Tell The New York Times: Sex Work Is Work

September 2, 2023

In August, Pamela Paul penned an opinion piece for The New York Times titled “What It Means to Call Prostitution ‘Sex Work’.” The op-ed was in response to a New York Post article that denounced recent New York bills to decriminalize consensual adult prostitution. The New York Post utilized fear-mongering tactics to depict New York City overrun by sex workers and their clients. Despite the article’s clear anti-sex work sentiments, the author referred to adults who consensually sell sex as “sex workers.” This choice of rhetoric particularly angered Paul, who then responded with her inflammatory op-ed in the Times.

In Paul’s misguided opinion piece, she proclaims that referring to prostitution as “sex work” legitimizes prostitution as a conventional job or profession. According to Paul, referring to a sex worker as anything other than a “prostitute,” “victim,” or perhaps a far more derogatory term like “hooker,” absolves sex buyers of their responsibility in what she views as an exploitative industry. Paul’s opinion aligns with that of a fringe group of radical feminists who believe that all sex work is exploitation, an assumption that strips sex workers of their autonomy. Paul, and those who share her belief, fail to understand how powerful and dangerous the stigma associated with prostitution can be. When Carol Leigh coined the term “sex work” in the 1980s, she did so in an effort to destigmatize the profession. The declaration that sex work is work affirms that sex workers are just like any other worker and thus should be afforded the same rights, protection, and respect. Using the term “sex work” does not deny the real potential for exploitation in the industry. After all, all workers — regardless of their industry — have the potential to be exploited. Exploitation is not exclusively tied to sex work nor is it ubiquitous within the industry, and blanket assumptions like Paul’s do real harm to consensual sex workers just trying to do their jobs.

Paul’s piece generated a range of responses from readers across the world praising and condemning her sentiment. Due to the onslaught of reader responses, the Times went on to publish a handful of readers’ responses. Henri Bynx, co-founder and co-executive director of the Ishtar Collective, penned the following letter to the editor in response to Paul’s piece. Unfortunately, The New York Times failed to publish Bynx’s letter from the perspective of an actual sex worker. We have published it here instead.

In “What It Means to Call Prostitution ‘Sex Work’,” Pamela Paul writes “the use of ‘sex work,’ … effectively increases the likelihood of harm for a population that has already suffered so much.” I’m a sex worker and, in reality, statements like Paul’s make sex work and my daily life dangerous by reinforcing the notion that sex workers, not all of whom are women, are unable to make choices for themselves and that prostitution is done to them.

Like Paul, I am frustrated by how little attention is paid to dismantling “systems of exploitation.” Racism, poverty, discrimination and structural inequities are the root causes of trafficking, not the sex industry, and efforts to abolish it through criminalization actually perpetuate violence and exploitation. UNAIDS, the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, the World Health Organization and other leading human rights organizations all recommend decriminalizing consensual adult sex work to decrease trafficking. Decriminalization is urgently needed and it is unfortunate, since we’re all working to eliminate trafficking, that this critical reform is hindered by stigmatization and inflammatory rhetoric, such as that in Paul’s piece and the New York Post article which prompted her writing.

DSW Community Engagement Consultant Henri Bynx

DSW Community Engagement Consultant Henri Bynx

DSW Newsletter #49

RI Legislative Study Commission Releases Report Recommending Reforms to Prostitution Laws

September 15, 2023 The Rhode Island special legislative commission to study ensuring racial equity and optimizing health and safety laws affecting marginalized individuals has released a report documenting its findings and...
Read More
RI Legislative Study Commission Releases Report Recommending Reforms to Prostitution Laws

The European Court of Human Rights Agrees To Hear Case Brought by Sex Workers

August 31, 2023 The European Court of Human Rights has accepted a case brought by sex workers whose human rights have been violated following France’s 2016 adoption of Entrapment Model policies,...
Read More
The European Court of Human Rights Agrees To Hear Case Brought by Sex Workers

Tell The New York Times: Sex Work Is Work

September 2, 2023 In August, Pamela Paul penned an opinion piece for The New York Times titled “What It Means to Call Prostitution ‘Sex Work’.” The op-ed was in response to...
Read More
Tell The New York Times: Sex Work Is Work

