Dear Jessica and All,
I commend everyone's desire to fight Bill C36 -- but this IS NOT a strategic way to go about doing so. I understand that it is frustrating to always have your work stigmatized as 'bad', and to hear that we are all 'victims' and 'exploited'. However, instead of fighting this rhetoric, you are actually reinforcing it. Street-based and 'survival sex workers' -- the same as yourselves -- do not want or deserve to be stigmatized and criminalized in these ways. By making a distinction between 'happy' and 'unhappy' hookers, you are reinforcing the same stereotypes that we all want and need to fight against.
In fact, a colleague from Stella originally thought that the website was fake, and put up by sex work prohibitionists who support Bill C36 - because it reinforces pro-C36 arguments instead of fighting against them.
IT DOES SERVICE TO NO ONE to push a 'happy hooker' movement, especially at this current moment when we are fighting Bill C36. In the Bedford case, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down three key provisions of the Criminal Code - bawdy house, communication, and living on the avails - because they were found to violate the Charter rights to SAFETY AND SECURITY for sex workers. Because sex workers faced undo harm as a result of these laws, the SCC found these provisions unconstitutional.
Bill C36 is supposed to be a response to the Bedford decision, and as such must ensure the safety and security of sex workers. By putting forward a "Happy Hooker" movement, those involved are actually supporting Bill C36, because you are not recognizing the harms done to ALL sex workers through this legislation. It doesn't matter whether we as sex workers are 'happy' or not, or whether we like our job or not -- WHAT MATTERS IS THAT WE ALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAFETY AND SECURITY, and Bill C36 will only reinforce the same harms that sex workers have been facing for decades.
I haven't had a chance to read through this entire thread, but I wanted to let you and others know that Maggie's DOES NOT support this 'Happy Hooker' campaign. Maggie's supports the right of ALL SEX WORKERS to live and work with safety and dignity - whether they are classified (or classify themselves) as 'high end', 'happy', 'indoor', 'having mixed feelings', 'just paying the bills', 'street-based', 'outdoor', 'combination indoor/outdoor' etc etc. WE REFUSE to throw so-called 'survival sex workers' under the bus in order to push some idealistic notion of a 'happy hooker'. Sex workers, just like any other worker, may sometimes enjoy their job, may not enjoy it, may be happy some days, and less happy others.
Sex workers have been organizing for their rights and against stigma and criminalization for decades and decades in Canada. There is a strong and growing sex worker rights' movement in Canada. I encourage everyone to get involved and become educated about issues facing all different kinds of sex workers. We are stronger together.
Please do not reinforce the stigma and violence that street-based and/or 'survival' sex workers face. Please take down the 'Happy Hooker' website. Maggie's has never been onside or in support of initiatives such as this which are divisive and dismissive. We believe in working towards solidarity between sex workers, and different kinds of sex workers. We believe in the right of ALL sex workers to safety and security, and will continue to work for ALL sex workers to live and work with safety and dignity.
Sincerely,
Jean McDonald
Executive Director,
Maggie's - Toronto Sex Workers' Action Project
maggiestoronto.ca
[email protected]
