From one of our comrade’s latest published pieces, “Arts-based and cultural elements of organizing are often seen as superfluous, but I consider centering the cultural and artistic works of radical sex workers and co-conspirators as a way to imagine our futures collectively and honor past struggle. We change ourselves and the spaces we take upContinue reading ““Cultural Resistance to SESTA/FOSTA: Reflecting on Community Curation” – via Kernel Magazine”
Category Archives: Media
“From the Frontlines: Understanding Sex Worker-led Movements”
From Chris Giraldo of the Sex Worker Giving Circle, “I’m so thrilled to share that the SWGC and our brilliant comrades and SWGC grantee partner orgs The Kua’ana Project, Support Ho(s)e, and SWOP Los Angeles took over the latest issue of the Quarterly Journal on Responsive Philanthropy, titled “From the Frontlines: Understanding Sex Worker-Led Movements”. I’m so honored to haveContinue reading ““From the Frontlines: Understanding Sex Worker-led Movements””
Current Status: Media Hiatus
We’re currently on a journalism/media hiatus for all requests–especially with regard to student journalists. Please see a guide we put together years ago, to support media workers in being better accomplices, under the digital publications section of this site. If you’re a student journalist, and REALLY want to get our attention/time/energy, consider offering to letContinue reading “Current Status: Media Hiatus”
New article from our comrades Alisha and Red for International Whore’s Day 2021
Something Red and Alisha have been working on for quite some time about the violence of prison technology and the importance of inside/outside communication, is finally debuting today in honor of International Whore’s Day! Please read and share, “Care and Connection as Resistance to State Violence and Surveillance” with your communities! Many thanks to Hacking//HustlingContinue reading “New article from our comrades Alisha and Red for International Whore’s Day 2021”
RED CANARY SONG RESPONSE TO SHOOTINGS AT GOLD MASSAGE SPA, YOUNG’S ASIAN MASSAGE & AROMA THERAPY SPA
From the Red Canary Song solidarity + response statement: “Decriminalization of sex work is the only way that sex workers, massage workers, sex trafficking survivors, and anyone criminalized for their survival and/or livelihood will ever be safe.” We’ve signed on in support. Read the full statement here, listen to and act on its demands: ****Continue reading “RED CANARY SONG RESPONSE TO SHOOTINGS AT GOLD MASSAGE SPA, YOUNG’S ASIAN MASSAGE & AROMA THERAPY SPA”
Protect Asian Women, Asian Massage Parlor Workers, Asian Sex Workers
From Red Canary Song: “Eight workers in massage parlors have been killed in Atlanta. This is horrific, and is indicative of the violence that massage workers face daily. We are saddened and angered to learn of this, and we are sending our love to the workers in Atlanta.” Our hearts break and we are filledContinue reading “Protect Asian Women, Asian Massage Parlor Workers, Asian Sex Workers”
St. Valentine’s Day in San Francisco declared Margo St. James Day & Memorial Save the Date!
San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, and the St. James Infirmary, named for its most storied founder Margo St. James, announced that St. Valentine’s Day in San Francisco is now officially, Margo St. James Day. St. James, who founded the prostitutes’ rights organization, COYOTE, (Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics), and later, the St. James Infirmary,Continue reading “St. Valentine’s Day in San Francisco declared Margo St. James Day & Memorial Save the Date!”
“Ending Violence Against Sex Workers Means Abolishing Police and Prisons”
Much of the violence experienced by people doing sex work is at the hands of the carceral state; the sexual and physical violence experienced at the hands of clients, abusive partners and neighborhood vigilantes is a direct result of the state’s permissiveness of all forms of violence toward those stigmatized, marginalized and criminalized in society.Continue reading ““Ending Violence Against Sex Workers Means Abolishing Police and Prisons””
We Too: Essays on Sex Work and Survival
Mark your calendars! We’re so excited about this The Feminist Press launch event for “WeToo: Essays on Sex Work and Survival” that was just scheduled with Bluestockings Bookstore, Café, & Activist Center for February 18th, 2021. You can purchase suggested donation tickets here. This virtual launch event will be hosted by the amazing Tina Horn!Continue reading “We Too: Essays on Sex Work and Survival”
Alisha’s covid testing updates
Logan Prison COs are pulling Alisha and others off their unit this morning (12/10/20) for testing. She got a call out to Red and Sherri to let them know. If positive for covid, she likely won’t be able to call for 2 weeks because there’s only one phone on the so-called “quarantine” unit. That “quarantine”Continue reading “Alisha’s covid testing updates”
Keep LeLe in your hearts…
Comrades, our fears are playing out every day, and now this. One of our organizers just had a video visit with Alisha and let us know that Lele is sick with COVID like symptoms and will be tested on Thursday. The delay is apparently due to the prison wanting to wait in order to saveContinue reading “Keep LeLe in your hearts…”
Audio Interference + Survived & Punished NY podcast episode featuring Alisha!
