SAAFE forum
General Category => Politics and academic/media queries => Topic started by: MsRedhead on 24 July 2019, 11:02:02 am
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Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but there is yet another enquiry into sex work. Please consider submitting evidence to it.
If you google you will find their webpage and the written submission form that you must use.
Purpose of the inquiry
The Women and Equalities Committee is looking to:
What harms are associated with buying and selling sex?
How effective are Government policies in tackling this?
What more could be done?
The Committee is also interested in hearing about how those with specific protected characteristics under the Equality Act or other vulnerabilities are affected.
We will look at prostitution with a focus on inequalities and harm
Committee Chair Maria Miller said:
“This inquiry presents an important opportunity.
Previous reviews of law and policy have focussed on the important issues of reforming the criminal law and which legislative model is most effective.
This inquiry casts the net wider, and we will look at prostitution with a focus on inequalities and harm.
We want to look at how prostitution impacts different groups, and how policy and services could be tailored to address particular kinds of inequality and harm.
All women – indeed, anyone negatively impacted by prostitution - must have equal access to safety and justice.
We need to bring some new ideas to this debate, and we particularly welcome views from those who are or have been involved in prostitution.”
There are between 60,000 and 80,000 sex workers in the UK
The majority of prostitutes are women. Research suggests that the majority of buyers are male. There may be a significant minority of trans and male prostitutes/sex workers. Research suggests that the majority of buyers are male. There may be a significant minority of trans and male prostitutes/ sex workers.
Around 11% of British men aged 16–74 have paid for sex at least once;
LGBT: Some respondents to the Government’s 2017 LGBT Research Survey discussed “sex work” as “an essential source of employment.” Some trans respondents said they had undertaken sex work to pay privately for gender reassignment and related treatment due to waiting lists for GI clinics;
Send us your views
The Committee is keen to hear views from organisations and is particularly interested in receiving submissions which address:
What, if any, harms associated with buying and selling sex? Who is affected? How?
How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
What local initiatives are you aware of that address these harms? Are they effective? Why?
What, if any, are the challenges for those facing harm in accessing services (for example, healthcare; support services; advice; exit services)? What needs to change?
What relevance does the Public Sector Equality Duty have for the way that public authorities address prostitution in their area?
How does the law currently treat paying for sex? How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
How effective are different international approaches at addressing any harms associated with buying and selling sex?
The closing date for written submissions is Friday 20 September.
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Some words might be helpful here, River? :)
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I see the problems that none of us are scholars/journalists.
It's hard to comment, properly, within this highly "political" (i.e. specialised) topic.
Very few of us have got the sophisticated language to comment on.
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Very few of us have got the sophisticated language to comment on.
Nor do the vast majority of journalists.
They want evidence from people who know what they're talking about and who are/will be affected by law changes, and that means us. It isn't an English exam, and many of those who respond and have responded to similar don't have English as a first language (not that doing so guarantees anybody's going to be any better at it).
We can't expect people who know nothing about sex work to understand what the consequences of different legal.situations will be for sex workers, so we need to tell them. That's why they're asking :)
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I guess they're not interested in hearing from me? Dammit.
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The deadline for submissions is 20th September. The link is at https : //www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/women-and-equalities-committee/inquiries/parliament-2017/prostitution-inquiry-17-19/commons-written-submission-form/ (You are required to re-join the initial 3 elements of the link together since, as you know, we are not allowed to post external links).
Tedious, prejudiced, and tokenistic as this enquiry is, IMO, not to mention the fact that it is a merely a repeat of at least 2 previous enquiries into prostitution from fairly recent times, we can't allow the views of the likes of Fiona Bruce MP, who argues that prostitution is rape, to go unchallenged.
SOURCE: https : //www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/29/how-can-the-tories-moralising-report-on-prostitution-completely-ignore-austerity (You are once again required to re-join the initial elements of the link together). This comes from today's online edition.
The words of Fiona Bruce MP: "The Commission believes that it is therefore accurate to characterise our system as allowing for the purchase of sexual consent, and believes that this undermines the principle of sexual consent itself."
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Thank you for your "translation", Amy. . .
It's so daunting to see the lengthy body of the "consultation text" re. this subject.
Celeste, why not?
It sounds it is extremely important to provide SW's views.
Women and equalities: definitely my subject. . .
The OP, MsRH, thank you for posting. . . :)
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You are required to re-join the initial 3 elements of the link together since, as you know, we are not allowed to post external links
Actually, there's no need for the spaces because the function that automatically makes URLs into live links has been disabled, and for a long time. Given the number of them.you post I'm surprised you haven't noticed, but either way no more similar ones please. We're not here to send traffic to the gutter press.
Celeste, why not?
It sounds it is extremely important to provide SW's views.
Celeste is in the US, which means they may not want to hear from her as she isn't affected by their actions. I'm inclined to disagree since finding out what it's like for sex workers working in places where everyone is criminalised should be a bit of an eyeopener for them, but I suspect anything she sends would be disregarded.
