sexworkerproblems:

But to the rest of the world, they seem that way.

I suffer from chronic mental illness. I can’t seem to have a functional relationship. I only like people who are emotionally distant—attracted to me, fond of me, but never willing to commit to me, or feel something deeper.

…

But no one listens to me about the problems I do have, or the help I really need. After all, I’m just a sad, crazy whore.

Sad maybe, but definitively not crazy.

sexworkerproblems:

[Written as a response to this post. Trigger warning: mentions of whorephobia and violence against sex workers.]

I hear about sex workers being murdered, sexually assaulted, ripped off by friends/lovers/clients, arrested, fined, jailed, separated from their children, shunned by their family,…

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — People who force others into prostitution and clients of prostitutes will face arrest in the Dominican Republic as part of a crackdown on sex trafficking in the Caribbean country, the attorney general said Wednesday.

Prostitution has long been practiced openly in much of the Dominican Republic but the trafficking of people for the sex trade, both within the country and overseas, has become so widespread that the government believes it must now impose controls on the industry, Attorney General Francisco Dominguez said.

‘‘We are talking in many cases about young girls who are semi-enslaved,’’ Dominguez said at a news conference.

Prostitutes themselves are not facing arrest since there is no law in the Dominican Republic that specifically forbids the practice. But it is illegal to make money off the sexual services of another person or to force someone to work as a prostitute. Those who use the services of prostitutes can be charged as accessories to pandering and face a sentence of 10-15 years in prison, officials said.

No one has been arrested so far. It is unclear at this point how strictly it will be enforced in a country that has an already overburdened justice system and that has been long been known as a destination for people seeking the services of prostitutes.

The prospect of arresting clients or pimps angered Jacqueline Montero, president of a non-governmental group that represents sex workers called the Movement of Women United. She said any crackdown will deprive poor women of income they need to survive.

‘‘This is a witch hunt against us,’’ Montero said.

marginalutilite:

Swedish news site The Local continues its trend of sex work positive reporting:

A centre in Nuremberg is offering a course to sex industry professionals on how to cater to the sexual needs of disabled clients. Those who complete training successfully attain a certificate in “sexual accompaniment and assistance.”

Bärbel Ahlborn, who heads the “Kassandra” advice centre for prostitutes in Nuremberg , told the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper the project was unique in Germany.

Participants learn how to deal with disabled people and help them achieve sexual satisfaction. 

The latest batch of graduates includes seven women and two men, some of whom have backgrounds in the care sector and have never worked as prostitutes.

One prostitute taking part in the course told the Süddeutsche Zeitung she expected news of the course would divide public opinion. “Some people will welcome it. But many – who are always against us sex workers - will call it perverse.”

Simone Hartmann, deputy head of the Nuremberg-based Pro Familia sexual advice centre, said that sexuality and sexual independence among disabled people were no longer taboo subjects. 

One course participant said society had been presented with a false picture of what it meant to give sexual assistance to those with disabilities. 

“It’s not always about sexual intercourse,” she told the Süddeutsche Zeitung, “but rather about tenderness and touch.” 

A woman the paper identifies as Erica, who works in a nursing home and offers sexual services on the side, said “old people and those requiring care are touched during every-day tasks like washing or dressing anyway.” 

Until recently the woman had been providing sexual services to those living in remote nursing homes, but she is soon to extend her services to people with physical, mental and psychiatric disabilities too. “Of course I take the €150,” she told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. “It would be silly not to.”

One of the male participants in the course, whom the paper identifies as Klaus, works in social care too. He previously took part in a workshop for mentally disabled people which focused on identifying sexual needs.

“It’s something which they want to experience but don’t have the chance to,” he said. “Many can’t even find a name for it.” 

Klaus’ grown-up children support his career choice. “It’s not an issue, they think it’s good,” he told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. He said Bavaria in particular suffered from a lack of qualified professionals offering services to people with disabilities. 

The fight to recognize the sexual needs of disabled people in Germany dates back at least two decades. 

In 1992 a “Working group for disability and sexuality” was set up in Berlin by a severely disabled woman who was looking for assistance in satisfying her sexual needs. Almost 20 years later, the “Sexybilities” group was formed with the aim of bringing disabled people together to offer each other sexual advice.

marginalutilite:

More reporting on the controversy Kitty Stryker’s talk left in its wake at UNH:

DURHAM — Americans for Prosperity-New Hampshire has taken issue with an April conference hosted by students at the University of New Hampshire that focused on sex workers’ rights.

In particular, the organization has requested any and all documentation related to payment and travel costs reimbursed by the university for the event, including travel costs for at least one sex worker to travel from California to be part of the panel.

In April, students in a Women’s Studies course titled “The Global Sex Industry” hosted a daylong mini-conference titled “Sex Workers Rights are Human Rights” focused on the commercial sex industry and sex workers’ rights. A panel of five speakers at the event included three current or former prostitutes or strippers, including Kitty Stryker of California.

Following the presentation, Americans for Prosperity filed a right-to-know request with the university requesting all documents related to the presentation, including financial transactions.

UNH responded in part, but denied parts of the request, leading to another letter from AfP on Thursday.

Greg Moore, state director for AfP-NH, said their primary concern is how the university system is spending taxpayer and student dollars.

“What I’ve heard from numerous members of AfP, the public and legislators is that their concern is that the conference with the content being focused on sex workers and flying prostitutes in from California is not a necessary expenditure for UNH if the goal is to get the tuition down as low as possible,” Moore said.

The university determined costs associated with the event totaled about $2,246.40, of which $1,140.66 came out of income from the Sustainability Institute’s endowment fund and the remainder from student organizations’ budgets that students accessed on their own.

Moore said UNH provided the total dollar figure, but documents provided to AfP-NH under the right-toknow request only add up to a portion of that. In a May 9 response letter, AfP-NH demanded documentation to back up the total expense.

Moore said there is also the larger argument of ensuring government entities comply with right-to-know laws.

In his response for the university dated May 6, attorney Charles Putnam said certain “statutorily exempt information” was redacted, in addition to other information the university said it cannot legally provide, including student records and scholarly communications between Professor Joelle Ryan and members of the panel.

The university argues that records created and retained by individual students and student organizations related to the event are not “governmental records” or “public records” and are protected from disclosure as “personal school records” under state law.

The university argues that the same holds true for correspondence between Ryan and individual students.

Likewise, the university argues confidentiality of intellectual discussions among scholars is vital to effective scholarship and the educational mission of the university.

Putnam argues that if professors’ scholarly correspondence is deemed to be subject to public disclosure under the state’s Right-to-Know law, the likely consequence would be the loss of talented and creative teachers who will choose to leave public institutions for private ones that can guarantee them privacy and confidentiality necessary in academia.

Attorney John Flynn, general counsel for AfP-NH, argues in his May 9 response that the university’s claims do not fit into permissible exemptions.

He also argues that the university cannot withhold information about a student organization using university funds based on a claim of invasion of privacy, as it is not a recognized exemption.

He also states that the emails from Ryan they are seeking are not part of any student’s “education records.”

“We expect people should be doing the public’s business in plain view and not being able to hide behind bogus exemptions that exist nowhere in state law,” Moore said. “It is not even the material right now, it is more the principle of the Right-to-Know law, and it is something we will certainly go as far as it takes to make sure state law is followed and transparency is maintained … hopefully UNH will comply shortly and we’ll get the full answers as to, particularly, where the $2,200 (came from).”

On Thursday, Erika Mantz, director of media relations for UNH, said they had received the May 9 letter and it was under review by legal counsel.