Audio Interference 77.5: Archiving Abolition—Alisha Walker Listen to the episode here. Letters from Comrades on the Inside: In this episode, we hear from Alisha Walker, a comrade on the inside whose story is uplifted by Survived and Punished. She shares her experiences as an incarcerated person and her thoughts on justice and access to information.Continue reading “Audio Interference + Survived & Punished NY podcast episode featuring Alisha!”
“USPS attacks threaten ‘transformative’ prison pen pal programs”
Survived & Punished NY (S&P NY) is the New York chapter of Survived & Punished, a national organization that seeks to end the criminalization of survivors of gender violence. Red, an organizer with both S&P NY and the Support Ho(s)e Collective, helped draft the group’s best practices and guides for letting writing. S&P NY has hosted in-personContinue reading ““USPS attacks threaten ‘transformative’ prison pen pal programs””
Alisha Walker: Survived & Punished
We’d love for y’all to check out this video resource we co-created with Survived & Punished, Mariame Kaba and BCRW about Alisha’s case back in 2017/2018: https://vimeo.com/255412331 This video was conceived by Mariame Kaba and narrated by CeCe McDonald. Directed and produced by Dean Spade and Hope Dector. Audio editing by Lewis Wallace. Artwork andContinue reading “Alisha Walker: Survived & Punished”
Watch: IWD 2020 Digital Rally recap video!
The International Whores Day NYC recap video is here! Watch and share widely! Video link here: #IWDNYC2020 A recap of the 2020 IWD Digital Rally staged by NYC and Philly sex working organizers. We invited you to protest, celebrate, support, and flood our feeds with messages of love and solidarity with sex workers — youContinue reading “Watch: IWD 2020 Digital Rally recap video!”
Have you heard about Give OUT Day?
Did y’all know Give OUT Day is the only national online day of giving for the LGBTQ+ community? We know our queer, trans, and gender non-conforming communities of color have consistently been the first ones throwing down for each other before & during the pandemic and uprisings. We also know that the police use sex work criminalization toContinue reading “Have you heard about Give OUT Day?”
“Sex Workers Have Never Counted on Cops. Let’s Learn From Their Safety Tactics.”
One of our organizers spoke with Mike Ludwig for Truthout, about sex worker mutual aid and safety outside the carceral state: “In the face of criminalization and whorephobic violence, sex working people have always sought to create our own systems of support and protection outside of the cops, criminal legal processes and societally accepted channels becauseContinue reading ““Sex Workers Have Never Counted on Cops. Let’s Learn From Their Safety Tactics.””
“Sex Work as Queer History” virtual discussion!
Tonight! 7PM! One of our comrades will be in conversation with Cecilia Gentili, Hugh Ryan, and Melissa Gira Grant! Their discussion will be streamed via The New Republic‘s page! RSVP here: Sex Work as Queer History
Donna’s Twitter Takeover!
Did y’all know our comrade Donna Gary is holding down Twitter for us through the 28th?! From Donna: Taking over the Support Ho(s)e twitter for the next 8 DAYS! I go way back with this lovely disruptive org! Learn more about how this poet gal got involved as a co-conspirator with sex workers, particularly incarceratedContinue reading “Donna’s Twitter Takeover!”
Chrystul is FREE!
What amazing news!!! Chrystul Kizer is free, out on bail, and with comrades and family! We’re with you Chrystul, we have your back! From our comrades the Chicago Community Bond Fund: Chrystul Kizer is a Black 19-year-old survivor of sexual violence currently facing criminal prosecution for actions taken in self-defense. For almost two years, Chrystul has beenContinue reading “Chrystul is FREE!”