DSW and Allies Educate NY Legislators on the Critical Need for Immunity Laws

September 14, 2023 New York legislators were invited to attend a webinar on A7471 (Kelles) / S1966 (Sepúlveda), a bill that would grant immunity from prosecution for prostitution to victims and...
Read More
DSW and Allies Educate NY Legislators on the Critical Need for Immunity Laws

DSW Newsletter Archive

The European Court of Human Rights Agrees To Hear Case Brought by Sex Workers

August 31, 2023

The European Court of Human Rights has accepted a case brought by sex workers whose human rights have been violated following France’s 2016 adoption of Entrapment Model policies, which criminalize the buying of sex but not the selling. As these laws explicitly target clients, people who purchase sexual services are increasingly wary of potential prosecution. Sex workers — who are financially dependent on criminalized clients — are compelled to accept clients who refuse to give their legal names, exhibit nervous behavior, or insist on a remote location. This means sex workers are unable to practice harm-reduction strategies for safety. Because sex workers are surveilled by police who are looking to arrest clients, reasonable people start to insist on a location of their choosing rather than a place where the sex worker feels comfortable.This makes it easier for predators to lure sex workers to their robbery, rape, or death, which occurred in France after the Entrapment Model was implemented.

Across Europe, in countries that have adopted Entrapment Model policies, sex workers report higher levels of anxiety and unease as well as increased stigmatization, and they have been subject to heightened rates of antisocial and nuisance behavior. Because criminalizing clients pushes the entire industry further underground, sex workers are more dependent on potentially exploitative third parties to help clients avoid discovery in order to keep their businesses, even if this risks exploitation. The most marginalized individuals are disproportionately affected by this criminalization, and it is women, migrants, and queer sex workers who have brought the case against France. The ruling that these 261 individuals can be considered victims under Article 34 of the European Convention on Human Rights is a monumental leap forward in sex workers’ fight for legitimacy.

The coalition of 261 sex workers and their allies, who claim that the Entrapment Model law subjected them to violence and discrimination, exhausted all legal avenues in France before taking its case to the European Court of Human Rights in December 2019. The court rejected a preliminary objection to admissibility by the French government and found the case admissible. The Court “rejects around 90 percent of all applications received” according to its own data.

Leading international human rights organizations oppose the criminalization of consensual adult sex work in any form, including the Entrapment Model. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN Development Program (UNDP), Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the International Planned Parenthood Foundation also oppose criminalization.

Research across Europe consistently demonstrates that the Nordic Model — which criminalizes the purchase of sex — pushes sex work farther underground, increases violence by police and clients, criminalizes women who work together for safety, and creates more obstacles for sex workers to access their rights to health, housing, and justice.

European Human Rights Courts Judges. Courtesy of the European Human Rights Court.

European Human Rights Courts Judges. Courtesy of the European Human Rights Court.

DSW Newsletter #49

RI Legislative Study Commission Releases Report Recommending Reforms to Prostitution Laws

September 15, 2023 The Rhode Island special legislative commission to study ensuring racial equity and optimizing health and safety laws affecting marginalized individuals has released a report documenting its findings and...
Read More
RI Legislative Study Commission Releases Report Recommending Reforms to Prostitution Laws

The European Court of Human Rights Agrees To Hear Case Brought by Sex Workers

August 31, 2023 The European Court of Human Rights has accepted a case brought by sex workers whose human rights have been violated following France’s 2016 adoption of Entrapment Model policies,...
Read More
The European Court of Human Rights Agrees To Hear Case Brought by Sex Workers

Tell The New York Times: Sex Work Is Work

September 2, 2023 In August, Pamela Paul penned an opinion piece for The New York Times titled “What It Means to Call Prostitution ‘Sex Work’.” The op-ed was in response to...
Read More
Tell The New York Times: Sex Work Is Work

DSW and Allies Educate NY Legislators on the Critical Need for Immunity Laws

September 14, 2023 New York legislators were invited to attend a webinar on A7471 (Kelles) / S1966 (Sepúlveda), a bill that would grant immunity from prosecution for prostitution to victims and...
Read More
DSW and Allies Educate NY Legislators on the Critical Need for Immunity Laws

DSW Newsletter Archive

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023

This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference, bringing together over 10,000 participants for talks, workshops, and events on the latest breakthroughs in psychedelic science.

