Sex workers deserve safety, respect

Near the end of my freshman year, some friends and I decided it
would be great fun to go to the Suicide Girls’ Burlesque
show.

And, minus being caught on the Sunset Strip while the Los
Angeles police were enforcing anti-cruising laws, it was exactly
that ““ fun. It never crossed my mind to not assume that the
girls on stage were enjoying themselves.

And the high-spirited whipped-cream-and-chocolate-syrup fight
that concluded the show seemed to support my assumption.

I’ve even absent-mindedly teased myself with the fantasy
of being a stripper. Unfortunately, my issues with stage fright
would render me a short-lived candidate. But in terms of money,
time and flexibility, being a stripper seems like the perfect job
for a college student.

More recently, with the exception of prostitution ““ which
I believe to be a separate issue ““ I’ve questioned
whether all types of sex work are appropriate, and tried to form
some sort of set opinion on whether I believe sex work should be
allowed or not.

However, I’ve decided that a simple opinion on this matter
just isn’t feasible.

A student and former sex worker who requested to be called
Tabatha (she asked not to be identified by her real name due to the
fact that she formerly performed sexual massages out of her house,
which is illegal in California) also has a mixed view of sex work
““ stripping in particular.

She initially decided to try stripping after she graduated from
high school because she said other jobs available to her that
didn’t require a college degree were unimaginative and
restrictive, requiring her to pay taxes and show up at certain
times.

“My time is worth more than $7 an hour,” Tabatha
said. “Anybody’s time is worth more than $7 an
hour.”

She found a job at a club in the San Fernando Valley that
didn’t require her to fill out any paperwork. She was allowed
to show up when she felt like it and dance. She was paid by tips
alone, which she found to be the case at most strip clubs.

Since my freshman year, I for one have struggled with my
opinions on what is appropriate in terms of sex work. I used to
believe that sex work was a way for women to empower themselves,
and that all sex work should be legal.

However, I’ve since come to realize by talking to people
involved in anti-human trafficking campaigns and sexual violence
workshops that the sex industry is riddled with problems.

While I don’t think all forms of sex work are inherently
bad, or that they should be made illegal (I still believe that
under certain conditions sex work can be empowering for certain
people), I do believe we need to be aware of the problems that
exist within the sex industry.

“People that just say (stripping) is empowering are
kidding themselves. There are levels of degradation to it,”
Tabatha said. While she said she didn’t especially enjoy
every aspect of being a stripper ““ “you do feel
violated, and you do feel objectified” ““ she said that
she enjoyed being rewarded, as opposed to punished, for her
sexuality.

“If girls have that kink, it can be powerful to be
rewarded for your sexuality. … But I wouldn’t recommend it
for people that are sensitive.”

While customers weren’t allowed to touch her, the owners
of the club encouraged Tabatha to touch the customers ““ it
brought more of them into the club.

While lap dances and touching were Tabatha’s least
favorite parts of her job, they were also how she received the most
tips. VIP rooms were another way to make more money, but she said
she wasn’t comfortable with them.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, certain strip
clubs are hotbeds for sexual violence and prostitution ““ so
much so that they’ve recommended that the Los Angeles city
council require all strippers to remain six feet away and on raised
platforms with rails.

However, there aren’t any substantial statistics regarding
the issue of violence, prostitution and sexual abuse in strip
clubs. And Tabatha says she felt safe.

But according to the Polaris Project, sex trafficking might
surpass drug trafficking in the next decade to become the
second-largest criminal industry, and victims of sex trafficking
can be found anywhere sex work exists. This suggests there is some
credibility to LAPD’s statement. But they should be working
to stop trafficking ““ not legal sex work ““ or
preventing strippers from lap dancing and touching.

I’ve come across various stereotypes associated with
strippers while talking to students. Either people think
they’re sluts or trashy whores or that they’re only in
it for the money or that they enjoy every aspect of what they do
““ from lap dances to dancing on stage.

While these stereotypes may be true to a certain degree for
certain women, this doesn’t change the fact that strippers
need to be respected.

Ideally, there would be neither a demand for sex work nor
economic needs that lure people into the industry.

Unfortunately, sex sells. I can’t think of any situation
in which there wouldn’t be a market for sex work. And if we
must live with the fact that sex work exists, we should ensure that
sex workers are kept safe and not discriminated against.

“I think it’s so arrogant of people who have never
been in sex work, or for women who have never been in the financial
situation to make such a decision, to pass judgment,” said
Tabatha.

I certainly don’t have any experience working in the sex
industry, but I do have experience being judged because I write
this column.

I really don’t feel comfortable judging sex workers. While
it is an industry riddled with violence and abuse, it
shouldn’t be extended to include the entire industry.

Sex workers, no matter their reason for being in the industry,
need to be respected, not judged.

E-mail Loewenstein at lloewenstein@media.ucla.edu. Send
general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.

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