From the Raw Story:
Ex-employees claim Blackwater pimped out young Iraqi girls
“Since the revelation earlier this week of allegations by two former employees of security firm Blackwater that its owner was complicit in murder in order to cover up the deliberate killing of Iraqi civilians, explosive charges have continued to emerge.

Perhaps the most shocking of those charges — quoted by MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann on Thursday from the employees’ sworn declarations — is that Blackwater was guilty of using child prostitutes at its compound in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone and that owner Erik Prince knew of this activity and did nothing to stop it.”

If this one is true I bet it quietly disappears from the headlines.

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From Politics.co.uk:
New evidence devastates govt sex worker laws

“New evidence has been published which fundamentally undermines the government’s arguments in favour of criminalising those who pay for sex.

The research comes from Vancouver, and was conducted by the University of British Colombia. It found a direct correlation between criminalisation and increased violence against sex workers.

The research is highly problematic for the government, which intends to create a new offence of paying for sex with someone who is controlled for gain and introduce new powers to close brothels, in the upcoming policing and crime bill.

“Evidence from Vancouver and the UK shows that criminalisation reinforced stigma and facilitates violence against sex workers,” a spokesperson for the International Union of Sex Workers told politics.co.uk.”

Rock on! Now let’s hope officials actually listen to this research.

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From Oregon Live:
Portland mother-and-daughter business makes the clothes strippers remove
“The aspiring stripper should also consider her outfit’s durability.

“It’s best to use stretch fabrics, so they hold up better,” said Gina Patterson, who is Rosie’s mother. “These outfits have to hold up better than everyday gowns. Because they go on and off so much more.”

This is the wisdom known to women who produce stripper outfits for a living. Which is what Rosie and Gina Patterson do at the Brass Pole, the stripper-themed boutique they own and operate in Southeast Portland. And while it may surprise some to learn such a shop exists, it should be more surprising to realize that a city that boasts something like 50 strip clubs (more per capita than any other in the United States) has only one shop geared toward satisfying the dancers’ clothing needs.”

I think Portland is such a cool, hip town. Next time I’m there I’ll have to visit the Brass Pole.

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From the Boston.com:
Judge upholds strippers’ pay suit
“About 70 strippers who worked at a Chelsea club are each entitled to recover thousands of dollars in damages in a class-action lawsuit because their employer misclassified them as “independent contractors,’’ depriving them of wages and tips, a judge has ruled.

The suit, which a lawyer for one of the strippers described as the first of its kind in Massachusetts, seeks to recover money they should have received at King Arthur’s Lounge in Chelsea since 2004.”

This is a perfect example of why we sex workers need to stick together and support each other.

Posted by Vixen in News