In Toisha Tucker’s presentation, they discuss a shift in their work “towards exploring our empathetic and anthropomorphic relationship with technologies in our homes and as a whole. Coronavirus had been an interesting source of threads for that.” Chose and discuss a work(s) from their presentation that reflect this shift.
Speak Out About Coronavirus (Them.Us), SWOP Brooklyn, SWOP LA
Baum’s article and SWOP (all linked above) reflect the shift towards a deeper relationship with tech that sex workers are forced to experiencing during a crisis where physical contact is deemed prohibited and, in fact, fatal. Physical appointments with customers drive a ton of business as well as limit the stress of having to understand, what may seem complex and unnecessary, the many facets of modern technology, internet as an unexplored market, and unique angles to make business work in a new environment.
Baum’s article shows us with anecdotal evidence and firsthand dialogue how the public health crisis is affecting the lives of sex workers across the world. With COVID-19 being a ruthless virus that can transmit through any means of physical contact, or just by one person being in the same small space as someone else, physical sex work is more illegal (in the states where physical sex work is already illegal, but now simply not being six feet from a person is also unacceptable) than ever and less sought out for. Sex workers across the globe are losing customers, then losing their homes, money for food, and their ability to support their families.
The biggest problem, as the article emphasizes, is not that the sex market is crashing, but that “individuals and families supported by sex work are uniquely limited in their ability to seek relief, since their work exists in an underground economy and they could risk legal consequences if they’re forthcoming about their sources of income,” says Maxine Doogan, the president of the Erotic Service Providers Legal Education and Research Project.
Fera Lorde, a chapter representative with Sex Workers Outreach Project in Brooklyn, also reminds us that “[sex worker’s] livelihood depends on [their] ability to be healthy, as [they] have no sick pay, and on the health and well-being of [their] clients and their [clients] desire to continue seeing [them] for services.”
We see how this is a global issue because, in Europe, a large network of counseling centers mobilized to provide emergency relief to sex workers and Amsterdam’s Prostitution Information Center is seeking to raise $6,000 so service providers can buy basic household necessities.
It would be great to see our country deal with financial relief for sex workers on a federal level. But we see private organizations and cities work on raising funds and providing relief like SWOP as well as similar organizations in Seattle and New York.
The shift to tech is almost a necessity for many sex workers at this point. “Many are exploring online revenue sources, like camming, texting, and phone sex lines.” says Baum. This is leading to many workers learning how to cam for the first time or revert to the old-school phone sex lines. “Diversify. There’s things you can do at home.” one worker said in an email.
Doogan proclaims that “prostitution is the social safety net in this country.” In this case, there should be government relief and acknowledgment that this financial plight of sex workers is a crisis, within a crisis, within a crisis.
Until then, I hope that all sex workers financially affected by the public health crisis can find their new market in tech and the internet. I hope that cams and phone sex can make up for all the money lost.
Turan and Logie, in their journal How Do We Balance Tensions Between COVID-19 Public Health Responses and Stigma Mitigation? state that “lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persons, sex workers, and people who use drugs, experience criminalization that reduces access to employment, housing, and healthcare, and exacerbates risks for violence and practices that elevate HIV exposure. As an alternative approach, COVID-19 travel bans and quarantine could include anti-stigma and anti-xenophobia public messaging and training of legal authorities. Furthermore, UNAIDS recommends that in lieu of criminalization for breaching COVID-19 public health policies, approaches should focus on empowering and strengthening communities to support persons to protect their own and one other’s health.” (1) This ties in very well with the general concern of how our government, and society, views sex work. Without the right funding, lives will be lost and those who are still alive will suffer immensely financially unless they pivot their business to tech where diving into it is a plight in itself for some.
(1) Logie, Carmen H., and Janet M. Turan. “How Do We Balance Tensions Between COVID-19 Public Health Responses and Stigma Mitigation? Learning from HIV Research.” AIDS and Behavior, July 2020, doi:10.1007/s10461-020-02856-8.
Diversity+Tech 