Carol Leigh

AKA Scarlot Harlot, Carol Leigh was a filmmaker, artist, author, and sex worker rights activist — she coined the term “sex worker” in 1978 at a Women Against Violence in Pornography and Media conference. In Leigh’s essay “Inventing Sex Work” (published later), she writes: “I invented sex work. Not the activity, of course. The term. This invention was motivated by my desire to reconcile my feminist goals with the reality of my life and the lives of the women I knew. I wanted to create an atmosphere of tolerance within and outside the women’s movement for women working in the sex industry.” Leigh also chaired Sex Worker Film and Arts Festival and was the director at Bay Area Sex Worker Advocacy Network (BAYSWAN). She was known throughout the activist community as a continually loving, inspirational, and supportive mentor.