Commentary: Response to Weitzer ‘Resistance to sex work stigma’

Chapkis, Wendy

doi:10.1177/1363460716684511

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…those advanced by Amnesty International, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, International Commission of Jurists, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Open Society Foundations, and the World Health Organisation, among others). These organisations have centred attention on health outcomes and human rights for all, rather than narrow moral and political claims about whether a person adopts the "correct" identity, or "right" set of behaviours, to be considered "worthy" of support within neoliberal regimes of responsibilitisation and welfarism (see Chapkis, 2017;O'Neill, 2001;Sanders, 2013). Given that this special issue was "based on the premise that it is possible to produce knowledge on community safety only with community involvement," on issues of criminal intervention and harm reduction, this paper calls on campaigners and organisers for sex work decriminalisation to consider sexual behaviours and identities-such as, but not limited to, incidental sex work-which have not yet been identified by policymakers or researchers, where the needs of hidden groups may be neglected.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…720-2). Responding to this, Chapkis (2017) cautioned that: Despite [Weitzer's] suggestion that effective strategies to end sex work stigma should be based on the tactics of ''deviance liberation movements'', his focus is entirely on "normalization" not "liberation." For example, as a form of resistance to stigma, he notes that individual sex workers might tell stories about prostitution involving "full agency" to distinguish their work from "disreputable forms of sex work (e.g.…”

Section: Queering Legal Norms and Labelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Limits of Labelling: Incidental Sex Work Among Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Young Men on Social Media

Morris

2021

Sex Res Soc Policy

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Introduction The term incidental sex work refers to forms of casual, occasional, unsolicited commercial sex, arranged between gay, bisexual, and queer men on social media platforms such as Grindr. This paper explores the limits of labelling sexual identities, and how definitions of “sex” and “work” have become increasingly unstable in the digital age. Methods This study used mixed methods, with the primary mode of data collection being qualitative interviews with young gay, bisexual, and queer men conducted between May 2015 and April 2016. The interviews incorporated a nine-point sexuality scale and photo-elicitation procedures to prompt further discussions. Through the participant recruitment process, the study also generated an informal survey of 1473 Grindr users aged 18 to 28, finding that 14.6% had been paid for sex, most of whom (8.2%) had done so “incidentally.” Results The 50 interview participants discussed being paid for sex 358 times. This paper focuses on their narratives of labelling, identity politics, sexual normativity, and social stigma. All participants distanced themselves from labels such as “prostitute,” “rent boy,” or “sex worker” given that their behaviours were not seen as “regular” or “professional” enough, alongside seeking to avoid association with stigmatising stereotypes of sex work. These results are compared with the participants’ experiences of coming out as gay, bisexual, and queer. Discussion These narratives are interpreted using queer theory to understand those whose behaviours and identities do not conform to normative (legal, medical, social) discourses of sex work. The implications of this hidden population for campaigners, policymakers, and healthcare practitioners are discussed, contributing to ongoing debates around harm reduction and social policy.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Queering Legal Norms and Labelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Limits of Labelling: Incidental Sex Work Among Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Young Men on Social Media

Morris

2021

Sex Res Soc Policy

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“…As she recalls, a decade later, Leigh ( 1997 ) would invent the term sex worker, to be a more affirmative and inclusive term for erotic labour within feminist movements. In more recent decades, however, both the LGBTQ and sex worker rights movements have seen attempts to move towards assimilationism or respectability politics (Chapkis, 2017 ).…”

Section: The Intersectional Politics Of Decriminalizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Harm Reduction and Decriminalization of Sex Work: Introduction to the Special Section

2021

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Introduction: This special section of Sexuality Research and Social Policy, edited by Belinda Brooks-Gordon, Max Morris and Teela Sanders, has its origins in a colloquium sponsored by the University of Cambridge Socio-Legal Group in 2020. The goal was to promote the exchange of ideas between a variety of disciplinary research fields and applied perspectives on harm reduction and the decriminalization of sex work. The colloquium took place during the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic in February 2020. Methods: We explore the impact of Covid-19 on understandings of sex work, outline the basic underpinning legal philosophical question, explore the intersectional politics of decriminalization, summarize contemporary international health and human rights campaigns, explore contemporary public opinion trends on the issue, and illustrate the universal principles. Finally, we summarize the special section papers (N=12). Results: The Covid pandemic provided a lens through which to analyse the changes that have occurred in sex work and sex work research in the past decade and it also exacerbated intersecting inequalities, accelerated many social shifts already in motion whilst changing the course of others. In combination the papers in this special issue examine sex work policy and research across 12 countries in four continents to provide and important space for international and cross-cultural comparison. Conclusions: We present the timely contributions of diverse authors and comment on the significance of their research projects which support a decriminalization policy agenda for the benefit of academics, policymakers and practitioners to improve public health strategies and international responses. Policy Implications: The research here amplifies the focus on harm reduction and strengthens the case for public policy that decriminalizes commercial sex between consenting adults as the best strategy to reduce harm.

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“…De este modo, y puesto que las ganancias de las alternadoras variaban en función del tipo de clientela, las coperas con mejores ingresos valoraban la informalidad 30 Para una discusión actualizada sobre estigma y trabajo sexual ver, por ejemplo, el trabajo de Weitzer (2017), Sanders (2017), Chapkis (2017), Phoenix (2017), Minichiello, Scott y Cox (2017). Ver también Juliano (2004).…”

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Alternando derechos. Acerca de cómo la Campaña anti-trata eliminó una categoría de trabajadoras

Daich

2022

Rev. antropol. soc.

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Desde que, en el 2012, se reformara la ley de trata argentina, casi todos los asuntos relacionados con el mercado del sexo fueron teñidos de suspicacias y leídos en clave de violencia. Así, en nombre del combate a la trata de personas, en el 2016 la Ciudad de Buenos Aires prohibió una antigua y reconocida categoría laboral: las empleadas contratadas para alternar o bailar con los clientes de nightclubs y whiskerías, y estimularlos a hacer gastos, copas, en su compañía. En el discurso de los legisladores, el alterne fue entendido como prostitución (y como un caso de violencia contra las mujeres), y también como una fachada para la trata de personas. ¿Cómo es que la campaña anti-trata pudo eliminar esta categoría sin que hubiera mayores repercusiones? ¿Qué pasó con las trabajadoras y su sindicato? ¿Qué tenían los feminismos para decir al respecto? Este artículo intenta dar respuesta a estos interrogantes basándose en trabajo de campo realizado entre los años 2013 y 2019

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Commentary: Response to Weitzer ‘Resistance to sex work stigma’

Cited by 10 publications

References 0 publications

The Limits of Labelling: Incidental Sex Work Among Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Young Men on Social Media

The Limits of Labelling: Incidental Sex Work Among Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Young Men on Social Media

Harm Reduction and Decriminalization of Sex Work: Introduction to the Special Section

Alternando derechos. Acerca de cómo la Campaña anti-trata eliminó una categoría de trabajadoras

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