DSW Development Manager Esmé Bengtson and Political Director Rob Kampia attended the three day conference to meet with donors who have a vested interest in Americans' access to therapeutic and recreational drugs. There is much overlap between the drug war and the criminalization of sex work in the United States. People who use drugs and those who engage in sex work face stigmatization, denial of health care, and a higher risk of experiencing violence. These challenges are caused and exacerbated by criminalization and the punitive justice system. Drug possession and prostitution have the highest rates of incarceration for victimless crimes in the United States. The full decriminalization of sex work and drug use is the most effective criminal justice policy to reduce mass incarceration, the misuse of taxpayer’s money, and increase public health and safety.

In July, DSW attended FreedomFest in Memphis, Tennessee. FreedomFest is an annual conference for freedom seekers. It advertises itself as the “ultimate summit for liberty by bringing together a diverse group of people, organizations, and businesses who advocate for greater liberty politically, socially, economically, financially, culturally, physically, intellectually, artistically, and philosophically”. While FreedomFest is non-partisan, the conference tends to attract a large group of Libertarians. The Libertarian Party’s stance on sex work is rooted in consent and individual rights. “Libertarians believe that the private sexual choices of consenting adults should not be criminalized nor subject to public policy, and this does not change when payment is involved.”

DSW Staff Attorney Becca Cleary and Development Manager Esmé Bengtson attended the conference in Memphis and staffed DSW’s booth. They discussed how the decriminalization of sex work is the best policy to fight human trafficking, increase public health and safety, and safeguard American’s freedom with conference-goers.

June 2, 2023

Staff Attorney Rebecca Cleary joined “Creating Multifaceted Policy to Address Stigma Against Sex Work and Institutional Challenges Facing Workers” as a panelist during the Law and Society Association’s annual conference. This year’s conference was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The panel brought together experts from sex worker rights, harm reduction, migration, drug policy, and gender violence to discuss the institutional and cultural issues sex workers face, including stigma that is frequently compounded by their multiple overlapping marginalized identities.

The panelists included Debora Upegui-Hernandez, Justice Rivera, Mariah Grant, and Becca Cleary. Melodie Garcia of The New Moon Fund moderated.

Melodie Garcia, Mariah Grant, Rebecca Cleary, Deborah Upegui-Hernandez, and Justice Rivera pose following their panel discussion.

Melodie Garcia, Mariah Grant, Rebecca Cleary, Deborah Upegui-Hernandez, and Justice Rivera pose following their panel discussion.

DSW Staff Attorney Becca Cleary and Development Manager Esmé Bengtson pose in front of Decriminalize Sex Work’s booth at FreedomFest.

DSW Staff Attorney Becca Cleary and Development Manager Esmé Bengtson pose in front of Decriminalize Sex Work’s booth at FreedomFest.

DSW Newsletter #48

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023 Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact...
Read More
DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023 Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday By Melissa Sontag Broudo Guest essay Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm The recent arrest of Rex...
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Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023 Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to...
Read More
Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023 Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water...
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The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023 This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference,...
Read More
DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

DSW Newsletter Archive

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023

Newsday

Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday

By Melissa Sontag Broudo

Guest essay

Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm

The recent arrest of Rex A. Heuermann in the Gilgo Beach murder investigation has residents expressing relief that a killer has finally been apprehended.

But many are asking why it took so long. One significant reason is the dysfunctional relationship law enforcement has with sex workers. The trajectory of this case illustrates the need for police to listen to sex workers. Ideally, the recent news that Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. is interviewing incarcerated sex workers who had contact with Heuermann signifies the start of an effort to improve law enforcement’s relationship with them.

