workers used to advertise and find clients. The purpose of the law, as it is written, is to fight human trafficking. Human trafficking is when coercion or force is used to make someone engage in sex acts. This is not the same as consensual adult sex work (Decriminalize Sex Work, 2022). Unfortunately, the law has not been successful in fighting trafficking, and actually, agencies that work to fight trafficking say that it has made it more difficult to find human traffickers, since the websites were shut down due to the law (Schmidt & Lang, 2019). These websites allowed sex workers to advertise safely, find and screen clients before meeting them, and have more ownership over their work (Transgender Law Center, 2022). It also allowed for sex workers to exchange information with one another, in order to keep each other safe. Due to the loss of these websites, sex work was once again pushed into the underground market, and many sex workers returned to the streets to work, where they are at higher risk for violence from law enforcement and predators who pose as clients.

Transgender women of color are far more likely to be targeted by law enforcement for sex work, resulting in higher rates of harassment, assault, rape and arrest by law enforcement officers. Transgender women of color who engage in sex work are also more often victims of murder (Transgender Law Center, 2022).

As Black and brown transgender sex workers, we demand the full decriminalization of sex work and the end to the stigma, violence, and policing that plagues our communities. It is impossible to be genuinely committed to ending violence against trans communities, particularly trans women of color, without a commitment to decriminalizing sex work. (Transgender Law Center, 2022)

Decriminalizing sex work decreases rates of human trafficking, and increases the safety and well-being of sex workers (Decriminalize Sex Work, 2022). Some states are realizing the disproportionate effect that these laws have on populations already at risk of harm, specifically, Black, Brown and Trans sex workers. In July of 2022, CA Governor Gavin Newsom signed CA senate bill 357 into law, which repeals a law regarding loitering for the intent to sell sex.  A few other cities, including Seattle, WA, have already done so, along with the State of New York. While seen as controversial by some, repealing the loitering law adds a protective layer for sex workers who work at the margins and are often forced into dangerous meeting spaces in order to make a living. In a July 2022 interview by LA Times Reporter Hannah Wiley, Ayako Miyashita-Ochoa, co-director of the Southern California HIV/AIDS Policy Research Center and adjunct professor at the UCLA Lushkin School of Public Affairs says criminalization “pushes sex workers into isolated and unsafe spaces with scant evidence of any positive health outcomes (Wiley, 2022).

Sidebar 15.6: Social Media and Sexuality Based Work that Engages with the Body

Social media has played a major role in shaping the way people perceive sexuality based work that engages with the body. While stigma surrounding this work persist, platforms like OnlyFans have helped legitimize sexuality based work that engages with the body, and has given people opportunities to generate more income as a result.

Due to the expansion of social media, virtually anybody can participate in sexuality based work that engages with the body through the gig economy, where there are less ‘middle-men’ involved in the process. Many people who participate in sexuality based work that engages with the body in the twenty-first century are able to build sustainable businesses from their work, allowing them to enter the world of entrepreneurship. Digital technology is extremely helpful in the new age of sexuality based work that engages with the body because it provides safer opportunities for people to participate in this type of work.