Sex workers strike
Under the eyes of passers-by dressed in Formula 1 caps and evening wear, more than a hundred demonstrators – including several sex workers on strike – took to the streets of downtown Montreal to denounce abusive working conditions in the industry. But the call for a strike is not unanimous.
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Organized by the Autonomous Sex Work Committee (CATS), the mobilization began at 3 p.m., at Place de la Paix, to the sound of a fanfare and shouts. As a backdrop: the lucrative period of the Montreal Grand Prix festivities, which take place all weekend in the metropolis.
“We decided to do this today because it’s the biggest day of the whole year for the industry in Montreal,” explained a striking worker, who calls herself Rebaynia.
Like her, many workers in the industry – notably dancers and masseuses – will give up hundreds, even thousands of dollars in income to make their voices heard. The group’s key demands: improve abusive working conditions in the industry, but also decriminalize sex work.
PHOTO EDOUARD DESROCHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Protest by sex workers
In Canada, it is no longer criminal to sell sexual services since 2014, but it is still prohibited to purchase or exploit them. This partial decriminalization does not fit with the reality on the ground, explained many demonstrators on site.
“What it would change is that we could treat it like a job, and use labor law protections to protect ourselves,” said Adore Goldman, a sex worker and activist at CATS.
The CATS has not commented on the number of workers who responded to their strike call, as it is a voluntary participation, but indicates that pressure is being felt in several Montreal establishments due to the lack of employees.
Less abuse, more protection
The demonstrators also deplored the way in which many sex workers are treated in their workplace. Harassment, unsanitary conditions, violence: the examples are multiplying.
They are also demanding the end of “bar service”, a lump sum that they must allocate to an establishment in order to work there as self-employed workers. By becoming employed, they would be entitled to better protections, such as unemployment insurance, maternity leave, or even compensation in the event of injuries.
I work in a stripclubfor example, if you sprain an ankle because you work in high heels, you cannot get compensation. Sometimes the floors are crooked, there are poles that hold with some ducktapeeverything that is put in place to ensure our safety is not adequate.
Adore Goldman, sex worker and activist at CATS
Mixed feelings
If all the demonstrators share the demands of CATS, the strike is not unanimous in the industry, some confirmed. Many fear in particular attracting the wrath of bar owners, even going so far as to wear masks and costumes to avoid being recognized.
“I’m wearing a disguise today so I don’t get fired,” read a poster in the crowd.
PHOTO EDOUARD DESROCHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
“I’m wearing a disguise today so I don’t get fired,” read a poster in the crowd.
One of the demonstrators we met, who presents herself online under the name Lilith, explains that she cannot afford it financially.
“I’m lucky to have my partner who supports me, but even then, we’re tight with money,” confides the woman who has a disability, and who will soon have to get a walker. “There is a great intersectionality of people with disabilities, who, like me, are online sex workers,” she explains.
In an email response to The Canadian Press, the promoter of the Canadian Grand Prix indicated that he was firmly opposed to any form of sexual exploitation, and that he supported the initiatives of local authorities to combat this problem.
The peaceful demonstration took place without overflowing and continued until the end of the day, when qualifying for the Grand Prix was taking place for Saturday. Representatives of dozens of organizations, such as CALACS, also marched in the streets of Montreal in support of workers.