When bodies first turned up on Gilgo Beach, the Suffolk County Police Department, under the leadership of now-disgraced former Police Chief James Burke, refused to grant sex workers immunity from prostitution charges if they came forward with information. Had law enforcement prioritized potential leads over arresting sex workers, this case might have been resolved years ago.

To add insult to injury, Dominick Varrone, then Suffolk's chief of detectives, suggested at a news conference that the general public could remain at ease because the killer was only targeting a very specific type of individual. This claim, dismissive of the value of the lives already lost, and disrespectful to their suffering families, reflected a culture of dismissiveness of sex workers.

In contrast to Burke, current Police Commissioner Rodney K. Harrison took the case more seriously, reviving the investigation and working collaboratively with the victims’ families. His actions ultimately led to Heuermann's arrest.

Sadly, the dysfunctional prejudices and deficient policies in Suffolk that left this alleged killer on the loose are apparent across the state.

Because many in law enforcement place little value on the lives of sex workers, they are rarely willing to work with them to resolve crimes, let alone grant them immunity to provide valuable information and testimony. This makes it unlikely sex workers will approach law enforcement about crimes they have observed, or have been subject to, leaving them and the community at large at greater risk.

While the Gilgo Beach case was a law enforcement failure, the actions that led to Heuermann's arrest reflect enlightened law enforcement practices that provide hope for catching predators more quickly. Hopefully, Toulon’s information-gathering from sex workers can help lead to further charges against Heuermann or other killers.

A huge step in support of this enlightenment would be enacting state legislation, introduced in the State Senate and Assembly, to provide immunity for sex workers who come forward with evidence of a crime.

This legislation, modeled after a successful New York law that provides immunity for users of illegal substances who report a crime, would provide sex workers with protection from arrest for prostitution if they come forward to report crimes. Nine states have passed similar immunity laws in recent years, and several other states introduced legislation this year.

Criminalizing and stigmatizing sex workers does not make anyone safer. It is time New York lawmakers ensure that the most heinous crimes never again go unsolved because those who have information are stigmatized and devalued. Laura Mullen, co-founder of the Survivor Advisory Board and an anti-trafficking services advocate at the Empowerment Collaborative of Long Island-Vibes in Suffolk County, recently said, “The immunity bill passing will help others like me who were victims. I felt like my voice didn’t matter, and I didn’t feel safe enough to speak about the unthinkable acts committed around me and to me.”

Our state lawmakers should heed Mullen's words and enact the immunity bill when they return in January.

This guest essay reflects the views of Melissa Sontag Broudo, legal director of Decriminalize Sex Work.

This essay by Decriminalize Sex Work’s Legal Director, Melissa Sontag Broudo, originally ran in Newsday, one of Long Island’s most popular news sources, on July 25, 2023.

The Brian Lehrer Show

Please click here to listen to DSW’s Director of Strategic Partnerships Crystal DeBoise discussing violence against sex workers and the Gilgo Beach murders on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show.

Decriminalize Sex Work hosted a press conference to advocate for immunity laws at the New York State Capitol in April 2023.

Decriminalize Sex Work hosted a press conference to advocate for immunity laws at the New York State Capitol in April 2023.

DSW Newsletter #48

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023 Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact...
Read More
DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023 Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday By Melissa Sontag Broudo Guest essay Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm The recent arrest of Rex...
Read More
Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023 Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to...
Read More
Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023 Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water...
Read More
The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023 This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference,...
Read More
DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

DSW Newsletter Archive

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023

Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water and then mud when the waters receded. The damage in Montpelier was catastrophic. Many residents were left unhoused and nearly every business was destroyed. Recovery efforts remain underway and rebuilding will take months, if not years. As the waters receded and community members began to assess the devastation, Henri Bynx, co-founder and co-director of Montpelier’s The Ishtar Collective (TIC), immediately mobilized members to meet the community’s basic needs. On the day following the flooding, as city officials declared drinking water contaminated, Bynx distributed clean drinking water and food to anyone in need.

TIC farms a plot of land to provide vegetables to the community, which they distribute from a community refrigerator located in downtown Montpelier. Though many collective members were themselves impacted by the flooding, they jumped into action to replace the refrigerator. With a direct connection to some of the community’s most marginalized members, TIC was able to distribute immediate supplies to those who might have otherwise gone without. In addition to this immediate relief work, TIC’s efforts have expanded to resource delivery, cleanup, and rental/relief assistance.

