Sex Work Writings By Women In The Sex Industry - Frederique Delacoste
What does it take to become a sex worker anyway? Sex Work: Writings by Women in the Sex Industry attempts to answer that question. If you think sex workers are all teenage runaways who fell into life on the streets because a pimp took advantage of them, you’d be wrong. While there are definitely women like that (and for that matter, women who were kidnapped as children and forced to work in the sex industry), Sex Work shows us that sometimes, it’s just ordinary women who for one reason or another decided that they really enjoyed well, working on their backs as it were.
The book is not quite what you might come to expect from the name. Sex Work does indeed show us profiles of women who work in the sex industry, told in their own words. Surprisingly to some, few of these women report having self esteem issues from their work. However, unlike other books on the subject, Sex Work takes things a step further and decides to show us also what these women are doing to actively empower themselves and make their lives better. It discusses for example the idea of unions devoted to helping sex workers get the rights that they deserve and in fact attempts, from a women’s perspective to defend the industry.
Personally, I’m fascinated when reading about how women got into the sex industry. It’s much more than just the standard “I was a teenage runaway” stories. It’s about actually making a conscious decision to use your own body for your benefit. Some women who do it think of it purely as a profession, others seem to really enjoy it. The end of the book can be a bit clinical, but it’s also a great read for those who care about the women involved in sex work.
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