I got several emails about Craigslist censoring it’s Adult Services Listings so I decided to do another post about it. Thanks to everyone who sent me links.
From Gizmodo:
CENSORED Bar Greets Adult Services Searchers at Craigslist
“Looking for a hooker? Don’t go to Craigslist. The popular free website has censored the adult services section indefinitely following a complaint made by a group of state attorneys general regarding illegal ads promoting prostitution.
In addition to the complaint, timing is also at play here: If you’ll recall, the other day here in Boston the “Craigslist Killer” Philip Markoff offed himself while awaiting trial for the murder of a masseuse he had hired using Craigslist.”
I hadn’t made that connection until I read the Gizmodo article. Makes me wonder tho. This reader comment stood out-”Or, you could legalize and make it safer for everyone. Too bad that makes sense.”
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From ABC News:
‘Craigslist Killer’ Philip Markoff Died Amid His Fiancee’s Photos
“”Craigslist Killer” Phillip Markoff created a ghoulish shrine to his former fiancee before he died, spreading out photos of her on the small table in his cell and scrawling her name in his own blood over his cell door where guards would not easily see it, ABC News has learned.
(snip)
The murder suspect took elaborate steps to make sure he died, but he also made final homage to McAllister. Photos of McAllister covered the small table in Markoff’s cell. As previously reported, Markoff had written “Megan” and “pocket” in his blood on the wall. ABC News has learned that it was written above his doorway where he could see it, but correction officers could not easily see it.”
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The most important viewpoints to me in this story is one of sex workers. How do they feel about this?
From The Huffington Post:
Thoughts From a Former Craigslist Sex Worker
“People — not just prostitutes — have sex for many reasons. Sometimes, for some of us, one reason is money.
From October 2006 to January 2007 I accepted money in exchange for sexual services I provided to men I met online in what was then called the “erotic services” section of Craigslist.org. No more a “professional” than a person renting a room on the same site is necessarily a professional real estate broker, for me and other women and men like myself, Craigslist at that time provided a simple, familiar forum through which I could do my business with complete anonymity, from the safety and convenience of my own home.”
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From Bound Not Gagged:
Traffickers Remain in Business
“Dear State Attorney Generals and colleagues such as Melissa Farley, Donna M. Hughes,
(snip)
Let me clue you in on what you did. When I was a trafficking victim and the calls didn’t come in, I ended up working the street. Try working a Cincinnati street in December. Perhaps some activists shut down a publication back then. Who paid the ultimate price? The prostitute not the trafficker.”
Posted by Vixen as News, Sex Workers at 11:11 PM CDT
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The Beautiful Kind is doing a series of interviews with the Sex Blogger Calendar models. She just posted mine-You Are The Beautiful Kind: Radical Vixen
Thanks for including me TBK!
Posted by Vixen as Interviews at 9:19 PM CDT
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From CNN:
Adult services censored on Craigslist
“Embattled online classified service Craigslist apparently made a change to its website early Saturday, censoring its adult services section.
The section that usually reads “adult services” was replaced by the word “censored.”
(snip)
He said the attorneys are trained to enforce Craigslist’s posting guidelines, “which are stricter than those typically used by yellow pages, newspapers, or any other company that we are aware of.”"
This is such a disappointment. There are so many other places that advertise “adult services”. Why was Craiglist so targeted?
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From ABC News:
Trial for man charged with raping a sex worker
“A 49 year-old Geraldton man is on trial in the District Court accused of raping a 55 year-old sex worker.
(snip)
Mr Peacock’s lawyer Tom Hall told the jury the case is less about sexual penetration without consent and more about a contract dispute between the pair.
Judge Anette Schoombie has warned members of the jury to put aside their moral judgements about sex workers.”
Why isn’t the case more about “sexual penetration without consent”? At least the Judge told the jury to put aside the judgements.
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From the Orlando Sentinel:
Sheriff’s Office: Clerical error to blame for wrongful arrest of Orlando mom mistaken for suspected prostitute
“A clerical error at the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office appears to have sparked the arrest of an Orlando mother who was mistaken for a suspected prostitute when she got off a cruise ship over the weekend.
Paola Londono, 31, spent more than 36 hours in a Broward County jail because authorities there thought she was a woman by the same name who was wanted in Osceola County for failing to appear in court.
(snip)
A copy of the arrest warrant would have showed that information, but dispatchers in Osceola County didn’t have access to that document when Broward County officials called to verify the identification.”
