Comrades, co-conspirators, fellow whores–this has been a summer of high highs and low lows. We’ve heard from so many workers across the trades that this summer has been tough emotionally, financially, environmentally and politically. To combat these all too real summer scaries, we’re leaning into sex working and trans* community collaborations, looking for inspiration and hope amongst our own. We especially want to uplift The Sapphic Strip Club, SWOP Chicago, Gender Unbound, and Red Canary Song who are just a few projects local to Chicago, Austin, and NYC where we have our homebases. Click the hyperlinks to follow their work, check out their upcoming events, and send them some cash if you have it to spare. Sex workers, criminalized survivors, queer and trans fam, migrant massage workers and drug using people are your comrades, invite us to collaborate on events / show up when we put out calls to action. All of our struggles are intertwined and we need your care and solidarity. Our collective horizons depend on it.
Urgent Chicago-based ask: we will soon be in need of new streams of harm reduction resources. Can you get us FREE bulk orders of Narcan/Naloxone, Emergency Contraceptives (Plan B), Condoms / Dental Dams, luer-lock disposable syringes, and (or) drug testing strips? Please get in touch via sxhxcollective@gmail.com
Upcoming Events!
- On September 9th from 7 – 8pm at Pilsen Community Books, join us for a conversation between Sophie Lewis and our comrade Red, about Sophie’s new essay collection, Femmephilia: Love Letters to Trans Mermaids, Queer Mothers, and Marilyn Monroe, an original diagnosis of femmephobia in our culture, and a vision of a life-giving femme-inism for all. We’ll have some free harm reduction resources and our fundraising zines available as well!
“To be femme is to embody a dispossessed femininity, to be freighted with freedom, to refuse to be made proper or institutionalized. To love it is to embrace love for women (be they butch or not) in the broadest sense. In Femmephilia, Sophie Lewis makes the case for the vital importance of politicized femme-ness: a feminism that is self-consciously artificial, extravagant in its erotic and political appetites, and staunchly anti-work, abolitionist, and utopian. Femme labor deserves our care, respect, and support, but instead face dismissal from masculinist antagonists and feminist allies alike.”
- Our comrade Donna Dante has launched a beautiful, supportive, social, playful formation called Nonbinary Chess Club! Chess heads, wood nymphs, moon worshippers and LGBQTIA+ friends and community don’t miss these special collaborations bringing you Chicago fall realness. So grateful for our biggest early supporters and our upcoming collaborators. make sure to visit them before and after our events to keep feed their mission and nourish your spirit. 🤍🖤🤍🖤
Upcoming meets >>>
9/12 chess on the farm @elatebeverages_@chicagopatchworkfarms 🍋🥒
9/29 chess and collage @xicana_prinxess @starlingbyduo @drinkmondaycoffee 🍩🍵
11/1 chess and tattoo 😛we are still on the lookout for venue sponsors … you know what to do in the DMs!📸
RSVP for their events and meets here.
<<<This is who you want teaching you chess.
- One of our former collective members and long-time collaborators works on anti-tech fascism / anti-venture capital fronts and is a founding researcher for vcinfodocs. This site, “provides a systems analysis covering the Network State, tech colonialism, cryptocurrency, weapons development, medical experimentation, accelerationism, global conflict, election interference and the rise of the far-right, backed by venture capital.” They assert that: “Material information is one way to fight back, and maximum information should be available to people around the world, especially as this manifests in military conflict, colonization, coups, regime change and the financing of the global far-right. Pease help us spread this research, and help others find this information.” You can read their comprehensive research here.
News! News! News!
We want to uplift Keshia Golden, her case, like so many of our comrades who are criminalized survivors ignited a fire in our bellies. Like this author wrote, “A single mother who dared to fight back should not have to endure the oppressive and time-consuming process of probation and drug testing, nor a criminal record that hinders how she lives her life and complicates her ability to secure housing, land employment and support her child.” We are joining our friends in Moms United Against Violence and Incarceration, Love & Protect, Survived & Punished and other abolitionist feminists in demanding for her immediate pardon. Her grassroots defense committee has launched a fundraiser for her as well, and you can donate here.
Our long-time collaborators at Hacking//Hustling have debuted a 4-part sex worker movement oral history podcast! Our comrade Red was on their collective and podcast team. Even after their sunset, H2 is still sharing fire content! Let Us Survive: An oral history of sex worker movements before and after FOSTA-SESTA, is an oral history project by sex workers for everyone, and covers a decade of American sex worker justice movements, roughly 2013 to 2023. It also gazes towards the future: of the industry, and of our labor organizing. Check it out here.
We’re opening up our Sex Working Parents & Care Givers cohort again! If you know someone who’s currently incarcerated and in need of commissary support, who identifies as a sex working/trading/hustling person, and also is a parent/care giver please fill out this form on their behalf (after you get consent to do so). We’re accepting 3 additional people into the cohort, on a first applied, first served basis. Want to show your support for sex working parents and care givers? Snag one of our benefit tees!
Urgent Mutual Aid calls:
- We’re in need of urgent funds to support THREE workers who are currently struggling to support themselves after assault, unintended pregnancy + loss of work, and emergency relocation respectively. If you have $5 -$20, or more, to spare please Venmo us @SxHxCollective or Cashapp us $SxHxCollective (and put a 🌹in the memo line). Everything helps.
- We also hope you’d consider donating to support a Cleveland sex worker facing thousands in legal fees after a recent arrest, her CashApp is: $daizshmoney