Men Who Pay for Sex and the Sex Work Movement? Client Responses to Stigma and Increased Regulation of Commercial Sex Policy

Abstract

Recent years have seen an increase in sex worker organisation, with sex workers and their allies forming unions and collectives, protesting in defence of sex workers’ rights, contesting working conditions, opposing criminalisation and aiming to decrease the stigma associated with sex work. However, the actions of male clients have remained invisible. Drawing on empirical data collected from interviews with thirty-five men who pay for sex, and borrowing from social movement literature, specifically Diani's (1992) framework of social movements, this article examines the role of collective identity and the way some clients negotiate political and media constructions of the client figure, and respond to policy processes surrounding the regulation of commercial sex. By taking a cultural studies approach to the sex industry, the article locates commercial sex and its actors within the wider social, cultural and political landscape, reflecting how wider trends regarding the mobilisation and resistance of marginalised groups are apparent within the most unlikely communities.

Commercial sex, clients, and Christian morals: Paying for sex in Ireland

“…Huschke et al 2014: 178-80). These results, alongside our findings from client interviews as well as the interviews and survey with sex workers, are substantiated by previous studies (Hammond 2015;Sanders 2008) that show that many clients are mindful and considerate in relation to working conditions of sex workers.…”

“…Our research shows that in the absence of an open-minded public debate about the actual needs and experiences of sex workers, information offered on the main escort websites and in online forums play an important role in establishing 'codes of conduct' for clients (cf. Milrod and Monto 2012: 796;Hammond 2015). For example, the most commonly used website in our study (EscortIreland) displays an 'Eejit's xi Guide to Escorts' that encourages clients to familiarize themselves with the specific offers, boundaries and rules of each sex worker before setting up a meeting and stresses that disrespectful behavior including for example poor hygiene and showing up late or drunk is inacceptable.…”

“…Europe and North America in the last decade (cf. Sanders and Campbell 2008;Kingston 2009Kingston , 2010Hammond 2015;Huschke et al 2014: 163-75). Iceland and Norway implemented the sex purchase ban in 2008 and 2009 respectively.…”

Who Takes Part in the Political Game? The Sex Work Governance Debate in Israel

“…Since all models presented are binary, focusing on either agency or victimhood, and their discourse rarely includes the voices of sex workers (Smith & Mac, 2018), there is a dire need to hear directly from sex workers affected by the legislation, preferably prior to making a final decision. This is also the case with the changes on sex work policy that have taken place in Israel since 2007 where, as in other areas (Hammond, 2015;Pitcher, 2019), the public and political discourse deny sex workers the opportunity to express their opinions about the legislation that directly concerns and affects them.…”

Transformational sexualities: Motivations of women who pay for sexual services

“…Research on male or trans sex working and men clients has received less attention. Although there has been a historical absence of research on male clients, there is now a developing body of scholarship that seeks to explore men who pay for sex (Earl and Sharp, 2007;Hammond, 2015;Logan, 2010;Sanders, 2008aSanders, , 2008b. Literature on women clients both in the UK and globally is not as developed and much less is known about women as clients.…”