It's up to everyone here whether they contribute, but it's never wasted time :)
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Hello all,
For my responses to the questions posed in this inquiry, I have used input from previous inquiries and from YOUR responses on these questions published here on SAAFE. Any feedback for me before I submit it? Can you help me fill in the gaps that I have left, for instance? (If this requires links, please pm me at braziliana007@gmail.com)
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What, harms, if any are associated with buying and selling sex? Who is affected? How?
For me "prostitution" means having sex for money (or for some other material reward) in the context where all transacting parties are consenting adults. This excludes all other practices where sex may be performed for money, as far as I am concerned. Given this, there are no intrinsic harms of any kind, in my view. This is quite on the contrary, in fact, I feel; nature intended sexual intercourse as a pleasurable activity.
How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
It doesn't, in my opinion. Furthermore, the vast majority of the men that I have sex with for money treat me with respect and warmth.
What local initiatives are you aware of that address these harms? Are they effective? Why?
Pass
What, if any, are the challenges for those facing harm in accessing services (for example, healthcare; support services; advice; exit services)? What needs to change?
Pass
What relevance does the Public Sector Equality Duty have for the way that public authorities address prostitution in their area?
Pass. (How should I know the answer to this anyway?)
How does the law currently treat paying for sex? How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
How does the law currently treat paying for sex?
In an unfair, vindictive, and stupid way. It is anti-freedom, anti-logic, and anti-common sense. It treats adults like children, intruding on their private lives as if we were in some sort of "nanny state".
How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
To me there is no intrinsic harm in prostitution (such as I have defined it). The law could - and SHOULD - be improved, even so, to improve a) the safety of prostitutes (the matter of vulnerability to acts of violence and other criminal offences being applicable to every single individual in the world, prostitute or not) and b) (what should be) the right and freedom of all adults to have sex with other consenting adults. To be exact:
Prostitutes should be allowed to share premises for their work.
In keeping with 1, it should be legal to manage, profit from, or gain from the prostitution of a third party when the third party duly consents. A number of sex workers choose to work at massage parlours and saunas, whose owners take a cut of the earnings of the prostitutes, because of the safety that they offer, for instance. (The law against managing, profiting from and gaining from the prostitution of a third party against the will of the third party - sexual slavery / trafficking, that is - should of course remain intact, in my view). Making consensual procuring legal, together with the managing, profiting from, and gaining from the prostitution of a third party necessarily involved in this, was recommended in the Home Affairs Select Committtee's Inquiry into Prostitution of 2016.
Public soliciting should be made fully legal (in line with the recommendations of the Home Affairs Select Committee's Inquiry into Prostitution, 2016). For some prostitutes, this is the only way to find customers (and I cannot see what purpose it serves to arrest an individual and pursue him or her through law - using up valuable police time and resources in the process - for doing so).
In line with 3, the Prostitute's Caution should be eliminated from law.
Anyone with convictions for the offences named above, which I believe should not be crimes in the first place but fully legal practices, should have those convictions written off and have any punishments - like a prison sentence - stopped. This is another recommendation from the Home Affairs Select Committee's Inquiry into Prostitution of 2016.
All further criminal offences relating to prostitution, where all parties involved have consented to the activities with which they have engaged, should be repealed and all those with convictions for those offences should again have their convictions overturned.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to make the buying of sex a criminal offence (aka the Nordic Model or the Sex-Buyer Law) in England, Scotland and Wales. Likewise, in Northern Ireland, where the Sex-Buyer Law is in place, this law should be overturned immediately (and anyone with a conviction for breaking this law should have their name cleared, as I say). I say more on this below.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to ban online sex work advertising platforms.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to introduce age-verification for porn websites. The "dark web", to which the young - and others - may turn for their online pornography contains sites with far more disturbing content than non-clandestine sites. Besides this, with a VPN or a Cloudflare web browser, for instance, age-blocks will be very easily bypassed. Responsible and authoritative parenting along with recourse, on the part of parents, to the software offering parental internet controls are the answer to under-age viewing of online porn, in my opinion.
As for policies relating to prostitution, in keeping with the clearly pro-freedom stance, on my part, behind points 1-9, this should actually be a non-starter, I feel; in my view, consensual sexual intercourse between adults, whether paid-for or not, is the business of the participating parties only and should accordingly not be subject to any form of intrusion from the law.
How effective are different international approaches at addressing any harms associated with buying and selling sex?
According to the prostitution charity Ugly Mugs, shortly after the Nordic Model came into force in Ireland in 2015, reports of violent attacks on prostitutes increased by 50%. In 2014 there were some 900 such reports. In 2016, this figure rose to in excess of 1400.
According to Fiona Bruce MP, chair of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission whose report on prostitution, "The Limits of Consent" was published in July 2019, there is proof that the introduction of the Nordic Model in Norway and Sweden has reduced demand for buying sex. Conservative London Assembly Member Andrew Boff, however, points out that this is the (false) impression to be expected when a practice is criminalised since criminals (like those who pay for sex in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Norway, Sweden, France, Canada, Iceland, and Israel) naturally operate in secret (and so, necessarily, do those involved with the particular criminal activity of those paying for sex in the countries where the Nordic Model is in place: prostitutes).
