Journalists and Justice

Greetings, I'm back home following my trip to Inverness and it was fantastic, lovely clients and sunshine but made all the better by the craic I had with Amanda and Susan. Next month Ellie Lloyd is joining the three of us there, so it will be good to switch off our phones at the end of the day and go for dinner.

I finally got to meet the journalist who had contacted me, what a lovely lady. Kirstin Innes is an arts journalist and usually writes about film, visual art and theatre for The Scotsman, The Herald, The Independent and The List. She has decided to write a fictional novel about a woman who decides to become an escort and so wanted to do some research. ( I have her permission to share that with you ). I hope I was able to help in some way, and to be honest it was more like meeting a friend for lunch, good fun. All the very best Kirstin, I look forward to reading it and I'm holding you to the promise of a signed copy. :)

On Wednesday Thierry Schaffauser wrote a very honest and thought provoking article for the Guardian entitled "Whorephobia affects all women", the link is here :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/23/sex-workers-whorephobia

In particular I liked these paragraphs -

"Whorephobia can be defined as the fear or the hate of sex workers. Sex workers like me would argue that it also embraces paternalistic attitudes that deem us a public nuisance, spreaders of disease, offenders against decency or unskilled victims who don't know what is good for them and who need to be rescued.

In its most violent form, whorephobia kills. Sex workers are far more likely to be murdered than the rest of the population: the recent killings in Bradford are the most recent and saddening example. However, it would be a mistake to think that sex workers are the only targets of these murderers. Attackers often target sex workers because they look like easier prey. Sometimes it is only once a non-sex worker is killed that the police take an investigation seriously. Until sex workers are safe, no woman is safe."

Well said and I absolutely agree. The more we are legislated against, the more we are marginalised, the greater the stigma. As it stands I frequently meet gents who think that prostitution is illegal, it isn't. If society perceive what we do to be against the law, then what hope do we have of attaining our deserved status ?

Unfortunately I was touring and so couldn't get my teeth into the "Comment is free" section after the article, as per usual some of the posts got my blood boiling. Take this little gem ;

"Does any man want their wife, mother or daughter to unite with prostitutes and fight against (alleged) oppression?"

If the Bradford killer had gone on to kill his wife, mother or daughter, he'd be the first person to be shouting for justice. As for "alleged" oppression, consider the case of Hanna Morris, charged with managing a brothel or controlling prostitution for gain after she reported a serious attack. She faces up to seven years in prison.
Two identifiable men, one with a sawn-off shotgun up his sleeve, barged in, threw petrol about threatening to torch the premises and to hold the woman there against her will. But we'll forget about all that and just charge the madam, hmmm ? If that's not considered oppression then we really need to review our definitions.

In fact, following on from the excellent post by Elrond on Punternet, I urge everyone who reads my blog to write or call Portia Ragnauth, Chief Prosecutor Surrey CPS. Ask why women’s safety is being endangered in this way.


LL xx

Tribune and Tours

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Blogs and Boobies

Good evening and greetings from Newcastle where I landed today having done battle with every trucker and caravan from here to Swansea, grrr. It's summer time again, and although it's infinitely preferable to driving on snow and ice, it's still a pain in my not inconsiderable backside. ( Yes I know that's a double negative. )

I've spent a lot of time lately speaking about what I do, and my role as an escort. That in itself has caused some cog turning in the semi-complex machine just behind my forehead. An actress got in touch with me, because she is writing a play about working girls and wanted to do some research. So we met for coffee. ( I was fashionably late of course ).

I have to be honest, some of the questions she asked me were quite gritty. She said that I come across as a party girl in my blog and a really good laugh. Erm, I am. She also said that she could find very little reference to the other facets of my life, such as studying and family. The truth is that when I started writing this blog, I didn't know what I hoped to achieve really, you could say it's all marketing but for me it's a blank canvas on which to paint whatever comes to the forefront of my mind. I've never made any secret of the fact I'm a Mum, and an adoring one at that, but I think there's only so much to be discussed on a publicly visible blog so as to be appropriate. There are other aspects of my private life which I've never discussed on my blog, and probably never will. C'est la vie.

Continuing in that vein, this week I'm meeting a journalist who is writing a book on the sex industry. Panic not, I have been reassured that she is looking to speak to me for the purposes of research only and has no interest in "outing" anyone. I've learned over time that actually, some members of the press are very much on our side, or at least want to give us a voice. If I can help in any way I will, because I would rather that we were portrayed in a realistic light, rather than a stereotypical one.

