When we talk about prostitution, we should focus on the buyers

@carlaCox I agree that the main focus should be support so women can leave prostitution.

No one, in their heart of hearts, is ever going to believe that giving blow jobs to disgusting cretinous men is "work". They're just not. All this "sex work is work" campaign is doing is giving cretinous men the green light to abuse women (and not be stigmatised for it) and increasing demand for prostitution.

Reducing the stigma around sex work may mean someone’s family don’t cut them off, or they’re brave enough to come out with their experiences.

I've got to disagree with this. I have a family member who was forced into prostitution (drug addiction, serious mental health issues, a history of abuse). Firstly, how many families would cut someone off who was in this situation? And if they would then do you really think campaigns around "sex work is work" would help? Secondly, my family member does not want to be celebrated for being a sex worker. She's well aware that it represents the absolute lowest point in her life, not because there's "stigma" around it but because it was absolutely horrific. What she needed was a route out of the mess she was in, not regulations to allow her to sell more sex.

Just read the reviews that male sex buyers leave on various websites. Then tell me again that this is a ‘normal’ job.

Even though many will pretend otherwise, this discussion isn’t about whether the women who sell sexual access to their bodies should be stigmatised - of course they shouldn’t! What a stupid thing to suggest! - but whether men should have the right to this access.

Let’s put it like this: even those men who do not buy ‘sexual services’ but insist that ‘sex work is work’ (whatever that means) can be safe in the knowledge that no matter how unattractive and unappealing they personally are, somewhere out there is a woman whose body they can legitimately access. That’s what it’s about, and it is disingenuous to deny it.

Must be an empowering feeling to be able to walk this world knowing that whether you’re ugly, mean, stupid, drunk, violent, you will still be able to find a woman who will give you intimate pleasure and pretend that you are none of these things, while ‘not being your equal in pleasure or consent.’ (S. Ditum) It’s truly an empowering industry (for the buyers).

Absolutely not.

Criminalise the buyers (rapists, in cases of enslaved children/women/men)

Agree Clymene In discussions, the focus (including images) should be on the punters.

@carlaCox I disagree with your statement. Saying sex work is work, is saying that the people who do it deserve representation and worker’s rights, including financial help (in the pandemic for example). Sex workers should be treated as human beings, not ostracised or criminalised.

Reducing the stigma around sex work may mean someone’s family don’t cut them off, or they’re brave enough to come out with their experiences.

I am not supportive of legalisation, but decriminalisation is the safest model. Believe me, the men are awful, but the Nordic Model does nothing but endanger full service sex workers

1000 times this. "We need to reduce the stigma around sex work" is code for "we need to reduce the stigma around buying sex".

"Sex work is work" is a men's rights campaign with the aim of increasing men's ability to buy sex. How this isn't painfully obvious to everyone is really beyond my comprehension.

YES. This

I've been saying this for years: put the focus on the men.

What sort of a man thinks it's okay to coerce consent that wouldn't be given freely?

The answer is pretty damn obvious.