In his academic book, "Criminalising the Purchase of Sex: Lessons from Sweden", the fruit of 3.5 years of research into the criminalisation of the purchase of sex in Sweden, Dr Jay Levy reports that
The Swedish Model has had a negative impact on the safety of sex workers
Contrary to the stated aims to decriminalise the sex workers themselves they are targeted by police, have been consistently evicted from accommodation, have had children removed by the state and migrant sex workers are deported and ‘outed’ as sex workers to the authorities.
Sex workers have been denied access to health information, harm reduction interventions, and condoms.
Harm reduction is seen to be incompatible with the so-called Swedish model.
There have been no demonstrable reductions in the levels of sex work, a principal ambition of the legislation.
Claims that the law has been a success should be viewed with scepticism due to the failure to achieve its aims and the significant impact it has had on the safety and welfare of sex workers.
Another prostitution charity, National Ugly Mugs (NUM) reports that, contrary to the aims of the Sex-Buyer Law, research has found that the Swedish Model had actually led to an increase in prices in indoor sex work which had led to some sex workers actually migrating to Sweden to sell sex for this reason. I agree with their view that this is highly ironic given that the stated aim of the law is to discourage and reduce levels of prostitution (Levy & Jakobsson, 201410).
I have made reference to the newest enquiry into prostitution, "The Limits of Consent", led by Fiona Bruce MP as well as to one criticism of its claims by Andrew Boff MP. Boff also deems that Bruce's report, which he says conflates human trafficking and sex work - a point with which I fully agree - and is “couched in terms of protecting women”, has “less to do with human rights and more to do with morality”. In line with Boff's reasoning, my choice to suck cocks for a living is, as far as I am concerned, no business whatsoever of Fiona Bruce's or of the UK-based pressure group Nordic Model Now! (two of the three women behind it having been victims of sexual abuse, the remaining one being an employee of a sexual abuse charity, all three, with their blinkered and biased thinking, as I see it, viewing sellers of sex invariably as victims), or of the police, or of anyone's but mine and my punters. Having anti-prostitution groups judging what I do for a living is one thing. Having them trying to force, by means of legislation, behaviour from me (and other prostitutes) that satisfies their moral beliefs is another entirely and their persistent efforts to have prostitution outlawed should, in my view, be blocked once and for all (as I said earlier).
To me, the Nordic Model is a disgrace not only to the countries where it is in force but to the rest of the world as a whole. Adults do not deserve to be treated like children, as I already implied. Moreover, creating a class of criminals who are, in principle, easy to catch but who, in reality, for the most part, do no harm whatsoever, as far as I am aware - who in fact, by enabling prostitutes to support both themselves and their families, do the exact opposite of harming them - is an insult to freedom and to common sense. In the UK at least, the matter of sexual exploitation (including sex trafficking), which the Sex-Buyer Law is meant to reduce, is already addressed by laws relating to slavery, false imprisonment, rape, and physical assault (amongst others). It is no justification for the Sex-Buyer Law at all, then, and, as stated above, the Sex-Buyer Law has been proven to increase the incidence of violence against prostitutes. Moreover sexual exploitation is a completely separate and distinct phenomenon to prostitution, such as I have defined it, so the laws against it should likewise be kept separate and distinct to the laws relating to prostitution. Furthermore, there do not seem to be any proposals to make the buying of a manicure, a car wash, or a Chinese takeaway a criminal offence despite the well-documented exploitation (by employers) of many people who perform those services.
Buyers of the services of street-prostitutes are the ones who I believe will be easy for police to catch. Personally, however, I believe most citizens would prefer the tax that they pay into policing to go on anti-terrorism initiatives, the catching of burglars and robbers, and reducing motoring offences, for instance, if for no other reason than the fact (as I understand it) that most people who buy sex do no harm whatsoever to the people from whom they buy, as I have said. Moreover, according to NUM, most prostitution is indoors-based. Personally, I cannot see how this form of prostitution - the dominant form, according to at least one source - can possibly be policed. More importantly, I do not believe that it should be a police matter in the first place, police time and resources being far better spent, in my view, in stopping true sexual exploitation (and other crimes) whose victims will duly appreciate police intervention, I believe.
Even without any examples of decriminalisation in other countries, it only requires common sense to recognise that sex between consenting adults is no-one's business but their own, whether money changes hands or not. On this basis, I make the recommendations presented in my answer to "How could law and policy be improved to address harm?"
Lastly, since there have already been at least 4 inquiries into prostitution in the last 4 years asking virtually the same questions as those in this new inquiry, what is the point of this new inquiry? The inquiries to which I am referring are:
The international symposium on the decriminalisation of prostitution held at Parliament in November 2015. Written report: (link to be provided in my submission)
The Home Affairs Select Committee's Inquiry into Prostitution 2016: (link to be provided in my submission)
Conservative Party Human Rights Commission Inquiry into Prostitution 2018-2019: (link to be provided in my submission)
University of Bristol Prostitution and Sex Work Survey 2018-2019. Report due to be published this September.
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It is hard to say as women involved in sex work (i.e. prostitution) are all different.
Their/our needs are different, depending on individuals, age group, circumstances etc.