#8ToAbolition
We are amplifying #8toAbolition “While communities across the country mourn the loss of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Jamel Floyd, and so many more Black victims of police murder, Campaign Zero released its 8 Can’t Wait campaign, offering a set of eight reforms they claim would reduce police killings by 72%. As police and prisonContinue reading “#8ToAbolition”
INTERNATIONAL WHORES’ DAY ZINE 2020
To honor and celebrate the resilience of the NYC sex working communities who continuously care for and provide mutual aid to one another, a group of sex workers and comrades are making a zine. Download the zine here.
IWD 2020 Digital Rally
Miss the International Whores’ Day – NYC Digital Rally because you were out in the streets? No worries! It was recorded and you can watch here: https://www.internationalwhoresday.com
Tomorrow! Celebrate International Whores Day 2020
Tomorrow, June 2nd for International Whores Day we’ll be participating in two different online actions! Start your day with NYC comrades: http://tinyurl.com/IWDNYC2020 ***update: the Chicago event has been postponed*** Then join Chicago comrades in the evening: https://linktr.ee/chiiwd
DIY Resistance: Sex Workers + Organizers Talk Art-making and Mutual Aid
Mark your calendars for 💥”DIY RESISTANCE: Sex Workers & Organizers Talk Art-making & Mutual Aid for International Whores’ Day”💥 June 3rd 2020 / 8-9 p.m. EDT Join a live conversation and Q&A around artmaking as resistance, mutual aid, and “whorestories” of zine-making with Red Schulte, curator of the The International Whores’ Day Zine and co-organizer of the International Whores Day NYCContinue reading “DIY Resistance: Sex Workers + Organizers Talk Art-making and Mutual Aid”
“If U Only Knew How They Were Really Doing Us”: Inside/Outside Communication During A Pandemic
ICYMI: Red & Alisha wrote a piece for Tits and Sass, that also features words by our comrade, Lorena*. “This pandemic is yet another horrifying worst case scenario. It exists on top of Alisha’s incarceration being its own terror and the assault on her life being another. And of course, all of this exists in theContinue reading ““If U Only Knew How They Were Really Doing Us”: Inside/Outside Communication During A Pandemic”
“‘We’ve Always Taken Care Of Each Other’: How Sex Workers Are Coping During COVID-19”
On March 27, Congress passed The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, a $2 trillion economic relief package intended to help workers, families, and small businesses with the economic impacts of COVID-19. But federal regulation dating back to the ’70s bars anyone whose work is of a “prurient sexual nature” from receiving reliefContinue reading ““‘We’ve Always Taken Care Of Each Other’: How Sex Workers Are Coping During COVID-19””
The EARN IT Act is a Trojan Horse Designed to Permanently Shatter The Privacy of Internet Users
https://www.slixa.com/blog/law/earnit-act-2020-breaks-encryption-for-sex-workers/ One of our organizers spoke with Kate for this piece, “Many of us…have [now] taken up this work against EARN IT. We see this newly proposed bill as a part of the dangerous legacy of SESTA/FOSTA, the PATRIOT Act and other insidious state surveillance efforts; bent on censorship and punishment.“
“Resolution Condemning SESTA-FOSTA”
BE IT RESOLVED, NLG condemns SESTA-FOSTA and all attempts to further criminalize people’s involvement in the sex trade. NLG is in solidarity with the plaintiffs in Woodhull Freedom Foundation et al. v. United States and all others harmed by SESTA-FOSTA. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, in line with the 2016 NLG Resolution Supporting the Abolition of Prisons, theContinue reading ““Resolution Condemning SESTA-FOSTA””
Sex Workers Are at the Forefront of the Fight Against Mass Surveillance and Big Tech
Coverage from the Hacking//Hustling Convening two of our comrades presented at!
Fifty Feminist States Podcast
In this episode of Fifty Feminist States, Amelia travels to back to New York to talk to Support Ho(s)e organizer Red about their work organizing for the defense of Alisha Walker and what it really means to support sex work and sex workers. http://fiftyfeministstates.com/episode-9-part-two-new-york/
“Read Revolting Prostitutes:Your Socialism Depends on It”
In the days and weeks immediately following Verso’s announcement of the release of Revolting Prostitutes: The Fight for Sex Workers’ Rights, sex work-centered social media erupted in unprecedented and rightful excitement. Several months after its release, the buzz continues. April 1, 2019 / by Brit Schulte Read the full article here.
