Few topics in feminist debate are as contested as sex work. This session tried to hold that tension honestly — between the abolitionist position, the harm-reduction view, and the voices of sex workers themselves. We started with definitions, moved through media representations and legal frameworks, and ended with the question of what feminist solidarity actually demands here.
Materials
Main
- YouTube: feminism & sex work — a good overview of different feminist positions on sex work and why they diverge (YouTube)
- The Nordic model explained and critiqued: YouTube video on why the end-demand model is contested (YouTube)
- Belgium's new sex work law — either the NYT article or the BBC podcast — maternity leave, sick leave, pension, panic button, right to refuse clients (article · NYT or podcast · BBC)
- Lily Phillips documentary — the "100 men" stunt, what it reveals about how sex work is performed for public consumption (YouTube)
- Anora — Sean Baker's film offering a holistic portrait of a sex worker: neither sinner nor saint (film trailer · YouTube)
Supplementary
- Why the Swedish/end-demand model does not work according to many sex workers and researchers: video one and briefing paper (YouTube + article)
- Male sex workers in the UK: YouTube documentary — trigger warning: rape and drugs (YouTube · tw)
- Two Bruzz columns (Dutch) — niet stigmatiseren, niet romantiseren and een bezoeker maakt je nog geen pervert (article · Bruzz)
Session structure
- Opening: your own assumptions
- What are your prejudices on sex work?
- Do you know anyone who has paid for sex?
- Definitions
- Sex work, prostitution, human trafficking, street work — why the language matters
- Abolitionism of prostitution as a feminist position
- Media and pop culture representations
- The "happy hooker" narrative — where does it come from?
- OnlyFans: legal certification in the UK, what it can and cannot host
- Lily Phillips, Anora, and the girlbossification of sex work
- Holistic vs exploitative portrayals — what does Anora do differently?
- Legal frameworks across Europe
- Belgium 2024: maternity leave, sick leave, pension, panic button, right to refuse — seen as revolutionary but also criticised
- Nordic model: criminalise buyers, not sellers — stated aims vs documented effects
- Germany (legal since 2002, 24k workers, 80% non-German), Netherlands (legalised 2000), Austria (legal since 1947)
- France: legal to sell, fine to buy (since 2016); Italy: only private/street sex legal since 1958
- Feminist debate
- Can sex work ever be freely chosen?
- What does feminist solidarity with sex workers look like?
- Sex workers not allowed to have a bad day — what does that say about how we view the job?
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