On a personal note, it would be useful if "Projects" send out a packet of condoms by post and any other relevant updates on dodgy punters to indoor sex workers by email, rather than us visiting them to collect them (that I would not do in the area).
When I was in the different area, I was given a regular update on dodgy punters by Project, along with the lubes and condoms. It wasn't too far to visit.
Projects need to consider sending these stuff out if escorts can't easily get to them.
I personally believe Nordic Model will heighten the discrimination against women, generally and reinforce negative views towards sex work and women involved in sex work.
A lot of women will lose a source of incomes and will be forced on the welfare or may lead to mental health problems, suicide etc.
Which address do we need to send individual responses to this committee?
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Regieeee, National Ugly Mugs send local text and email alerts out to sex workers who have asked for them - thats partly what it's for? Please don't derail another thread.
Braziliana, I would cut the above by at least a third and more if you can; make the paragraphs shorter, remove the superfluous words and maybe add some bullet points if you tend to get carried away (and brevity isn't my strong point either).
The Committee have a lot to get through and the more difficult something is to read, the less likely they are to do so - they don't want a dry, faux-academic essay from somebody who has read some studies because they'll get plenty of real ones - they want the views, experiences and thoughts of real sex workers. I can't see anywhere in the above that addresses your own experiences at all, and in the past the personal experiences sent in have been by far the most powerful :).
Obviously it's subjective and only my opinion, but I think you're missing a really important and valuable opportunity if you go down this route.
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Which address do we need to send individual responses to this committee?
All the details are on the Parliament site here: https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/women-and-equalities-committee/news-parliament-2017/prostituion-launch-17-19/ :)
It's them that can't spell 'prostitution' in the url incidentally, not me ::)
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How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
It doesn't, in my opinion. Furthermore, the vast majority of the men that I have sex with for money treat me with respect and warmth.
I would add that this is a disgraceful question because it assumes that if female prostitutes disappeared then so would misogynistic attitudes. Women around the world are not suddenly going to be free of sexual harrassment and violence if the nordic model is introduced.
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How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
It doesn't, in my opinion. Furthermore, the vast majority of the men that I have sex with for money treat me with respect and warmth.
I would add that this is a disgraceful question because it assumes that if female prostitutes disappeared then so would misogynistic attitudes. Women around the world are not suddenly going to be free of sexual harrassment and violence if the nordic model is introduced.
I know - I thought much the same thing last night when a woman from the Telegraph (I think) was ranting on the C4 news about how strip clubs and strippers are responsible for increases in rape and sexual assault in the areas where they operate. Because blaming women for rape and sexual assault instead of - I dunno, rapists? - is fine (the other associated implication being that men are incapable of controlling themselves at the sight of a bit of flesh and are therefore no better than farm animals, which is just as bloody offensive). Unfortunately the stripper who they'd got to argue the other side missed this altogether and it was a complete washout.
Women!!! Don't be controlled by men!!! Be controlled by ...other women ::).
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Exactly Amy, it's like they're pitting 'good' women against 'bad' women who persist in thinking for themselves instead of falling into line with their dreary message.
The matriarchy is alive and well!
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Yes, that's true.
It was an oblique example of 'more funding needed' for existing support agencies, including a site like this.
I agree that the letter has to be formally written in bullet points.
But it's great to see the great effort! :)
I agree. It's a bit like the strict, undemocratic regime, trying to hide something 'oh so shameful'.
I often thought, 'exit support' would not help women, who chose SW as a lifestyle.
It's pointless for those who are much more ancient.
But that's the type of scheme that the state would want to fund.
Victorian tradition dies hard. . .
They need to accept men need sex (variety) and they do it to keep things going.
Studies show men who had more sex remained happier and healthier.
In one country, men over 70 had sex three time a week.
Sometimes, their wives are ill.
There are divorced men,who are lonely.
How they spend their money is none of the government's business.
So far, indoor work was left alone.
Useful if this would continue.
I don't see any legislative change would help or needed.
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Grace D and Amy, thank you. I have implemented your suggestions (to some degree at least).
I would still like some ideas for the questions that I have passed on. If not, I will just submit my responses as they are below.
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What, harms, if any are associated with buying and selling sex? Who is affected? How?
For me "prostitution" means having sex for money (or for some other material reward) in the context where all transacting parties are consenting adults. This excludes all other practices where sex may be performed for money, as far as I am concerned. Given this, there are no intrinsic harms of any kind, in my view. This is quite on the contrary, in fact, I feel; nature intended sexual intercourse as a pleasurable activity.
How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
It doesn't, in my opinion. Furthermore, the vast majority of the men who pay me for sex treat me with respect and warmth. Moreover, the implicit idea that without prostitution, all (sexual) violence against women, along with all other forms of misogynism, would end is, to me, ignorant, offensive and overwhelmingly crass; women around the world are not suddenly going to be free of sexual harassment and violence if buying sex becomes a criminal offence.
What local initiatives are you aware of that address these harms? Are they effective? Why?
Pass
What, if any, are the challenges for those facing harm in accessing services (for example, healthcare; support services; advice; exit services)? What needs to change?
Pass
What relevance does the Public Sector Equality Duty have for the way that public authorities address prostitution in their area?
