Stand Up
Sex Worker Rights Intervention speech given at Off The Ground’s Showcase on 15th July 2022
Feel free to watch the speech in video form below, or read in the transcription underneath.
Hi everyone!
My name is Gemma Rose. I am a pole dance instructor, teaching locally with Off The Ground. I'm also an adult entertainer.
Unfortunately I am not shaking my ass for you tonight, but I am giving a talk tonight instead! It will become apparent why I'm speaking to you shortly, but first I would like to introduce myself and share some of my history with you.
My pole journey began in 2015 back in Essex. Like many of us, I was instantly hooked. Unfortunately my first studio was wholly anti-stripper. I internalised and preached anti-sex work ideals. "Strippers give us a bad name" I would say, "what we do is different. What we do is pole fitness. It's a sport. We are not sluts". Moving to Sheffield for university, a new studio completely opened my eyes to a different perspective on the sexy side of pole and how all pole dance links back to strippers. It was a total 180 in thinking for me and the re-education of a lifetime. I remember going back to Essex during the holidays with my new found love for sexy pole. I walked in, strapped my stripper heels on and the studio owner said to me "we do not wear whore shoes here". It's safe to say I did not step foot back in that space after this realisation of whorephobia. I feel so far removed from that way of thinking now that I can't relate to it at all. That side of me is dead. But I'm never ashamed of my previous mentality; it shows growth and proves that I could also help to change people's opinions.
4 years ago I began my own journey into the world of sex work. In the same year I started to strip, build an onlyfans and tried camming. My first strip club was within a stone's throw of here at Spearmint Rhino. Sheffield's only legal sex worker space shut down at the beginning of the pandemic. Spearmint Rhino had been under fire from SWERFs for years (for those who don't know, SWERFs are sex work exclusionary radical feminists. They are basically groups made up of largly bitter middle aged women who do not like sex work). Their last attack at Spearmints was the most brutal, by sending private investigators into the club to illegally and unconsensually film numerous dancers in hopes to find breaches in the licensing. Despite the SWERFs’ persistance, the council yet again renewed Spearmint's license. However, we figured the owners had just about enough when covid came and called it a day, leaving many of us without a place of work to come back to when the world reopened.
I chose sex work and continue to choose existing in this industry, but I have to drive up to an hour to source legal work spaces. I am wholly privileged that I am able to travel like this, many aren't able to and have limited options. People choose stripping for a number of reasons, for some, it's the only job that is available to them. It is a career path for disabled folks, those who can't afford childcare or have dependents, students (like myself when I first started) and those who do not have formal academic qualifications. But let's not get it twisted; you have to be incredibly intelligent to be successful in this job and you'd be surprised at the number of strippers whose title is Dr. There are many reasons why people choose this work or why this work is the only realistic option.
Spearmint Rhino's case is one of many, with a large number of UK club closures over the years. A big reason for a scarcity in these work spaces is SWERF efforts. Recently, Blackpool council was successful in imposing a nil cap, aka a strip club ban. They pushed this in an effort to 'clean up Blackpool's image'. Not only is it a bogus reason, it's also an illegal one, as you cannot close Sexual Entertainment Venues based on morality, there has to be something more tangible. Yet, terrifyingly, the council's corrupt decision sailed through unopposed and 4 club's worth of dancers will be forced out of work. Kings club in Harrogate was wrongfully closed last month- I had friends who literally lost their jobs overnight and barely had time to go pick up their work heels from the club. Bristol has had an ongoing battle for a year, waiting for the council's decision on a nil cap. Bristol SWers collective have been working incredibly hard to promote dancer visibility and speak out about our rights. It seems as though the tide is moving in our favour with 86% of Bristol citizens disagreeing with the prospect of a nil cap- let's hope Bristol council make the right decision here. This was not the case with Edinburgh, as the council voted in favour of a nil cap, even though only 20% of Edinburgh citizens advocated for this decision. We are not giving up hope. United Sex Workers launched a fundraiser to raise money for a judicial review; essentially a worker driven effort to legally oppose the council's decision. This is where the profits of tonight's event are going, which is such a worthy cause. USWers have already raised their goal over £20K to launch this judicial review.