While institutionalized relief is underway, it’s important for community members to keep each other afloat however they can, facilitating support and basic human resources. Some areas of Vermont still don’t have potable water. Our farms are contaminated from the floodwaters. Buildings are being condemned while occupants are at a loss for where to go for long term housing in an already deep housing crisis. We want to make sure we show up for our neighbors across all intersections, which in this instance is plain personhood. Vermont has a long road to recovery, and we want to do what we can to move that process along for people.”

— Henri June Bynx

Henri Bynx distributes clean drinking water the day after the floods.

Henri Bynx distributes clean drinking water the day after the floods.

Henri Bynx cleaning out a local business following the floods.

Henri Bynx cleaning out a local business following the floods.

Downtown Montpelier, VT during the flooding.

Downtown Montpelier, VT during the flooding.

DSW Newsletter #48

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023 Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact...
Read More
DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023 Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday By Melissa Sontag Broudo Guest essay Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm The recent arrest of Rex...
Read More
Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023 Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to...
Read More
Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023 Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water...
Read More
The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023 This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference,...
Read More
DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

DSW Newsletter Archive

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

NEWS RELEASE | FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | PDF

Media Contact:
Ariela Moscowitz, director of communications
[email protected] |
(212) 368-7874

Maine Voters Oppose Proposed Changes to Prostitution Laws

Augusta, ME (June 26, 2023) — Today Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to buy sexual services. Maine is now the first and only state to enact the policy model referred to as the Nordic model, the Entrapment model, or the End Demand model. Lawmakers market this legislation as a means of curtailing prostitution and combating trafficking, while evidence from around the world shows it does neither. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, UNAIDS, the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, the World Health Organization, and many other human rights groups have denounced the Entrapment model because because countries that have implemented it continue to see violence and exploitation in commercial sex proliferate.

The criminalization of buying and/or selling sex makes sex workers vulnerable to predators. Due to fear of arrest, people are hesitant to provide the information sex workers need to effectively screen individuals and separate predators from actual clients. Because criminalizing clients pushes the entire industry further underground, sex workers are more dependent on potentially exploitative third parties to help clients avoid discovery in order to keep their business, even if this risks exploitation. Sweden and Northern Ireland implemented Entrapment Model laws in 1999 and 2015, respectively. In both places, prostitution persists. A study released in Sweden in 2019 reports the unambiguous failure of the Entrapment Model to reduce demand for prostitution, to deter people from engaging in sex work, or to provide meaningful resources to victims of human trafficking in or out of the sex industry.

Proponents of this legislation claim that consensual adult sex work is inherently exploitative which is untrue. Enacting this legislation not only shows disregard for ample and unequivocal evidence, it also codifies the dangerous notion that adults do not have bodily autonomy and cannot consent to paid sex. “Lots of supporters of Entrapment model legislation are feminists who support bodily autonomy as it relates to abortion but do not think people should have that same right to bodily autonomy should they choose to engage in sex work,” said Rebecca Cleary, a staff attorney at Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW). “Entrapment Model laws are misguided and misinformed, driven by harmful and stigmatizing ideology and the false promise that they will abolish the sex industry.  Enacting this law will cause real harm to Maine’s most marginalized individuals. We will monitor the effects of the law closely to mitigate harm and ensure that no other states follow Maine’s unprecedented decision,” she continued.

###

Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) is a national organization pursuing a state-by-state strategy to end the prohibition of consensual adult prostitution in the United States. DSW works with local organizations, advocates, and lobbyists to build community support and convince legislators to stop prostitution-related arrests. Evidence shows that decriminalizing sex work will help end human trafficking, improve public health, and promote community safety.

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023

Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to buy sexual services. Maine is now the first and only state to enact the policy model referred to as the Nordic Model, the Entrapment Model, or the End Demand Model. Lawmakers market this legislation as a means of curtailing prostitution and combating trafficking, while evidence from around the world shows it does neither. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, UNAIDS, the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, the World Health Organization, and many other human rights groups have denounced the Entrapment Model because because countries that have implemented it continue to see violence and exploitation in commercial sex proliferate.