Fifty Feminist States
Our dear friend and comrade Amelia’s latest season of Fifty Feminist States podcast launches today! Tune into the part 2 New York episode, in April, to hear about our organizing efforts! http://fiftyfeministstates.com/podcast/
“We Won Clemency for Cyntoia Brown—Now Let’s Free all Survivors”
In seven months, Cyntoia Brown will be released from prison, having been granted a full commutation to parole by exiting Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam. Cyntoia has already served 15 years of a life sentence. When she was a teenager, Cyntoia experienced continual violence and was engaged in survival work. At the age of 16, she shot Johnny Allen, a 43-year-old client who sheContinue reading ““We Won Clemency for Cyntoia Brown—Now Let’s Free all Survivors””
From Peepshow Podcast: Episode 38 is our first episode of 2019!
This week we feature an interview with Red, a New York City-based Marxist/feminist community organizer sex working art historian. Red’s organizing efforts sit at the intersection of art, politics, and labor. In addition to a discussion of the prison industrial complex as it relates to sex work politics, we talked to Red about the workContinue reading “From Peepshow Podcast: Episode 38 is our first episode of 2019!”
“Prostitution-loitering law likely to target women of color for arrest”
“Any loitering law is a death warrant to minorities,” said Red S., an organizer with Support Ho(s)e, an activist collective that advocates on behalf of sex workers. (Red asked that their last name not be used because of recent laws targeting sex workers.) “Transgender and black and brown people will be targeted, and there willContinue reading ““Prostitution-loitering law likely to target women of color for arrest””
“‘Prostitution-Related’ Loitering Ordinance Promotes Racial Profiling in Chicago”
In an ill-advised move last month, the Chicago City Council passed an ordinance that makes “prostitution-related loitering” a prosecutable offense defined as “remaining in any one place under circumstances that would warrant a reasonable person to believe that the purpose or effect of that behavior is to facilitate prostitution.” The language of the new statuteContinue reading ““‘Prostitution-Related’ Loitering Ordinance Promotes Racial Profiling in Chicago””
Women’s March 2017
Last year we sat down with Women’s March to talk about the case of our comrade Alisha Walker and why all feminists should fight for sex workers’ rights and decriminalization! Women’s March 2017 Transcript Sophie:Hi everyone. I’m Sophie from Women’s March, and I’m here with Red, whose an organizer with a Chicago-based group called, SupportContinue reading “Women’s March 2017”
“Let Us Survive: Demanding the Decriminalization of Sex Work”
Sex work is an umbrella term used by many to encompass all sorts of erotic labor, practice, and trade. This includes, but is not limited to, full service providers, escorting, cam work, adult film performers, dommes, stripping, sugar baby work, fetish provision, etc. It’s work. A lot of it is unfortunately criminalized because of patriarchalContinue reading ““Let Us Survive: Demanding the Decriminalization of Sex Work””
“New York’s Sex Workers Rally to Take Back International Whores Day: ‘Let Us Survive’”
The whorestory of the day traces back to 1975, when a group of over 100 sex workers occupied a church in Lyon, France for eight days. Their protests against police brutality and harassment, and demands for an end to the humiliation and violence, still resonate with a criminalized and marginalized population. Red Schulte, an organizer with SupportContinue reading ““New York’s Sex Workers Rally to Take Back International Whores Day: ‘Let Us Survive’””
“Sex workers protest a post-Backpage world”
Around 2 p.m. last Saturday, a tiny park in the West Village across the street from the Stonewall Inn filled with red umbrellas. Standing beneath them, shielded from blazing sun, were over 200 sex workers and their allies. Usually wary of appearing publicly in association with their jobs, today they were unafraid. After all, itContinue reading ““Sex workers protest a post-Backpage world””
“Sex Workers Fight Back Against a Dangerous Law by Stepping Into the Spotlight”
The sex workers are gathered here in Manhattan to fight back against SESTA/FOSTA, a federal law passed under the guise of combating human sex-trafficking but that effectively destroyed crucial online spaces for sex workers. While sex workers say the law is putting their lives at risk, it has invigorated the community and pushed the issuesContinue reading ““Sex Workers Fight Back Against a Dangerous Law by Stepping Into the Spotlight””
“The Federal Attack on Sex Workers’ Rights Is a Threat to Everyone’s Free Speech”