Pass. (How should I know the answer to this anyway?)
How does the law currently treat paying for sex? How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
How does the law currently treat paying for sex?
In an archaic, vindictive, and stupid way. It is anti-freedom, anti-logic, and anti-common sense. It treats adults like children, intruding on their private lives as if we were in some sort of "nanny state".
How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
To me there is no intrinsic harm in prostitution (such as I have defined it). The law could - and SHOULD - be improved, even so, to improve
a) the safety of prostitutes (the matter of vulnerability to acts of violence and other criminal offences being applicable to every single individual in the world, prostitute or not) and
b) (what should be) the right and freedom of all adults to have sex with other consenting adults.
For specific changes to law required for a) and b), I refer you to the 2016 inquiry into prostitution of the Home Affairs Select Committee. To their recommendations, I add the following:
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to make the buying of sex a criminal offence (aka the Nordic Model or the Sex-Buyer Law) in England, Scotland and Wales. Likewise, in Northern Ireland, where the Sex-Buyer Law is in place, this law should be overturned immediately (and anyone with a conviction for breaking this law should have their name cleared, as I say). I say more on this below.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to ban online sex work advertising platforms.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to introduce age-verification for porn websites. The "dark web", to which the young - and others - may turn for their online pornography contains sites with far more disturbing content than non-clandestine sites. Besides this, with a VPN or a Cloudflare web browser, for instance, age-blocks will be very easily bypassed. Responsible and authoritative parenting along with recourse, on the part of parents, to the software offering parental internet controls are the answer to under-age viewing of online porn, in my opinion.
I also wish to stress the HASC's recommendations that prostitutes should be allowed to share premises for their work and that consensual procuring should be decriminalised.
As for policies relating to prostitution, in keeping with my clearly pro-freedom stance, I feel that this should actually be a non-starter; in my view, consensual sexual intercourse between adults, whether paid-for or not, is the business of the participating parties only and should accordingly not be subject to any form of intrusion from the law.
How effective are different international approaches at addressing any harms associated with buying and selling sex?
With the Nordic Model, a government creates a class of criminals who are, in principle, easy to catch but who, in reality, for the most part, do no harm whatsoever, as far as I am aware - who in fact, by enabling prostitutes to support both themselves and their families, do the exact opposite of harming them. To me, this is an insult to freedom and to common sense. In the UK at least, the matter of sexual exploitation (including sex trafficking), which the Sex-Buyer Law is meant to reduce, is already addressed by laws relating to slavery, false imprisonment, rape, and physical assault (amongst others). It is already a crime to buy sex, whether wittingly or unwittingly, from someone who has been coerced or exploited, for instance. The goal of tackling sexual exploitation is no justification for the Sex-Buyer Law at all, then, and, as far as I am aware, the Sex-Buyer Law has been proven to actually increase the incidence of violence against prostitutes. Moreover sexual exploitation is a completely separate and distinct phenomenon to prostitution, such as I have defined it, so the laws against it should likewise be kept separate and distinct to the laws relating to prostitution. Furthermore, there do not seem to be any proposals to make the buying of a manicure, a car wash, or a Chinese takeaway a criminal offence despite the well-documented exploitation (by employers) of many people who perform those services.
Buyers of the services of street-prostitutes are the ones who I believe will be easy for police to catch. Personally, however, I believe most citizens would prefer the tax that they pay into policing to go on anti-terrorism initiatives, the catching of burglars and robbers, and reducing motoring offences, for instance, if for no other reason than the fact (as I understand it) that most people who buy sex do no harm whatsoever to the people from whom they buy, as I have said. Moreover, according to NUM, most prostitution is indoors-based. Personally, I cannot see how this form of prostitution can possibly be policed. More importantly, I do not believe that it should be a police matter in the first place, police time and resources being far better spent, in my view, in stopping true sexual exploitation (and other crimes) whose victims will duly appreciate police intervention, I believe.
To me, then, the Nordic Model is a disgrace not only to the countries where it is in force but to the rest of the world as a whole. Adults do not deserve to be treated like children, as I have already implied. Accordingly, as far as I am concerned, my choice to suck cocks for a living is no business whatsoever of anti-prostitution pressure groups, of the police, or of anyone's but mine and my punters. Moreover, having been, in the course of my 43 years of life to date, a fast-food restaurant employee, a home-help, an au pair, a bouncer, a media sales executive, and a teacher, I can report that being an au pair was the second most exploitative role of them all while teaching, which I did for 13 years, was the single most traumatic and oppressive work-role that I have ever held. Having sex with several random men for money from day to day, on the other hand, as I have been doing since July 2015, is by far the most enjoyable, dignified and financially rewarding job that I have ever had, not to mention the freedom that it affords me.
Even without any examples of decriminalisation in other countries, it only requires common sense to recognise that sex between consenting adults is no-one's business but their own, whether money changes hands or not. On this basis, I make the recommendations presented in my answer to "How could law and policy be improved to address harm?"
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The Public Sector Equality Duty could have relevance for trans workers who might feel even more unsafe under the nordic model.
Women standing on the street in a red light zone must not automatically be presumed to be soliciting (even if they are) because that's profiling based on sex.
