L. Synn Stern has been doing outreach work since the 1980’s. As an ex-sex worker and ex-injection drug user, she has a unique perspective on her work and the lives of her clients. She is now a certified R.N. and works as Health Services Coordinator at the Washington Heights Corner Project, a community space in… Continue reading Activist Spotlight: Synn Stern on Homelessness, Harm Reduction, and Sex Worker History
Category: Activism
Activist Spotlight: Magalie Lerman on Exploitation, the Anti-Prostitution Pledge, and Outreach
Magalie Lerman joined Prax(us), a Denver homeless youth and anti-trafficking organization, in 2010, as an outreach worker – one who knew the lay of the land in a way that others at Prax(us) did not. She now directs the outreach program and Hartcore, the constituent community organizing program. Hartcore and SWOP Denver (Sex Workers’ Outreach… Continue reading Activist Spotlight: Magalie Lerman on Exploitation, the Anti-Prostitution Pledge, and Outreach
What Antis Can Do To Help, Part Two: Aiding Those Leaving The Industry
In case you missed it, read Part One here. I am a sex worker who not only hates the sex industry, but, more often than not, sex work itself. At the very least, I am not the Charlotte York of Sex Work and the City; I didn’t set out on my current career path screaming, “I… Continue reading What Antis Can Do To Help, Part Two: Aiding Those Leaving The Industry
Activist Spotlight: Carol Leigh on Sex Worker Sinema and Challenging the Anti-Trafficking Discourse
Carol Leigh, aka Scarlot Harlot, was the first sex workers’ rights movement celebrity I ever met. I’d been escorting for only a few months when she came to speak in my area, and I identified deeply with her writing in my dogeared copy of the 1980s edition of Sex Work. I was struck immediately by her… Continue reading Activist Spotlight: Carol Leigh on Sex Worker Sinema and Challenging the Anti-Trafficking Discourse
The Merseyside Model, Part I: Can Sex Worker Activists Partner with the Police and a Conservative London Politician?
In Merseyside, England, violence against sex workers is treated by the police as a hate crime. This means that when a sex worker is the victim of an assault, robbery, or rape, she or he can report the incident without fear of being charged with prostitution, because the police have agreed to place a higher… Continue reading The Merseyside Model, Part I: Can Sex Worker Activists Partner with the Police and a Conservative London Politician?