The criminalization of buying and/or selling sex makes sex workers vulnerable to predators. Due to fear of arrest, people are hesitant to provide the information sex workers need to effectively screen individuals and separate predators from actual clients. Because criminalizing clients pushes the entire industry further underground, sex workers are more dependent on potentially exploitative third parties to help clients avoid discovery in order to keep their businesses, even if this risks exploitation. Sweden and Northern Ireland implemented Entrapment Model laws in 1999 and 2015, respectively. In both places, prostitution persists. A study released in Sweden in 2019 reports the unambiguous failure of the Entrapment Model to reduce demand for prostitution, to deter people from engaging in sex work, or to provide meaningful resources to victims of human trafficking in or out of the sex industry.

Proponents of this legislation claim that consensual adult sex work is inherently exploitative, which is untrue. Enacting this legislation not only shows disregard for ample and unequivocal evidence, it also codifies the dangerous notion that adults do not have bodily autonomy and cannot consent to paid sex. Lots of supporters of Entrapment Model legislation are feminists who support bodily autonomy as it relates to abortion but do not think people should have that same right to bodily autonomy should they choose to engage in sex work. Entrapment Model laws are misguided and misinformed, driven by harmful and stigmatizing ideology and the false promise that they will abolish the sex industry. Enacting this law will cause real harm to Maine’s most marginalized individuals.

Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) commissioned a poll in Maine, prior to passage of the law. When asked if they support or oppose this proposed law, only 12% of Mainers stated they support it while an overwhelming 55% oppose it. 33% percent were unsure. Notably, of Mainers who know someone who has been trafficked into the commercial sex industry, 48% oppose the policy model proposed by LD 1435, while only 11% would support it.

DSW staff testified against passage of the law and will monitor the effects of it in an attempt to mitigate harm.

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

DSW Newsletter #48

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023 Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact...
Read More
DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023 Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday By Melissa Sontag Broudo Guest essay Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm The recent arrest of Rex...
Read More
Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023 Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to...
Read More
Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023 Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water...
Read More
The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023 This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference,...
Read More
DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

DSW Newsletter Archive

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023

Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact with an individual who is in custody, being detained, or being arrested to also prohibit law enforcement from engaging in a sexual act with a person who is the subject of an open investigation or a confidential informant or victim in an open investigation. With this legislation, policymakers reiterated that non-consensual sex is a crime, while consenting adults should be afforded the autonomy and dignity to make choices about their own bodies.

Consistent with this view, S.33’s ban on police sexual assaults will help prevent the second-most prevalent form of police violence behind excessive force, police sexual misconduct, which most commonly occurs between police and consensual adult sex workers. Due to their engagement in a criminalized activity, victims engaged in prostitution are targeted by officers who use their fear of arrest to exploit them. “The fear of arrest makes it impossible for a sex worker to give consent even if it appears that they may have made a choice. There is no choice to be made between violation and incarceration. Additionally, because consent was obtained by deception, it amounts to sexual assault,” said Henri Bynx, co-founder and co-director of The Ishtar Collective.

“Laws addressing police sexual violence codify the notion that consent, or lack thereof, is key when determining if a crime has occurred,” said Rep. Taylor Small, sponsor of the initial bill included in S.33. “By delineating when consent cannot be given, we acknowledge that it is possible for sex workers to consent to paid sex in other instances and that when consent is involved, it should not be a crime,” Small continued, referencing the companion bills introduced last legislative session that would decriminalize consensual adult sex work.

Police sexual violence (PSV) is a term that encompasses interactions in which a law-enforcement officer (sometimes referred to as a peace officer) engages in sexual contact with someone they have encountered in the line of duty. Law-enforcement officers are inherently in a position of authority over civilians, and this authority can be wielded to coerce unwanted sexual contact. The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) has recognized that policing “create[s] opportunities for sexual misconduct” because officers “have power and authority over others” and “engage with vulnerable populations who lack power and are often perceived as less credible.” PSV is the second-most prevalent form of police violence behind excessive force, but because victims are often hesitant to report their experiences, there are likely exponentially more cases than have been documented.