Also if we're talking about giving people equal treatment will they also be banning men from taking someone out for dinner and drinks with the intention of having sex later? That's a form of sex buying.
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There is an inequality in terms of support services depending on the area
which I touched on earlier.
They need to look into what sex workers say we want,
rather than the "general" discussion.
Buiding on the existing foundation of support system would
be a great one (to me, anyway).
They need to improve existing services, listen to the needs of
sex workers regardless of catchment,
modify what is needed.
More funding, in another words.
It seems that "they" seem to consider all sex workers are
in major cities when it's not true.
This is why the site like Saafe is extremely precious.
It reaches out far more people than "outreach/projects" could ever reach
and they can't, and they already know that. . .
Online based servces (in fact, the only one, Saafe) is not specific location-based,
i.e. Manchester, London, Liverpool, Leeds and any other major cities.
If they care to browse on the site, they can find out far more.
Nordic model is a very bad idea. . .
as nobody would think otherwise. . .
Puritanical ideology cannot be adopted in England.
It would create a shock wave, affecting ordinary people,
who just want to enjoy some little pleasure out of life.
It will deepen the stigma and discrimination
already experienced by sex workers and sex workers
from any "minority" background as commented
by other posters.
I'm sure nobody would disagree that this site helped
reduce harms experienced by women
well beyond measure.
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Regie, which of the Committee questions is the above a response to?
It isn't very clear which of the points you're trying to address, and it might be a good idea to include them in bold or similar as Braziliana has done :)
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Yes, thank you for your guidance and advice. . . :)
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Yes, thank you for your guidance and advice. . . :)
Sorry, I maybe wasn't clear - which part of the Committee's enquiry being discussed in this thread were you referring to in the above post?
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I have just submitted my evidence. In accordance with the guidelines for submissions, I added a bullet-point summary of my main views, said why I was submitting evidence, and made suggestions for follow-up government actions.
FYI: the name that I use is fake.
Ladies, gents, and everyone in-between, please stand up for freedom and get your evidence in by 20-9-19!
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Written evidence from me, Naomi Dixon, in representation of myself, a 43-year-old autonomously-engaged prostitute of 4 years.
My main views:
*Prostitution, the practice in which adults voluntarily have sex for money, has no intrinsic harms.
*Adults deserve sexual freedom.
*The Nordic Model criminalises people who mainly do no harm.
*Sexual exploitation is already addressed through a range of laws.
*The Nordic Model has, I believe, been proven to increase the rate of violence against women.
*Prostitution is a completely separate phenomenon to sexual exploitation and should not be subject to the laws relating to sexual exploitation.
*Exploitation takes place in many industries but there are no proposals, I believe, to criminalise the buying of the goods and services springing from any industry other than prostitution.
*Policing sexual activities between consenting adults would be a gross misuse of police time and resources as well as of taxpayers’ money.
*Most prostitution is “unpoliceable” anyway.
*The Nordic Model is potentially a gateway step to criminalising the selling of sex.
*The Nordic Model is a disgrace to the whole world.
*Instead of conducting a prostitution inquiry every year, please let the relevant authorities enact the recommendations made by the Home Affairs Select Committee in their 2016 inquiry as well as those made by myself in this submission.
*All parties who deny the fact of the autonomous and voluntary selling of sex should be excluded from the the process of law- and policy-making relating to prostitution (if we have to have any such laws and policies in the first place, that is).
By having sex with strangers for money from day-to-day, as I have been doing for the last 4 years, I have been able to tap into significantly above average earnings and, accordingly, to offer myself a life of freedom and choice. With this submission, I am standing up for sexual freedom for adults (without the which my lifestyle would suffer significant harm, in my view).
What, harms, if any are associated with buying and selling sex? Who is affected? How?
For me "prostitution" means having sex for money (or for some other material reward) in the context where all transacting parties are consenting adults. This excludes all other practices where sex may be performed for money, as far as I am concerned. Given this, there are no intrinsic harms of any kind, in my view, considering, in particular, that nature intended sexual intercourse as a pleasurable activity.
How does buying and selling sex affect attitudes towards women more widely?
It doesn't, in my opinion. Furthermore, the vast majority of the men who pay me for sex treat me with respect and warmth. Moreover, the implicit idea that without prostitution, all (sexual) violence against women, along with all other forms of misogynism, would end is, to me, ignorant, offensive and overwhelmingly crass; women around the world are not suddenly going to be free of sexual harassment and violence if paying for sex becomes a criminal offence.
What local initiatives are you aware of that address these harms? Are they effective? Why?
Pass
What, if any, are the challenges for those facing harm in accessing services (for example, healthcare; support services; advice; exit services)? What needs to change?
Pass
What relevance does the Public Sector Equality Duty have for the way that public authorities address prostitution in their area?
Pass.
How does the law currently treat paying for sex? How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
How does the law currently treat paying for sex?
In an archaic, vindictive, and senseless way, I believe. It is anti-freedom, anti-logic, and anti-common sense. It treats adults like children, intruding on their private lives as if we were in some sort of "nanny state".
How could law and policy be improved to address harm?
