LOS ANGELES — The Free Speech Coalition this evening disseminated an open letter it made to President Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, in response to his comments he made today regarding adult superstar Stormy Daniels.
Eric Paul Leue, the FSC’s executive director, said the following in the letter:
Dear Mr. Giuliani,
As the trade association for the adult industry, we were appalled by your remarks this morning about Stormy Daniels.
Sex work is real work, and the way a sex worker makes their living has nothing to do with whether they should be afforded respect or equal protection under the law. A woman’s word should not be grounded in her chastity, or how she dresses, or how she earns a living.
We wish that your misguided views were yours alone and were not emblematic of larger issues in law enforcement, the legal system and the culture at large.
Because of views like yours, sex workers are often unable to report crimes from theft to assault and harassment for fear that they will not be believed, or will be prosecuted themselves. Because of views like yours, judges have ruled in favor of rapists and domestic abusers, over the women they have attacked. Because of views like yours, landlords and banks and employers freely discriminate against sex workers, or those who may have done sex work in the past.
This, not the work they do to feed and house themselves, to pay for tuition and save for retirement, is the real exploitation.
And it’s not just sex workers. Women who come forward against their accusers are routinely tarred with the same bigoted brush you used on Stormy Daniels. A woman who suffers discrimination, or harassment, or assault is too often judged on some man’s idea as to whether or not she is "respectable."
Your prejudice is not surprising at a time when women’s rights are actively being curtailed, from access to healthcare, to reproductive rights, to the repeal of the Obama-Era Fair Pay Order — an order that had banned forced arbitration clauses for sexual harassment, sexual assault, or discrimination claims.
Last year, we saw over five million people participating in Women’s Marches across the country protesting backwards views such as yours. This past weekend, as part of International Whore’s Day, we saw thousands of sex workers march and rally for their rights, and against dangerous SESTA/FOSTA legislation signed by Mr. Trump.
Times are changing – and our communities will not stand by silently while oppressive systems threaten our freedoms, safety and dignity.
Women’s rights are human rights.
Sex worker rights are human rights.
Sex workers need rights, not rescue. And certainly not your shameful disrespect.