Read DSW’s comprehensive fact sheet and recommendations on PSV laws here.

Read Henri Bynx’s Commentary, published in the VT Digger, on PSV laws here.

DSW Staff Attorney Rebecca Cleary testifies in front of the Vermont House Judiciary Committee.

DSW Staff Attorney Rebecca Cleary testifies in front of the Vermont House Judiciary Committee.

DSW Newsletter #48

DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

June 7, 2023 Governor Phil Scott signed S. 33, an act relating to miscellaneous judiciary procedures, amending 13 V.S.A. § 3259, which prohibits a law-enforcement officer from engaging in sexual contact...
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DSW Advocates Instrumental in VT’s Enactment of Country’s Most Comprehensive Police Sexual Violence Law

Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

July 26, 2023 Opinion: Sex-worker immunity would have helped Gilgo Beach probe | Newsday By Melissa Sontag Broudo Guest essay Updated July 25, 2023 7:36 pm The recent arrest of Rex...
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Arrest in Long Island Serial Killer Case Shines Brighter Light on Need for Immunity Laws for Sex Workers

Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

June 26, 2023 Governor Janet Mills signed into law a bill, sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt, that makes it legal for adults to sell sexual services but illegal for adults to...
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Maine Enacts Prostitution Law Decried by Leading Trafficking and Human Rights Experts

The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

July 10, 2023 Much of Vermont was devastated by flooding after weeks of heavy rains. Many downtown areas around the state, including the state’s capital of Montpelier, were covered with water...
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The Ishtar Collective Provides Basic Needs After Catastrophic Flooding in VT

DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

July 19, 2023 This June, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended the MAPS Psychedelic Science conference in Denver, Colorado. 2023 marked the fourth gathering of the psychedelic community for the quinquennial conference,...
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DSW Staff Attend Influential Conferences

DSW Newsletter Archive

Maine Voters Oppose Proposed Changes to Prostitution Laws

NEWS RELEASE | FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | PDF

Media Contact:
Ariela Moscowitz, director of communications
[email protected] |
(212) 368-7874

Maine Voters Oppose Proposed Changes to Prostitution Laws

Augusta, ME (June 5, 2023) — A recent statewide survey shows Mainers overwhelmingly oppose legislation related to prostitution that passed the Maine House and will be heard in the Senate tomorrow. LD 1435, “An Act to Reduce Commercial Exploitation,” sponsored by Representative Lois Reckitt proposes to make it legal for adults to sell sexual services, but illegal for adults to buy sexual services. When asked if they support or oppose this proposed law, only 12% of Mainers stated they support it while an overwhelming 55% oppose it. 33% percent were unsure.

LD1435 is one of only three bills that have been introduced in the country this year that proposes enacting the policy model referred to as the Equality Model, the Nordic model, the Entrapment model, or the End Demand model. Lawmakers market this legislation as a means of curtailing prostitution and combating trafficking, while evidence from around the world shows it does neither. Countries that have implemented the entrapment model continue to see violence and exploitation in commercial sex.

Proponents of this legislation claim human trafficking and consensual adult sex work are indistinguishable, which is untrue. “When sex work and trafficking are conflated, law enforcement and other state resources are misappropriated. Money and time is used to prosecute any prostitution-related crimes, limiting resources that could be otherwise fully focused on trafficking investigations,” said Rebecca Cleary, staff attorney at Decriminalize Sex work. Notably, of Mainers who know someone who has been trafficked into the commercial sex industry, 48% oppose the policy model proposed by LD 1435, while only 11% would support it.

Because criminalizing clients pushes the entire industry further underground, sex workers are more dependent on potentially exploitative third parties to help clients avoid discovery in order to keep their business, even if this risks exploitation. Sweden and Northern Ireland implemented Entrapment Model laws in 1999 and 2015, respectively. In both places, prostitution persists. In Northern Ireland, a 2019 review of the impact of the legislation found no decrease in demand, leading the Department of Justice to label the policy ineffective. A study released in Sweden in 2019 reports the unambiguous failure of the Entrapment Model to reduce demand for prostitution, or to deter people from engaging in sex work, or to provide meaningful resources to victims of human trafficking in or out of the sex industry.