Moving offline also makes members of marginalized communities more visible to police and potentially problematic clients. It’s not uncommon for workers who are transgender, disabled, and people of color to rely on web buffers to stay safe. “Being arrested for ‘walking while black,’ or ‘walking while trans’ is outrageously common,” Red Schulte, a queer, non-binary sex workerContinue reading ““The Federal Attack on Sex Workers’ Rights Is a Threat to Everyone’s Free Speech””
“NYC TRANSGENDER ACTIVIST SAYS SHE WAS CRIMINALIZED FOR DEFENDING HERSELF AGAINST ABUSER”
When Ceyenne Doroshow, an activist for transgender and sex worker rights, arrived at Queens Criminal Court for a hearing on February 15, more than a dozen supporters greeted her, some holding signs with slogans like “Black Trans Women Matter.” But that’s not, she says, how the criminal justice system has made her feel. Feb 26,Continue reading ““NYC TRANSGENDER ACTIVIST SAYS SHE WAS CRIMINALIZED FOR DEFENDING HERSELF AGAINST ABUSER””
“NOT A CARDBOARD CUTOUT: CYNTOIA BROWN AND THE FRAMING OF A VICTIM”
The evening of August 6th, 2004, 16-year old Cyntoia Brown shot and killed Johnny Allen, a 43-year-old Nashville resident who picked her up for sex. It was an act of self defense, she explained to police later; after Allen took her to his house, he showed Cyntoia multiple guns, including shotguns and rifles. Later inContinue reading ““NOT A CARDBOARD CUTOUT: CYNTOIA BROWN AND THE FRAMING OF A VICTIM””
Women’s March
One of our organizers sat down with Women’s March to talk about why supporting sex workers and incarcerated survivors, like Alisha Walker, is essential to feminist movement building.
“Labor And The State” with panelists: Bill Pelz, Djamil Arbia, and Brit Schulte
How does the State function today? How is it the product of a history of Leftist struggles? Is there a way in which workers in the “Era of Trump” are able make sense of and redeem Labor’s history with the State, to develop, as Marxists contend, a dialectical, rather than affirmative or negative relation toContinue reading ““Labor And The State” with panelists: Bill Pelz, Djamil Arbia, and Brit Schulte”
“Chicago sex workers demand the right to work without threat of violence”
On December 17, a crowd of 30 formed a vigil in front of the Cloud Gate in Millennium Park to honor the lives of sex workers lost to violence. The vigil marked the end of a turbulent year that saw sex worker Alisha Walker sentenced to 15 years in prison after defending herself in a violentContinue reading ““Chicago sex workers demand the right to work without threat of violence””
“Chicago’s Support Ho(s)e Collective Will Hold Vigil for Fallen Sex Workers on #Dec17”
December 17 is the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. In Chicago, members of the collective Support Ho(s)e will be holding vigil with other community members, to remember sex workers who have been lost to violence. Criminalized sex workers are often forced into conditions that heighten the risk of state, intimate partner and client violence.Continue reading ““Chicago’s Support Ho(s)e Collective Will Hold Vigil for Fallen Sex Workers on #Dec17””
“Why Sex Workers Shouldn’t Vote Green”
In this election, there is no viable option for those of us looking to build a better world. People have exclaimed, “What about Bernie?! What about Jill Stein?” And maybe a little while ago, before looking into their respective platforms, I would have said, “Okay, yeah, sure—but organize.” But fortunately, since then I’ve been schooledContinue reading ““Why Sex Workers Shouldn’t Vote Green””
“The Right To Survive: The Case of Alisha Walker”
Alisha Walker was just 20 years old when she had to defend herself against a client who was drunk and violent. She was 22 when she was convicted of second degree murder and 15 years in prison for defending both her own life and the life of a friend who was also on the scene. She is nowContinue reading ““The Right To Survive: The Case of Alisha Walker””
“Sex workers protest in Chicago changes in French laws”
Sex workers returned April 29 to protest in downtown Chicago, this time in front of the North Michigan Avenue building that houses the French Consulate. The group of around 12 women and men carrying signs said French laws, passed in April, were undermining the safety and economic security of French sex-worker’s union by fining “johns.”Continue reading ““Sex workers protest in Chicago changes in French laws””
“The Myth of ‘Unrapeable’ Women: Sex Work as Work, Porn as Art, and Radical Consent”
What does it mean to be “unrapeable?” It can mean, among other, almost limitless possibilities, that the labor we perform, the industry we work within, those that consume the products of our labor, and those that try desperately to deprive of us self-determined working conditions, somehow belongs to everyone but us. It means that ourContinue reading ““The Myth of ‘Unrapeable’ Women: Sex Work as Work, Porn as Art, and Radical Consent””