International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers

One week from today, on December 17, will be the 5th Anniversary of the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. I will be celebrating this event all weekend with my sex worker sisters here in Chicago and I encourage other sex workers (and allies), no matter where you are, to find a way to recognize this day next Monday. "Celebrate" may seem like a cheery word to commemorate such a tragedy, but we are celebrating the fact that we are here, alive and well, and have each other for support when so many sex workers around the globe have nobody. Think of it as the "Christmas for whores" and get together with your surrogate family (if you have one) of sex -positive friends. Enjoy the fact that you are alive and free, as so many other sex workers that took the same chance you did are not.

Here's some more information about this day courtesy of my friend KittenInfinite-


This December 17th marks the 5th Annual International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. This event was created to call attention to hate crimes committed against sex workers all over the globe. Originally thought of by Dr. Annie Sprinkle and started by the Sex Workers Outreach Project USA as a memorial and vigil for the victims of the Green River Killer in Seattle Washington, International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers has empowered workers from over 100 cities around the world to come together and organize against discrimination and remember victims of violence. During the week of December 17th, sex worker rights organizations will be staging actions and vigils to raise awareness about violence that is commonly committed against sex workers. The assault, battery, rape and murder of sex workers must end. In the past year, a police officer out of Orange County went to trial accused of stalking a stripper as she was leaving the club after work, and extorting sexual acts from her. Internal Affairs concluded that this officer had been stalking strippers and suspended the officers badge. In the criminal trial this year, a jury of 11 white men and a woman found the officer "NOT GUILTY" of three felony charges that he'd used his badge to win sexual favors during the traffic stop. The Defense? They accused her of purposefully "weakening" Park so that he became "a man," not a cop during the traffic stop. "She got what she wanted," said the defense. "She's an overtly sexual person." For the full article: http://www.ocweekly.com/news/news/illegally-park-ed/26661/ Last October, a sex worker who arrange a date via craigslist wound up being raped at gunpoint by five men who had lured her to an abandoned building. When criminal charges against the defendant and head of this gang rape was brought before a Philadelphia judge, the judge dismissed the rape charges, instead dropping them to "theft of services". The contention is that a prostitute cannot be raped, only "robbed" of sex. The judge said that to pursue a rape charge in the case "minimizes true rape cases and demeans women who are really raped." The defendant was charged in an identical incident involving a 23-year-old woman four days later, and the Assistant District Attorney didn't pursue charges.

The Green River Killer said: "The plan was, I wanted to kill as many women I thought were prostitutes as I possibly could. I picked prostitutes as victims because they were easy to pick up without being noticed. I picked prostitutes because I thought I could kill as many of them as I wanted without getting caught."

I will have more information about the events we are planning this weekend in Chicago, but please investigate any actions or vigils that may be going on near you. Sex workers...we must get involved and show support for one another in order to gain strength and fight the evils that want to harm us.