Aside from all of that, I hit the shower the other morning to do my ritualistic handstand before setting off to meet a client. I recently bought some lemon shower gel which is divine and I was enjoying lathering it up until I felt it. I wasn't certain at first, but after a further prod I confirmed what I thought originally. It was a lump, right there in my breast. "No biggie", I thought, "I'll make an appointment with my GP. It feels rather like a pea anyway so it's probably just a swollen gland."

So I hot footed it down to my GP, my new doc is a lady and wonderful.

"I can feel what you mean, it's very hard."

"I know, it's almost like a pea."

"Hmmm, yes. I wouldn't be too concerned about it to be honest, more the mass behind it."

"WHAT MASS ??"

"Please don't panic, I'm sending you to the breast clinic. 2 to 3 weeks for an appointment."

So that's where I'm at. Sure, it could be nowt, and probably is. I phoned my Mother to ask about a history of breast cancer in our family and she assured me that there is no history at all, only madness.

"Only the good die young, you'll be fine."

Cheers Mother.

Nite,

LL xx

Awards and Antagonists

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Clients, Comments and Cruises

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Time for change

Mouth almighty has done it again and today I'm in The Independent.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/the-addiction-that-drives-women-on-to-the-mean-streets-of-bradford-1985115.html

I am so glad that they caught the killer of those innocent women. They were not "just prostitutes", they were mothers, lovers, sisters and daughters. Their families must be going through agonising grief. How many more times do we have to have the senseless slaughter of sex workers before some measures are introduced to protect them ?

I liked what Amanda said on Harlot's Parlour yesterday ;

"Why, in our enlightened society, where the AA and RAC will send a patrol at super speed to a woman on her own, where we are sent a text with details of our taxi after a night out so that we don’t get into the wrong car, are these girls left to hope for the best and fend for themselves ?"

I'll leave you with the press release just issued by the IUSW -

LLxx

PRESS RELEASE
28 May 2010
The IUSW and GMB sex workers' branch call to prioritise safety in the wake of the Bradford murders.

The recent murders in Bradford have highlighted once more the human tragedy that results from laws that discount sex workers’ safety.

The International Union of Sex Workers released this statement:
An inherent contradiction between prosecution and protection
There is an inherent contradiction between the police role of prosecution and protection, Street sex workers have faced additional criminalisation in the Policing and Crime Act 2009 (which defined persistent soliciting as more than twice in three months and removed the requirement for persistence by kerb crawlers); indoor sex workers are also more vulnerable as a result of premises closure orders. Bradford Police have acknowledged they have been using the full range of the law against women working onstreet – arrests, ASBOs and kerb crawling crackdowns.

Increased enforcement endangers sex workers. It does not add to the options and support available, but increases antagonism and distrust between street workers and police. Those deterred by knowledge of police campaigns against kerb-crawlers are the most law-abiding; such campaigns do nothing to affect the behaviour of those intending to assault, rape, abduct, rob, or kill, who will not be prevented by the prospect of a fine for kerb-crawling.

Greater fear of the police and a smaller number of clients does nothing to reduce the amount of money the women need, so street sex workers are more likely to interact with those they would otherwise avoid, cut prices in order to secure a client, take greater risks and engage in activities they would prefer to avoid, including sex without a condom.

Greater desperation leads women to work in more isolated locations (further from other sex workers) and to go with clients without negotiation as they have no time to assess potential clients or agree prices, boundaries, safe sex and other limits. Women are more likely to find themselves in a situation they would have declined with more time to make a decision.

The cost to communities -
Sex workers pay the price most directly for this failure, at worst in tragedies like that currently playing out in Bradford, but communities also suffer the consequences of damaging and futile law enforcement. Kerb crawling crackdowns result in
• sex workers’ dispersal over a wider area
• sex workers are more likely to approach passersby in search of business,
• more aggressive competition to attract clients and between sex workers
and
• longer hours onstreet needed to generate the same amount of money
All of which not only harm women selling sex but increase impact on communities. In addition, women revert to other forms of crime as a way to make up the money that cannot be earned from sex work.