To me there is no intrinsic harm in prostitution (such as I have defined it). The law could - and SHOULD - be improved, even so, to improve
a) the safety of prostitutes (the matter of vulnerability to acts of violence and other criminal offences being applicable to every single individual in the world, prostitute or not)
b) (what I believe should be) the right and freedom of all adults to have sex with other consenting adults.
For specific changes to law required for a) and b), I refer you to the 2016 inquiry into prostitution of the Home Affairs Select Committee (link provided at the end). To their recommendations, I add the following:
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to make the buying of sex a criminal offence (aka the Nordic Model or the Sex-Buyer Law) in England, Scotland and Wales. Likewise, in Northern Ireland, where the Sex-Buyer Law is in place, this law should be overturned immediately (and anyone with a conviction for breaking this law should have their name cleared, as I say). I say more on this below.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to ban online sex work advertising platforms.
There should be a definitive dismissal of the proposal to introduce age-verification for porn websites. The "dark web", to which the young - and others - may turn for their online pornography contains sites with far more disturbing content than non-clandestine sites. Besides this, with a VPN or a Cloudflare web browser, for instance, age-blocks will be very easily bypassed. Responsible and authoritative parenting along with recourse, on the part of parents, to software offering parental internet controls are the answer to under-age viewing of online porn, in my opinion.
I also wish to stress the HASC's recommendations that prostitutes should be allowed to share premises for their work and that consensual procuring should be decriminalised.
As for policies relating to prostitution, in keeping with my clearly pro-freedom stance, I feel that this should actually be a non-starter; in my view, consensual sexual intercourse between adults, whether paid-for or not, is the business of the participating parties only and should accordingly not be subject to any form of intrusion from the law.
How effective are different international approaches at addressing any harms associated with buying and selling sex?
With the Nordic Model, a government creates a class of criminals who are, in principle, easy to catch but who, in reality, for the most part, do no harm whatsoever, as far as I am aware. In fact, by enabling prostitutes to support both themselves and their families, our customers do the exact opposite of harming us. Making the buying of sex a criminal offence is, in my opinion, an insult both to freedom and to common sense. In the UK at least, the matter of sexual exploitation (including sex trafficking), which the Sex-Buyer Law is meant to reduce, is already addressed by laws relating to slavery, false imprisonment, rape, and physical assault (amongst others). It is already a crime to buy sex, whether wittingly or unwittingly, from someone who has been coerced or exploited, for instance. The goal of tackling sexual exploitation is no justification for the Sex-Buyer Law at all, then. Additionally, as far as I am aware, the Sex-Buyer Law has been proven to actually increase the incidence of violence against prostitutes. Moreover sexual exploitation is a completely separate and distinct phenomenon to prostitution, such as I have defined it, so the laws against it should likewise be kept separate and distinct to the laws relating to prostitution. Furthermore, there do not seem to be any proposals to make the buying of a manicure, a car wash, or a Chinese takeaway a criminal offence despite the well-documented exploitation of many people who facilitate those services.
Buyers of the services of street-prostitutes are the ones who I believe will be easy for police to catch. Personally, however, I believe most citizens would prefer the tax that they pay into policing to go on anti-terrorism initiatives, the catching of murderers, and the tracing of burglars and robbers, for instance, if for no other reason than the fact (as I understand it) that most people who buy sex do no harm whatsoever to the people from whom they buy, as I have said. Moreover, according to the prostitute-supporting charity National Ugly Mugs, most prostitution is indoors-based. Personally, I cannot see how this form of prostitution can possibly be policed. More importantly, I do not believe that it should be a police matter in the first place, police time and resources being far better spent, in my view, on stopping true sexual exploitation (and other crimes) whose victims will duly appreciate police intervention, I believe.
Picking up on what I see as the inevitable failure of the Sex-Buyer Law (if ever it should be passed in Britain), I feel that the true intention of this proposed law is to make the selling of sex into a criminal offence; once it is clear that the Nordic Model has failed to significantly reduce prostitution (the which being its true aim, in my opinion) - owing to the impossibility of actually enforcing the law (a fact of which supporters of the Nordic Model are fully aware, I believe) - anti-prostitution groups will, I believe, feel justified in arguing for the criminalising of the selling of sex (which would entail closing down sex work advertising platforms, amongst other measures, for example). In my view, far from deserving to be criminalised, consensual sexual intercourse between adults should, as I have already said, be free from all interference from the law.
To me, then, the Nordic Model is a disgrace not only to the countries where it is in force but to the rest of the world as a whole. Adults do not deserve to be treated like children, as I have already implied. Accordingly, as far as I am concerned, my choice to suck cocks for a living is no business whatsoever of any politicians, of anti-prostitution pressure groups, of the police, or of anyone's but mine and my punters. Moreover, having worked, in the course of my 43 years of life to date, as a fast-food restaurant employee, a home-help, an au pair, a bouncer, a media sales executive, and a teacher, I can report that being an au pair was the most exploitative role of them all while teaching, which I did for 13 years, was the single most oppressive and de-humanising work-role that I have ever held, extreme and unrelenting bullying having been at its core and having been visited on me every single day of the job. Having sex with several random men for money from day to day, on the other hand, as I have been doing since July 2015, is by far the most enjoyable, dignified and financially rewarding job that I have ever had, not to mention the total freedom that it affords me.