Wow, this is one messed up story. This woman should never have been arrested.
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From Carnal Nation:
Sex Work Clients: A Call to Arms
“Considering how stigmatized sex workers are, and how harshly the culture at large treats prostitutes, I’ve found that the stigma against the clients of sex workers is far worse- being outed as a client can often ruin someone’s career.
(snip)
Anyway, one of the questions I get asked a lot is how I think clients can help working girls. In the light of criticism around the often-recommended Swedish Model, the consistent shutting down of propositions in the Bay Area to decriminalize sex work, and the increasingly alarming laws being considered about the criminalization of clients in the UK, I figured now was probably a good time to offer up some suggestions on how to help people in prostitution by being a decent client.”
This is a good one to end on. If you’re a client of sex workers I recommend this article.
Posted by Vixen as News, Sex Workers at 10:21 PM CDT
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I’ve finished reading Good Porn, from Seal Press. It was ok. Not great but not bad either. I think the problem is I’m not the target audience for this book. A lot of it felt like preaching to the choir but that’s because I already approve of porn.
From the back cover:
“Porn. Do you think of it as a dirty word, a taboo topic, something you associate with cheesy films with bad plots? Filmmaker and author Erika Lust is here to change all that. With the goal of making porn more accessible to women, Good Porn examines the films, the industry, and the phenomenon. It breaks away from any assumptions you may have about porn, opening the door for a wholly new conversation about a medium that has too long been considered the domain. of men. So come on in, ladies, the water’s just fine.
The author Erika Lust does make porn more accessible to women. She starts off by admitting several “ugly” truths about porn-some porn sucks, some porn is sexist and some porn is better at turning women off rather than turning them on. With that out of the way she then shows other truths about porn-there’s more and more female porn directors and female centered porn festivals now. It’s a great time for women to start watching porn.
Good Porn would be a great book for someone that wants to watch porn but doesn’t know where to begin. It would also be a wonderful book to give your girlfriend if she’s shy about porn. Lust makes the reader feel comfortable and empowered about watching it. She makes a call to arms to the “wise wankers” of today.
“There’s a new girl in town-the wise wanker. She doesn’t need anyone to cater to her sexual whims. She pursues pleasure without guilt, and she knows and respects her own body. She knows how to enjoy sex with herself, she has sexual smarts and emotional intelligence, and she knows where to look for sex toys. She knows what she wants, and she knows how to get it.”
Her chapter on the History Of Porn was especially interesting. By chronicling sexually arousing images and words through history Lust shows that the desire for porn is nothing new. The technology may have changed but humans interest in it has been around for ages.
One unexpected delight was the amount of illustrations and photos in this book. Throughout there are cute cartoons of female stick figures and an X in a shopping cart makes an appearance. Lust shows lots of images from porn but they’re all softcore. This fits the mood of the book-titillating but in a fun, non-threatening way. Her tone is one of going out shopping with a girlfriend. Again, this would be an excellent book to give to a woman that’s interested in porn but is shy about it.
Another highlight is the A Smorgasbord Of Adult Films chapter. Lust details a ton of great porn films, many I’d never heard of before. For the beginner porn connoisseur this chapter is a great place to start your education.
However, if you already love porn and watch it regularly I’d say to skip this book. It’s not like it’s a bad read. But to someone already on the porn can be fun bandwagon it can get dull at times
Lust says, “Information is what matters here, just the way it does in other areas of your life. The more you know about sex, the more opportunities you have to make choices, and the more you can explore and enjoy your sexuality.” I wholeheartedly agree!
Posted by Vixen as Reviews at 11:56 PM CDT
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From this gallery.
Posted by Vixen as Sexy Sensations at 11:24 PM CDT
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“You make me feel worthy.”
-regular client
Posted by Vixen as Quote Book at 12:51 PM CDT
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From Ms. Magazine’s blog:
How To Respect Sex Workers
“Most women have strong feelings about the sex industry, be they for or against. (And many, of course, remain undecided.) When dealing with such an emotionally volatile topic, it’s easy to inadvertently silence or even insult sex workers themselves. (As a participant in sex worker activism for the past four years, I’ve seen that in action and on the page.) There’s a way to debate commercial sex while respecting the industry’s laborers.”
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It’s such a pleasure to see Ms. Magazine have articles like this. Monica, of $pread, lists some good ideas. If you already support sex workers you probably already do them but this is a good article to forward on to raise awareness.
Posted by Vixen as Sex Workers at 10:06 PM CDT
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