The poll, which surveyed 538 registered voters in Maine was conducted by Public Policy Polling on May 24 and 25, 2023.

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Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) is a national organization pursuing a state-by-state strategy to end the prohibition of consensual adult prostitution in the United States. DSW works with local organizations, advocates, and lobbyists to build community support and convince legislators to stop prostitution-related arrests. Evidence shows that decriminalizing sex work will help end human trafficking, improve public health, and promote community safety.

RI Study Commission Concludes

May 23, 2023

DSW Legal Director Melissa Broudo and Community Engagement Consultant Henri Bynx were at the Rhode Island State House in April and May, as the study commission on which Bynx served held its final meetings. The commission will soon release a report with recommendations based on its findings.

The study commission was formed following the unanimous passage of House Resolution 5250, which proposed a special legislative commission to study ensuring racial equity and optimizing health and safety laws affecting marginalized individuals. The bill, as passed, delineated who should sit on the commission, which includes thirteen members, including individuals with lived experience. Other members of the commission include two legislators, a member of COYOTE RI, a representative from Amnesty International, two representatives of organizations serving populations disproportionately impacted by the criminalization of commercial sex, the director of the Department of Health, an attorney from the Rhode Island Public Defender’s Office, the Rhode Island attorney general, or designee, a representative from the Brown University Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice, and the president of the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association, or their designee.

The study commission has met eight times since fall of 2021 with experts from both within the commission and outside of it testifying at each meeting. In her capacity as legal director at DSW and with over twenty years of experience representing and advocating for the legal rights of consensual adult sex workers and survivors of human trafficking, Broudo testified in April 2022 about the devastating consequences of the conflation of consensual adult sex work and human trafficking. She helped to draft the legislation proposing the study commission as she believes that public policy should be informed by research and evidence. In April 2023, Broudo and Bynx testified together,  providing recommendations to the commission.  Bynx has testified on the impacts of criminalization on their life as a consensual adult sex worker. A leading advocate for sex worker rights, Bynx spoke powerfully about the critical need for decriminalization — the vital step that would allow individuals marginalized by criminalization to live with less fear and more dignity. In June 2022, Bynx provided testimony on the intersection of sex work and LGBTQIA+ rights.

DSW advocates for the creation of study commissions focused on evaluating prostitution laws, addressing trafficking concerns, and identifying better ways to create support systems for both sex workers and trafficked people.

Read our fact sheet on study commissions to review existing laws and address trafficking and exploitation.

DSW Legal Director Melissa Broudo and Community Engagement Consultant Henri Bynx testify before the RI legislative study commission.

Melissa Broudo and Henri Bynx provide recommendations to the commission.

DSW Newsletter #47

DSW Attends Top Adult Content Industry Conference

April 15, 2023 Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) attended XBIZ Miami in South Beach, Miami, earlier this May. XBIZ, the adult industry’s leading publisher of business news and information, hosts five annual...
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DSW Attends Top Adult Content Industry Conference

RI Study Commission Concludes

May 23, 2023 DSW Legal Director Melissa Broudo and Community Engagement Consultant Henri Bynx were at the Rhode Island State House in April and May, as the study commission on which...
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RI Study Commission Concludes

DSW Hosts NY Lobby Day of Action Against Gender-Based Violence

April 25, 2023 Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) gathered elected officials, advocates, and survivors of trafficking to urge the New York State Legislature to pass S1966 (Sepulveda), an act to amend the...
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DSW Hosts NY Lobby Day of Action Against Gender-Based Violence

DSW Testifies on Important Legislation in MA, ME, & RI

May 1, 2023 As sex work related reforms gain momentum around the country, Decriminalize Sex Work (DSW) staff members are busier than ever. Within the span of just a few weeks,...
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DSW Testifies on Important Legislation in MA, ME, & RI

DSW Newsletter Archive