Even without any examples of decriminalisation in other countries, it only requires common sense to recognise that sex between consenting adults is no-one's business but their own, whether money changes hands or not. On this basis, I make the recommendations presented in my answer to "How could law and policy be improved to address harm?"
Further points.
Since there have already been at least 4 inquiries into prostitution in the last 4 years asking virtually the same questions as those in this new inquiry, what is the point of this new inquiry? To me, what is required at this point, rather, is not any further inquiries but the enacting of the recommendations made by the Home Affairs Select Committee in their 2016 inquiry along with the recommendations made by myself in this submission.
For your information, the inquiries to which I am referring are:
The international symposium on the decriminalisation of prostitution held at Parliament in November 2015. Written report: (link given)
The Home Affairs Select Committee's Inquiry into Prostitution 2016: (link given)
Conservative Party Human Rights Commission Inquiry into Prostitution 2018-2019: (link given)
University of Bristol Prostitution and Sex Work Survey 2018-2019. Report due to be published this September.
I request the views of those who deny the fact of the consensual selling of sex, which I am aware may include the commissioners / conductors of this inquiry (who may read this written evidence of mine) to be excluded from all law- and policy-making processes relating to prostitution (assuming that, against my views, we actually have to have laws and policies controlling sexual interactions between consenting adults in the first place). To argue that paid-for consent is no consent at all, as the authors of the prostitution report entitled “The Limits of Consent” published in July this year do, is effectively to argue against the practice of all forms of employment except voluntary work. In my opinion, parties with such ludicrously irrational thinking should, as I say, play no part whatsoever in the making and / or changing of laws and policies relating at least to prostitution.
Naomi Dixon
August 2019
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God I wish I could input how I feel about this but don't even know where to begin!
Everyone deserves dignity and respect. I hate how they put sex workers in a separate category. I feel a lot more compensated for this work than working for some Millionaire Boss!
The reality is.. CAPITALISM created this huge number of sex workers. Do not go blaming the individual .. GOVERNMENT you know capitalism created this !
I probably would never have turned to sex work BUT my first job only paid me £180 a week for 12 hour shifts.
Then I realized how much I loved being well paid, just like the politicians do!
I made the same amount in one hour than I did one week minimum wage! And the sex was OKAY!
The more I engage sexually with men the more I realize they are desperate to please women. I see nothing wrong with pleasing an old white gent who's wife passed away. Or the nervous virgin asking me if it's okay to kiss. The frustrated Asian guy who can't get a date online and just wants female attention. They are the ones needing support and guidance most of the time. Us sex workers however, are strong women, but we need SAFETY!! We need legality and practical advice. Not once did I feel I was damaged for wanting to get paid for the most natural thing on earth. I deserve compensation for making others happy just like EVERY OTHER SERVICE!
I felt hurt and damaged for feeling like my safety is constantly at risk. I struggle to find suitable work premises ALL THE TIME.
A huge chunk of my earnings go on CHILDCARE. And I feel I have to live a lie to general society!
Government people.. I implore you to create a world where women and LGBT are given equal opportunity, PROPER education on sex and relationships, well paid LIVING WAGE.. instead of worrying about the bad effects of sex work.
Our work is not the problem.. the conditions around them IS.
I condone all horrible practices of sex work for example pimps, trafficking, unsafe sex etc. Because sexual health and happiness is vital for every human being.
It's about time the UK has more respect TBH
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I condone all horrible practices of sex work for example pimps, trafficking, unsafe sex etc. Because sexual health and happiness is vital for every human being.
If you're sending this in Freya, I'm pretty sire 'condone' should be 'condemn'. It wouldn't matter that much but in this instance it means the opposite :).
I'd also be very wary of suggesting that policing how consenting adults have sex and what they do with their bodies should be a function of the state. Nobody is going to tell me what I'm allowed to do with mine.
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The latest published inquiry, whose questions are detailed at https://saafe.info/main/politics-and-academicmedia-queries/call-for-evidence-conservative-party-human-rights-commission/ (https://saafe.info/main/politics-and-academicmedia-queries/call-for-evidence-conservative-party-human-rights-commission/), says that only 7 prostitutes offered written evidence for the inquiry. Colleagues, we have fuck-heads like Fiona Bruce saying that prostitution is rape. Let us please speak up for ourselves with a written response to this latest inquiry (however tokenistic, repetitive, and stupid it might be).
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WEC contacted me yesterday to say that if my submission is used in the report it will be published and that I should tell them now whether or not, in that case, I am happy to be named.
I used a fake name anyway.
IN RESPONSE TO UPDATE OF 14-9-19 FROM MS REDHEAD: Yes, let's make our voices heard and stop these anti-freedom Nazis from wrecking our livelihood!
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The deadline has been extended until October 22nd. Please send in replies. xx
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The deadline has been extended until October 22nd. Please send in replies. xx
Yes, please please please let's make our voices heard. Today they notified me that they will be including my response in their report. Providing a response may well make no difference to prostitution laws, but we have little to lose by offering a response anyway.