Just as the LGBT rights movement benefited greatly from LGBT people coming out, so the sex worker rights movement could also benefit greatly from people coming out as sex workers.  

ince I am a client not an escort I don't know the answers but you are right in that until some brave individuals come out there is no chance of understanding let alone acceptance. Your post resonates in that as a patron of escorts I lead a secret life that in no way can be shared with civilians. I have friends I would love to turn onto this scene but no way. Not taking that chance. When it comes to this shit the misperceptions and propaganda are too great a hurdle to overcome.  Luckily my cousin does this also so I have someone I can share with. He came out to me first and the floodgates opened. Great post even though I took it somewhere else. But that's part of what makes it great.

Organizations like SWOP IMO have many civies attend these meetings as it
focuses a great deal on underage trafficking.  

I know one who did just that, all the while being spit upon, mocked, beaten to a bloody mess.....Why? Because he loved ALL....gays, sex workers, etc.
Homosexuality is no more of a sin than, sex outside of marriage, lying, stealing, cheating, etc......but, it is still sin.
It is not what we think is RIGHT or WRONG, that is determined by the ONE who created us....PERIOD.

From what I've heard from other people, his moron is highly religious.  

Plainly put, it makes more financial sense to embrace gay folks than to ostracize them.

Great post!  I hope that more people will respond and share their thoughts.  Here are some of mine...

Personally I would feel like a creep siting in at a sex worker meeting.

Dungbitch is a schmuck.

I'm not sure I'd do it either, although I have much less to lose than most.  No job-related issue and most of the people I'm close to know what I do.  Still, I'm not sure I'll join this party, though I wish them well and favor decriminalization.  But given societal attitudes I think they're pissing into the wind, though the way change is sweeping the legalization of marijuana you never know.

I hate to say it Ladies, but it's the other Women standing in the way of decriminalization.

There might be a chance for decriminalization if the libs can pull enough political capital out of the movement.

Ok to stand up for a cause, just use a better choice of words when doing so.
None of us will EVER know....."the burden of the cross"

The question on the ballot:

Its illegal to sell sex; simple as that. I'm not willing to go "on record" as a supporter

-- Modified on 8/11/2013 6:45:57 PM

I have so much respect for 'out' sex workers, as I really do believe that challenging preconceptions of sex workers as drug addled, pimp-coerced street walkers is the best way to change people's minds on the legality of sex work. We're single mothers trying to support children without being gone 60+ hours a week; we're students trying to avoid overbearing student debt; we're artists supporting ourselves while leaving time for self-expression; we're psychiatrists, social workers, lovers and friends for clients who need it. Yes, there are those with problems in the industry, but pushing them to the margins of society and often leaving them with a permanent record that makes them unemployable causes SO much harm, and often prevents these workers from exiting the life when they want to.  

Huh?

You should stop there sometime...

I see Moe and Curly made it to the party.....where's Larry? (CPA

The liberals will always oppose decriminalization because they believe every girl is trafficked.

I met a provider at a SWOPE conference and did a session there.  It's no biggie.

As for coming out to facilitate the movement to decriminalize sex work, I think that will be effective but rare because of the one-two punch of both admitting to illegal activity, and the moral stigma.

Yet, many western style countries, in fact most, allow legal sex work to one extent or another, including our neighbor, Canada.  I'd be interested to know what steps worked in those countries to bring about the reform.

Lol. You really think I'm going to risk ANYTHING to support women who refuse to get real jobs?

But I see the rest of the dungbeetles are making pennance

I'm not talking about "Religion."

Anarchists and libertarians on both the left and the right typically "get" it. (Think Ron Paul in that lengthy Stone Phillips interview.)  Humanizing yourself to the middle of the road, swing voter types might actually be the hardest! These people are very reactionary and impulsive in their thinking... LOGIC is often lost on them. Lol.

Sounds like something she would say.

Same arguments...same logic...same drivel

CeCe had apparently met Helen Thomas.. Too bad we can't confirm that anymore..

https://m.facebook.com/spreadmag
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/$prea

Yep...consistent if nothing else  LOL

I'm still looking for that pic with you and Helen as well  LOL

Everyone i know in this business pays their taxes.
We run businesses
Own property
Buy new cars
Pay daycares
Put braces on our kids
Put kids through college
Put ourselves through college.

We pay taxes alright.

and the ones that don't, are asking for trouble. it will catch up with them more often than not!

That was an uneducated statement on a subject YOU know very little about!

Fucking your way through the local market doesn't make you an expert on Hooker dos and donts and their financial ventures.
stop acting like you are some *IN THE KNOW* hobbyist   You are just a trick with enough pocket change to ride the merry-go-round a few more times. simple as that.

Beyond that, I am not outing myself or putting my private life at risk. I mean gimme a break. This is A CHOICE, not like animal rights activists who are supporting people who can't defend themselves. You choose to be here, regardless of the excuses one might have. Everything in life is a choice. If you're not living in a box, being raped or beaten, then you can go to work elsewhere.

conference last month.  This was after meeting her at her weeklong event in San Francisco in May, in which I saw the movement in an organized way for the first time.  

you're an idiot.

Some visitors here never bother to go anywhere else but the general boards or their local city boards, so it's nice to see discussions like this brought up here on the general board.  This thread could have affected a number of readers who are our allies to get involved in the movement who maybe had never heard of SWOP or Desiree Alliance before.  We are a fast growing movement and we could always use more enthusiastic members.

With the exception of a very, very few, every sex worker I know pays taxes.  I am disappointed that so many people have that stereotype about us.  I have a very close relationship with my CPA AND my financial advisor.  How would we own our homes or vehicles or etc...etc... without doing so?

