2023 June 3rd: Intl S/W Day

On June 2, 1975, over 100 sex workers in Lyon, France, engaged in a civil disobedience action that involved a week-long occupation of St. Nizer Church. The aim of the action was to generate a high-profile campaign which would highlight the State sanctioned police harassment of street based sex workers, the disgraceful in-action of police in responding to violence perpetrated against the Lyon sex worker community by a serial sexual assault offender, and the refusal of the French Minister for Women to engage in dialogue with French sex workers.

2022 FEATURE: Article by Rachel West for the San Francisco Bay View

FEATURE ARTICLE by Rachel West: The Safer Streets for All Act (SB 357), repealing loitering for the intent to engage in prostitution (California Penal code § 653.22), was signed into law by Gov. Newsom on July 1. This code has led to the criminalization of otherwise legal activities like walking or standing in public, resulting in the harassment of Black and Brown, LGTBQ+ communities, mostly women, for simply looking like a “sex worker.” The bill also allows a person convicted of loitering to petition a court for the dismissal and sealing of records.

2019 Feature: Sex Workers Are Human Resources.

JAN 10 • Thank you so much for your fair and balanced coverage of the 15th Annual IDTEVASW. Since 2012 SWOP and SAFE have strived to stand up and speak out in Philly on issues specific to stigma and gratuitous violence against sex workers. Folks are always amazed at how hard and painful this event is to do, yet in the end how truly blessed we are to be able to come together to do it. Many households in most areas of Greater Philadelphia, if not all of PA, are touched somehow by this issue. Talking about sex work and prostitution is hard. Living in shame and silence is harder. D/17 is not fun, though it is full of love. Truly. We are here because we have been there, and we care. Our voice is their voice. Thank you for covering the memorial. Words cannot even express the gratitude I feel right now. Philly is proving we got LOVE!

2022-2023 EARN IT Act

Daily Dots Jacob Seitz Posted on Apr 18, 2023 The EARN IT Act, a controversial bill that could upend Section 230, is set to be reintroduced in Congress despite twice being hit with massive public opposition, according to a spokesperson for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

The Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies Act, (EARN IT) Act, was originally introduced in 2020 and faced strong opposition from digital rights groups from the start. It failed to reach the President’s desk twice, but Graham (R-S.C.) and Sen Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) are determined to try again.

The bill seeks to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. This much-bemoaned telecommunications rule essentially shields tech and social media companies from blame for hateful or harmful content published on their platforms. The rule has been used repeatedly by major tech companies to absolve themselves of liability in court. The Supreme Court is set to rule on a case that could change the rules of 230 as we know it this fall, but the EARN IT Act could make things much worse for internet users by stripping protections from social media companies for using to cave to government demands and increasing surveillance on citizens.

Graham’s spokesperson said they intended to introduce the bill sometime next week.

The legislation would remove Section 230 protections from platforms if they violated child sexual abuse material (CSAM) laws at the state and federal level, creating a huge problem for platforms that are hesitant to moderate or police their platforms heavily.

The bill was criticized in the past for being too broad and creating sweeping measures that could infringe on the digital privacy of Americans, and this latest attempt is likely to be more of the same.