Sex Workers and The Media

April 7, 2008

A Tale Of Two Strippers…
by Aishah Shahidah Simmons

Sometime last fall Michael Simmons, my father and comrade in the international struggles to end violence against women, called me to share his passionate rage about all of the positive hype around Diablo Cody’s, (the very talented Academy Award® Winning screenwriter of the film Juno, directed by Jason Reitman) herstory as a stripper to support herself while writing screenplays. Media outlets, from National Public Radio to Entertainment Tonight, raved about “the stripper turned Hollywood screenwriter.”

Before my feminist sisters get upset, I want to be clear that Michael’s (and my) passionate rage isn’t about Sister Diablo Cody. This is not an anti-sex worker piece/peace. While I, as a Black feminist lesbian, critique a patriarchal, sexist, and misogynist world where sex work is, for countless women in the world, the only viable option to make a living, I do not and will not ever critique women for “choosing” sex work to financially support themselves.

I do, however, critique, the media, including many progressive and even some White feminist outlets, who celebrate Sister Diablo’s decision to work as a stripper to support herself while writing screenplays but castigated, maligned, and marginalized my Black Sister Survivor who was hired by members of the Duke University Lacrosse Team to perform for them. Yes, I know that had she not accused those innocent White men of sexually assaulting her, we probably wouldn’t even know she existed. However, since she did accuse them of sexually assaulting her, the media presented her as another Black woman stripper/whore who was a liar. In fact, in her very specific instance, stripping was frowned upon and demonized as a viable option for her to earn a living to support herself and her two children while she was an undergraduate student at North Carolina Central University.

When it comes to rape, sexual assault and other forms of violence against women, sex workers are some of the most vulnerable employees. This sobering reality transcends the race, class, and national origin of all sex workers.

I know that Sister Diablo hasn’t publicly accused anyone of sexually assaulting her and very hopefully she isn’t one of the three women in the world who has experienced some form of sexual assault on her journey called life. So, I’m definitely not implying that her situation is the same situation as with my Black Sister Survivor in North Carolina.

I do, however, question and challenge the media’s sexist (and I would argue racist and classist) grotesque duplicity when it comes to their deciding which women should be celebrated for making “a smart decision” to strip to support themselves; and which women should be punished for making “a dumb decision” to strip to support themselves.

It’s also very important to note, that the media’s celebratory attitude towards Sister Diablo stripping is not unlike their celebratory attitude towards White middle and upper class single women who decide to have children without getting married or having a male partner, which is often viewed and presented as a chic/hip feminist statement. While on the other hand, poor African-American single women who decide to have children without being married or having a male partner are viewed and presented, by the media, as pathological…

But, that’s another piece/peace for another day.

Aishah Shahidah Simmons is the producer, writer, and director of the internationally acclaimed feature-length documentary NO!, which explores the international reality of rape and sexual assault through the first person testimonies, scholarship, spirituality, and activism of African-Americans. This award-winning documentary also explores how rape is used as a weapon of homophobia. During April, which is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, she is traveling with NO! to continue to raise awareness about all forms of violence against women. Please visit www.NOtheRapeDocumentary.org and www.AfroLezProductions.com for detailed information about her schedule.

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Comments

One Response to “Sex Workers and The Media”

  1. She-Ra on April 8th, 2008 11:03 am

    Whilst agree with your indignation towards the media portrayal of women who are prostituted and objectified, i would like to say that i’m a little surprised at your views on this issue having read some of the other pieces on this site and having seen clips from the documentary No. As a feminist who believes in women’s equality i find it astonishing when people argue that prostitution is a choice. Women who are prostituted are more likely to be raped and experience other forms of violence including homicide. Which other so called preofession in the world has rape and violence in the job description? Instead of looking at it as a ‘choice’ for women who are cripled by poverty and other issues, surely the aim should be to fight for women’s equality and put efforts into providing viable alternatives. Prostitution is a form of violence against women. Women who are prostituted should in no way be criminalised, however the buyers should be. Buying another human being was called slavery centuries ago and it’s still true today.

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