Anonymous asked: I know you are only trying to help, and i'm sorry if this comes off as rude, but as a sex worker I just find this pretty humiliating. We're not just some damn university essay topic, and i'm really embarrassed that you think of us as people who need someone to stand up for us, especially some one who's never done sex work. Until you've had to resort to that, you'll never really know what it's like. It IS degrading and it IS humiliating, no matter how you spin it on some blog. I'm sorry.
No, I don’t know what it is like. I’m sorry you were offended by what I wrote. I can’t speak about what it’s like to be a sex worker, and I don’t try to. I wrote what I did to discuss what I think about academia as a person wants to pursue a career in it. I didn’t mean to imply that sex workers are just there to be studied because that is not how I think at all. I was trying to convey my frustrations with academia in general with a focus on how academics tend to treat sex workers who participate in their studies. While I was doing my own thesis during my undergrad, I came across numerous articles and blogs written by sex workers discussing their frustrations with academics — after they participate in X study, they never hear from the researcher again. I knew that I didn’t to be that sort of academic.
I’m sorry if I caused you to feel embarrassed; I promise it was not my intention. What I wrote was a result of my own personal feelings regarding academia and the criticisms sex workers have made about academics. Because I have been taking these criticisms to heart, I have been contemplating ways to create meaningful and ethical research. Improvements needs to be made in academia.
And as for your comment about standing up for sex workers —
Yes, I do try to do that. As far as I know, most of the people I spend my time with (friends, family, people in academia…) are not sex workers. Many of them have told me they never thought much about sex workers’ rights as a human rights issue until I brought it to their attention. This was not something they were going to think about on their own. I call people out when they make degrading comments about sex workers or make whorephobic remarks. I also feel that it takes pressure off of sex workers to have to defend their profession every time a whorephobic comment is made. I feel that is the least I can do as an ally.
I don’t do this to embarrass, humiliate, or patronize anyone. I just think I’d be a shitty ally if I didn’t defend sex workers in both my personal and professional life.
