CARNAL NATION

Today CarnalNation published a column by Monica Shores that takes a level-headed look at the moral panic surrounding the so-called "Craigslist murder" of Julissa Brisman, and how it's been bad for sex workers. Many of the issues about how the law and the media make life more dangerous for sex worker are demonstrated perfectly by the most recent post on Audacia Ray's blog. The Providence (Rhode Island) Journal printed the story of an escort who was assaulted and robbed; like an ordinary citizen, she reported the crime to the police. But escorts aren't ordinary citizens. Their jobs are outlawed and their lives are pathologized by society. When the woman found that the Journal was going to report on her case, she withdrew her complaint (more):

In an interview with The Journal, [redacted] vehemently objected to having her name published and said that to avoid publicity she was going to tell the police she made up the attack. The publicity "will ruin my entire life," she said....

Despite [redacted]'s insistence that she was recanting, "We believe it happened," Providence Police Capt. James Desmarais said late last week. "Upon reviewing everything in this case, the case is still proceeding forward."

Audacia has found a perfect example of why the stigma and the laws against prostitution only make life more dangerous for sex workers. The anonymous woman in this case is actually in a better situation than most sex workers in this country: her work—indoor prostitution—actually is legal in Rhode Island, although perhaps not for much longer, as CarnalNation reported recently. Nevertheless, because of the social stigma, she faces the loss of her livelihood not only because it will be more difficult to do sex work, but because her "legitmate" work—as a lawyer—is now threatened. According to an email sent to Audacia by the reporter who wrote the story:

This article was important on several levels –– showing the nature of violence and alleged customers that women may meet. [Redacted]’s profession as a lawyer is also an important ethical consideration, one that is being considered by the bar associations in two states.

We will pause here to consider the irony of an organization made of lawyers sitting in judgement on the ethics of an escort.

As Audacia concedes, technically the journalist has a point: the paper does routinely print the names of crime victims in their reporting. But also, as Audacia notes, there's the stench of a morality tale in the amount of detail they give about her work and the case, which never would have been considered relevant had they merely been reporting on a lawyer who got mugged. And even if we can assume the purest intentions on the part of the Providence Journal and its reporter, the case still stands as an excellent example of how social opprobrium makes sex workers vulnerable, even when it's disguised with sanctimony about protecting them.