Failed legislation -
The Street Offences Act 1959 has had more than fifty years to demonstrate beneficial effects; the Sexual Offences Act 1985, which criminalises kerb crawling, more than twenty five. If this legal approach was going to solve the problems associated with street prostitution, it would have worked by now. Yet, rather than listen to the voices of projects that provide frontline services to women onstreet and to sex workers themselves, the Policing and Crime Act brought in “more of the same”.

Putting safety first -
The law endangers us, but it doesn’t have to be this way. In Liverpool, specialist service the Armistead Project and Merseyside Police have worked together, and crime against sex workers is treated initially as hate crime. Armistead have built trust with sex workers to increase reporting of crimes against them. The results speak for themselves - a 67% conviction for rape and 90% of cases for violence against sex workers that went to court during 2005 to end March 2009 resulted in convictions.

The IUSW campaigns for these policies to be adopted nationwide.

To contact the IUSW call 07772 638748.

To contact the UKNSWP call 07957 978018.

Notes:
The International Union of Sex Workers is the only UK organisation of individuals themselves working in the sex industry. We campaign for human, civil and labour rights, and the full protection of the law for everyone who works in the sex industry and for the inclusion of sex workers in decisions which will affect our rights and safety. The IUSW offers a unique source of expertise and experience from people who see reality of the industry day to day.

The UK Network of Sex Work Projects (UKNSWP) is the umbrella body for nearly 70 frontline services across the UK, including Bradford and Huddersfield. http://uknswp.org/

Celebrations and Cautions

The voice of reason at last. On Thursday 29 April, in Luton Crown Court, Claire Finch was found not guilty of a criminal charge of keeping a brothel. The jury, in line with public opinion, refused to criminalise Ms Finch for working together with friends from her own home for safety. Ms Finch, her friends and colleagues, her legal team and the English Collective of Prostitutes which co-ordinated the case, celebrated this victory for rights and safety. I celebrated too, what a result and Cari Mitchell and her colleagues at the ECP must be feeling ecstatic. Cari herself said ;

“This landmark decision strengthens other women facing similar prosecutions. Like Ms Finch, many women now facing prosecution are mothers supporting families. At a time of economic crisis and brutal cuts in welfare and resources, women, whether they work on the street or in premises, should not be criminalised for trying to survive.
We note the deafening silence from so-called feminists who enhanced their careers by pushing through repressive legislation against sex workers, and have nothing to say about prostitute women’s safety and rights.”

Very well said. Yes indeed, the rad fems have been exceptionally quiet since this decision was announced. Funny that.

Can you imagine for a moment what it must have been like, Ms Finch is an ordinary, middle aged woman who had stepped out of the bath when before she could reach the door reserved for her clients, several police officers kicked it in. Outside, 20 others had surrounded the house with four cars, three vans and a team of sniffer dogs. I mean, WHAT ?? Add to that the stress of waiting for the court case to come up on a charge which potentially had a sentence of 7 years attached to it, it must have been hell for her.

During the course of the case it emerged that all of her neighbours knew she offered "massage with a happy ending" but it didn't bother them as it didn't impinge on their lives and they liked Ms Finch. Three of her neighbours, including an 87-year-old woman testified on her behalf in court, while another sent a letter of support. They told the jury that Finch was a decent member of the community who cared for an ill and incontinent neighbour and would look after their children in an emergency.

I am just so glad that common sense prevailed and it was reported in The Times that when the verdict was read out even the judge was smiling.

As a complete aside, I was sitting here thinking about how I've never been in trouble with the police. Actually, that's not strictly speaking true. I actually have a caution on file with the Irish Gardai dating back some 10 years now. Unfortunately, along with being a "Celtic maiden" comes a "Celtic temper".

I was strolling down a busy shopping street with a friend one fine afternoon having enjoyed lunch when I noticed a group of three lads in front of me. One of those brave boys crept up behind a pigeon and booted it into the air, to a flurry of squawks and feathers. I was raging ( and well, quid pro quo and all that) I went up behind him and gave him a firm boot to his behind which sent him flying.

Unfortunately for me, two off duty Gardai were just coming out of McDonalds at the time. ( Doughnut cliche, anyone ? ) The boys took off and I was given a firm telling off but I swear I caught a twinkle in their eyes. They took my name and address and cautioned me for "common assault". How rude. Don't they have just "assault" ?

On that happy note I'm off to share my salad sandwich with my feathered friends in the glorious sun in my back garden.

LL xx