Drifters, Party Boys and Incumbents: The Life Patterns of Male Street-based Sex Workers

Abstract

This paper is based on a qualitative study of male street-based prostitution. It suggests that the street-based sector is more varied, with sellers adopting a wider range of working practices, than is commonly acknowledged in the literature on male prostitution. Drawing on data from Manchester, England I identify a number of 'life patterns' among male street sellers that reflect varied working practices based on issues around rational decision-making and the sex worker's relationship to place and environment. The discussion has implications for urban policies around street-based sex work but also for a more general understanding of male sex work in international and comparative perspective.

The Current Landscape of Prostitution and Sex Work in England and Wales

“…Some of these men identify as gay or bisexual, but some identify as heterosexual, although all groups overwhelmingly sell sex to men. We learnt from both individual and agency respondents that while women are more likely to deliberately be on-street for the purpose of selling sex, some men may be cruising for unpaid sex or socialising in gay areas and be solicited for paid sex by older men, and end up selling sex (this is consistent with research by Ellison (2018)).…”

“…O'Neill 2001; Barefoot Research and Evaluation 2016; Renouf 2016; Sandwith 2011; Harding and Hamilton 2009;Sanders et al 2009;Coy 2008;Jeal et al 2008;Kinnell 2008;McClelland and Newell 2008;Salisbury 2004, 2007;Hester and Westmarland 2004;Church et al 2001). Fewer have written about men selling sex on-street/outdoors, and how their experiences may differ from female sellers (Ellison 2018;Atkins and Laing 2012;Sanders et al 2009). Based on information provided by participants in this study, street/outdoor prostitution consists of individuals soliciting to sell sex, or providing sex, in outdoor locations.…”

“…Male street prostitution can also take place in cruising sites or gay districts that include other venues such as clubs and bars, where men seek both paid and unpaid sexual encounters with other men (see also Ellison 2018;Atkins and Laing 2012;Sanders et al 2009). Individuals can stand in an area known for street prostitution with buyers coming to these areas, or they can walk around and approach prospective buyers asking for a cigarette or a light, and then offer sexual services.…”

Young men doing business: Male bar prostitution in Berlin and Prague

“…Other studies of male sex work have documented the various attitudes that MSWs have of their job (Calhoun and Weaver, 1996;Dorais, 2005;Ellison, 2016) and as we noted earlier, some MSWs view their job instrumentally as a way of saving money in order to relocate out of Berlin or to finance university studies in Prague. A bar manager who has extensive knowledge of the male sex work scene in Prague stated that some MSWs can earn a considerable amount of money and eventually save enough to rent an apartment, enter another line of work, enrol in college, or start escorting by advertising on the internet.…”

Rates, Roses and Donations: Naming Your Price in Sex Work

“…Within sex work research, a focus on practice also opens up an analytical space to explore strategy and ambition in sex work. Ellison (2018) notes that poverty or financial need may not be an adequate lens to capture the diversity of motivations that inform involvement in sex work. As Weldon (2006: 14) argues, in research about sex work, 'financial desperation is examined, but never financial motivation'.…”