Why is it so important that these spaces stay open? Perhaps the biggest reason is the fundamental feminist ideal that we have autonomy over our bodies and the freedom to choose what we do: 'my body my choice'. I think currently the more worrying question we need to broach is ‘what happens to dancers who no longer have access to these spaces?’ Isn't it obvious? Many dancers will either choose or be forced to stay in the sex industry and work illegally in more dangerous conditions. Getting rid of Sexual Entertainment Venues will not eliminate the work, it will only push it underground and open workers up to further exploitation and sexual abuse. Shutting strip clubs is directly violating human rights and is wholly a misogynistic act. We have a right to safe and legal work spaces.
I don't want to give SWERFs much airtime today, but it is important that we are aware of the rhetoric they are preaching. Groups like Not Buying It wish to rid society of commercial sexual objectification, claiming that the work is immoral and our existence is harmful to women. But the truth is, they objectify and dehumanise us more than the work ever did and the women they are harming. it’s us. They point out the exploitation in our working conditions, but don’t listen to us when we say we need help to make things better, rather than taking it away from us. We want rights, not rescue. It's spiteful, vengeful and hateful. More stealthy groups like the White Ribbon Campaign facade as advocating for women's rights, insisting that strip clubs are causing men to be violent. It's as if men come into our spaces not violent, they see a naked lady and then they leave violent. Because that makes sense! All of their sourced 'research' is from themselves- ultimately it's not peer reviewed at best and fake at worst. There is no evidence to support their claims: you only need to look at Bristol's police reports of domestic abuse and see strip clubs are way down on the list. Yet nightclubs are one of the highest- so why aren't they pushing to close nightclubs down? It's because, yet again, they simply do not like sex work. It is a moral crucade backed by propoganda. Occasionally, SWERFs are very forthcoming with their hatred for sex workers, for example, the prominent journalist Julie Bindel stated "when the sex war is won, prostitutes should be shot as collaborators for their terrible betrayal of all women". Bitch, we are just trying to put food on our table and keep a roof over our heads.
It's not too late to join the fight. We need allies and there are so many things you can do to support sex workers. Let me list a bunch off for you:
Sign petitions and write to your MP to protect sex workers from harmful actions and policies. Check your MP’s stance on SWers to inform your voting decisions and make your support for the sex industry known. There are lots of templates available if you're not sure what to say or don’t have the time.
Join in with in person sex worker protests and rallies to show your support.
Donate to sex work organisations.
Educate yourself about sex work. In an age where all information is at our fingertips, it’s never been easier to stay in the loop. Follow sex workers and activists on social media so you can immerse yourself in the rhetoric. Many sex workers, including myself, have a bucket load of resources to share with you.
Amplify sex worker voices and have informative conversations. Why not share a cool resource on your social media, or share an opinion from your favourite sex worker? Make our voices more visible and raise awareness. Talk to your friends and family about sex work. Some of these conversations can be really difficult, but you can do your part to open people’s minds, offer a different perspective and demystify misconceptions around sex work. This in particular will lead to bigger changes on a societal level and is a great way to recruit further allies. Many of us are burdened with having to advocate for our existence, taking some of this weight off our shoulders is a fantastic way to be active in your allyship.
Never expect emotional labour from sex workers, especially when it comes to educating others about our own lived experiences linked to stigma and trauma. If you would like to broach a sex worker for information, ask if this is okay and offer to pay for their time and labour. Don’t be offended if they kindly reject your offer.
Buy sex worker! There’s so many varying sex worker businesses you can support. Take pole classes from strippers- especially in terms of a sexy style, you are supporting the roots of the industry and learning from the best. Tip your favourite sex worker. Go into strip clubs and buy a few dances. Subscribe to a creators OnlyFans for a month. Show that you support the workers in the industry.
Put pressure on businesses to be more inclusive of sex workers, especially in the pole world. Pole studios, event organisers and pole brands should be giving sex workers more paid opportunities and should be enforcing more ethical practises. Think: does this business support sex workers in their actions? Or is it performative? Do you get hashtag notastripper vibes? Are they exploiting and glamourising sex worker culture for financial gains?
It's clear that every pole dancer should be mobilising to help us; you would not have your love without sex workers. But for anyone else who still isn't convinced that this is a worthy cause, think on this: someone you know is a sex worker, someone you love is a sex worker. We are humans trying to exist in this fucked up world, just like you.
Thank you for listening.