OSP, how incredibly insulting.  

We are all drug addicts
alcoholics

for me , and many others this move to this biz was a business plan.
it made sense financially and time wise.
I wanted to be the best parent I could be and that meant hands on.
quit my 2 jobs and did this 2 days a week raised my kids the rest. I became a stay at home mom.
for my family it was the best move.
now they are married or in college
no regrets

thats what I get for posting from my phone...lol

i make *real* money so its a real job imo.
pay real taxes and real bills.

and yes you are already supporting us.  
thank you for your support.

oh and by the way...

I dont know one single guy, if he was offered the oppertunity to fuck for a living,get paid really well and make his own schedule...I dont know any guys that would turn that *best job ever* down. Theyd be bragging about it too.

many of those countries like France, its common knowledge their president cheats
they have a porn star as a state rep

England all their kings dukes and dutchesses for the most part had affairs mistresses lovers and so on. it was just accepted.

our president cheats on his wife with an aid and we start impeachment talks and have billion dollar committees to look into this get the truth of which...is none of our business!

If it ever becomes decriminalized the governmennt will want to make rules regulations and all the control freaks will wanna tell us how to fuck! well you know what I mean!
Geesh!!!!

its not going to come in my time here and maybe not anyone elses

we are a country of hypocrites and tightasses!

Maybe the day of emancipation will come via the SCOTUS - afterall, they knocked down DOMA, legalized abortion, and overturned segregation, among other things.

Will it happen in our lifetimes?

Your guess is as good as mine.

Certainly, but I also think Pot should be legal and abortion should be Illegal. No one cares what I think lol.

He could have phrased it a little differently, but I agree to an extent. I don't agree that sex work is not "a real job" being many of us treat it as such. We might not work even 20 hours a week, but we run this business like we would any other being mindful of our appt. times, knowing what we have to do, when, what supplies to get, how long in traffic we might have to spend and accounting for that so we are not late. paying our bills on time. tending to other things in our lives such as family, friends, school, meeting deadlines, etc.  

but I certainly support decriminalization, I will admit to leaning strongly towards libertarianism however, I just wish the party didn't attract so many nut jobs.

One other point, lefties are much more likely to be "activists" for any cause than are righties or libertarians, it just seems to be the way they are wired. I might support a cause with my actions, or even my money, but marching on a public street, carrying a sign just isn't happening for me. lol

There are plenty of sex workers who are out and proud and working to make their profession more socially acceptable and safe. Besides the higher-profile organizations like SWOP, there are lots of informal and lower-profile support networks. Girls in the biz often have friends, and that's great. They are not the helpless dummies that many men assume.

Because, contrary to the bs some like to spew, the men don't take half the risks that we do. Just being a MAN, puts most having the upper hand of physical strength. I am sure there are some women out there who could beat a guy's ass, but he would be a weak guy and not the average guy. She would be super woman. The odds are stacked against us, but hey...not whining. I know this job has risks, but I signed up for that. I am not going to go crying about my rights when what I do is illegal. Seems a bit contradictory.  

He's a raving Liberal on social issues and a complete knuckle-dragging Troglodyte on everything else. But he still gets lots of chicas because of his HUGE.....................................wallet

What you're saying doesn't really make sense. If people see what they percieve to be a social injustice in an allegedly free and democratic society, you're suggesting that they sit on their hands and shut their mouth, and just move to Canada or the Netherlands?!?! Surely you jest!  

No, when you make an Apples and Oranges comparison as you have, it does not make sense lol. Women being given "equal rights" is a far cry from fkin random strangers by choice then bitching about it being illegal. Personally, I like the shit just the way it is, and it's not a "career" for me. I guess if I planned on being here til 60, my views might be a bit different, but I am not exactly proud of what I do. It's a job, nothing more.  

I've been saying the same thing for years, EVERYONE I know knows I am a whore monger. I make zero effort to hide what I do, except where my actions can effect others, like telling the wives of my married friends and having suspicion fall on them because I couldn't keep my big fucking mouth shut. There are limits to "telling the truth", but I agree that the guys, especially the ones who aren't cheating on someone, need to step up and be counted if they ever want something done to change the status quo.

I like you as a person, London, but you and I clearly have very different views of the world and of our places in it! I'm a passionate, oppinionated person when it comes to all sorts of issues. I sell my body, but will never let my mind become colonized. I'm many things, one of which is me being an unrepentant whore. I feel no guilt or shame about being involved in this business. I loath myself for other reasons at times, but never for THIS. I can think of thousands of corporate jobs that are more dishonest and exploitive than someone having sex for money!

Instead of trying to enact change in the US?? When I was younger, I did activism around low income rights, prison abolition and reform, animal rights, US foreign policy, drug policy, the treatment of people labeled mentally ill, women's reproductive rights etc etc etc.

Ok, maybe that statement was taken out of context, and I did not say "another country." I said where it's legal, which is just West. I don't mock anyone for wanting to take a stand for something, and I highly respect each and every one of you who do, BUT that does not mean I can't point out some obvious inconsistencies. You/I/We CHOOSE to be here. If we don't like the way things are, no one is forcing us to RISK OUR LIVES in something illegal. It's not like working for a company where your "LEGAL" rights are being violated...this is not legal.  

many people and news and I'm ok with my face possibly showing up on YouTube or the news (it has before during a protest), because I'm cool w/ the world knowing I support the efforts I was rallying about. However, I'd never feel comfortable outing myself for sex worker rights...not because I don't think they're important, but it's just not something I want the world to know about me, and I don't view it the same as women not having the right to vote or blacks being lynched in the south.  

That is possible your first post ever, gambler, that I would like to applaud.