VICE published a look at the world of illegal ass augmentation shots with some very frightening pictures of what happens when injections go wrong. The Buttloads of Pain video documentary debuts on the site next week. Please only see licensed professionals!
Last week’s #notyourrescueproject got somemedia coverage as sex workers on Twitter told the rescue industry why they didn’t need to be saved from, uh, themselves.
When did I last read a novel about gay male escorts that didn’t make me want to set the world on fire with rage? It was probably Rupert Everett’s Hello, Darling, Are You Working?, one of the sex workers’ rights advocate/actor’s less well-known works. But also I read that book years ago, so long ago in fact that I don’t really even remember too much about it, beyond that it wasn’t completely maddening.
I haven’t done a study or anything, but it seems that rent boys feature in memoirs a lot more than they feature in novels. (The most recent example I know of was self-published by gay porn star Christopher Daniels in November; I haven’t read it.) But even some of the fictional works—Everett’s among them—are at least somewhat autobiographical. Howard Hardiman, author of eight-issue comic The Lengths, fits into that category. In an interview with The New Statesman he says he “did a bit of sex work” with some of his escort friends, and it’s evident that he sympathizes with his characters. The Lengths is fiction, but in addition to (presumably) drawing on his own experiences Hardiman clearly did a lot of research, interviewing London’s male sex workers as he assembled the story of a wayward dog named Eddie.
Thanks so much for a fantastic 2013. We couldn’t have done it without our amazing contributors, all of whom volunteer their efforts to contribute to this community. We’re always open to new writers and pitches. Take a look at our Contribute page for some ideas.
We’re always looking to bring in new voices. And that means we’re especially interested in writers:
from outside of the United States
from diverse economic backgrounds
of color
who are sex-working men
who are transgender
from the Midwestern and Southern United States
Our only requirement is that you are or have been a sex worker.
We recognize that the stigma of sex work makes publishing your writing in a permanent, public forum intimidating! So, we will work hard to product your identity and will certainly allow you to use a pseudonym if that’s what you require.
We’re always looking for book, television, and film reviews, coverage of local activist events, and commentary on current events. Please email info@titsandsass.com or holler at one of our editors on Twitter; Caty handles activist news and book reviews, Josephine is happy to talk about popular culture of all kinds, and Susan (fka Bubbles) wants to hear about policy and labor issues. P.S. We’re always considering future editors, in case you’ve got some extra time on your hands.
April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman–can we trust them with the Lusty? (Photo by Nick Gripton on Flickr, image via Eater)
The Lusty Lady’s vacant space will be reopened by Ken Friedman and April Bloomfield, who own the cafe next door, as a cocktail bar which “will pay homage to what the Lusty Lady was…the wonderful seediness, and the dying breed of seediness.” Apparently, “initial design ideas include…a riff on peepshow windows ‘wherein a customer inserts a dollar and then a window opens to reveal a bartender—instead of a stripper.’ ” Holy hipster gentrification, Batman.
Rebecca Woodard, one of Eliot Spitzer’s escorts, was pimped by the city of New York: “Manhattan prosecutors insisted she continue seeing clients while working undercover—and then forced her to turn over all of her earnings and gifts.” Oh, and Spitzer wanted to pretend to be a self-defense instructor testing a student by attacking her. Yay gubernatorial role play.
Former Chicago cop Steven Mandell was secretly taped vacillating over which strip club owner he should murder in order to most easily take over their business. Decisions, decisions.
Honduras Redtrasex, the Network of Sex Workers of Honduras, demand justice for the murder of four local sex workers on December 30th, when five Centre City San Pedro Sula sex workers were shot, including one heavily pregnant woman. One woman survived and is in the hospital in stable condition. RedTrasex’s statement also noted another recent sex worker murder on December 15th.
Melissa Gira Grant lists her picks for 2013’s Best Sex Work Writing. Tits and Sass is honored to have so many of our posts, as well as outside posts by our contributors and co-editors, included.
New regulations came into effect on January 1st in Saskatchewan which allow bars in the province to feature strippers. Anticipating this provincial change in liquor law, Saskatoon’s city council voted to isolate strip clubs in heavy industrial zones, legislation in the same spirit as the adult services bylaw they passed in July 2012, which requires escorts, massage parlor owners and anyone working in adult entertainment to get a business license. More tut tutting and talk ABOUT sex workers from city officials without any input FROM sex workers is covered in the Star Phoenix.
Meanwhile, new federal Canadian laws which went into effect on Dec. 31st ensure that labor market opinion applications from employers seeking to hire foreign workers in the sex industry will no longer be approved. These rules come almost seven years after the federal Conservatives first promised to put an end to the “Liberal strippergate,” in which temporary work permits were issued to hundreds of exotic dancers by the previous government. “Strippergate,” seriously? Hiring migrant workers is somehow a scandal worthy practice?
Hi, Beloved Readers,