MANCHESTER, N.H. — The New Hampshire chapter of the Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOPNH) will host a special evening of comedy fundraising December 17, the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.
Open to the public, the event will take place at The Flats at Hanover Commons, 235 Hanover St, Manchester, New Hampshire, starting at 6 p.m. (EST).
Attendees of the party will enjoy an open bar and performances by three talented comedians — “Oldest Profession” podcast host Kaytlin Bailey, New England-based stand-up comic and comedy show producer Greg Boggis and comedian and actor Dan Frigolette.
December 17 has been observed since 2003, marking the conviction of Gary Ridgway, the “Green River Killer,” who was found guilty of 48 murders of sex workers, confessed to over 70 killings and is suspected of over 100 other murders.
Violence against sex workers is pervasive across the globe, and trans and sex workers of color are specifically vulnerable.
“The International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers isn’t merely a day of remembrance,” SWOPNH director Ashley Fires said. “It’s also a day to rally people in support of the enormous amount of work that still needs to be done, not just in eliminating violence against sex workers, but to combat the discrimination and oppression that is in many ways just as damaging as violence.”
While the issues surrounding the observance are extremely serious and sobering, SWOPNH organizers said they believe laughter can bring people together and help make it easier to discuss these weighty topics.
“Events like this represent an important opportunity to grow the community of sex worker allies and to continue to raise awareness about the many challenges and ongoing discrimination those in the sex trade face,” Fires explained.
Bailey, whose podcast deals with the story of a different sex worker from history in each episode, is no stranger to using humor to communicate on difficult topics. At the December 17 event, she will sample part of her one-woman show, “Whore’s Eye View,” a show designed to take the audience “on an irreverent mad dash through 10,000 years of history from a sex worker’s perspective.”
Boggis, a frequent contributor to Atlas Obscura and a longtime veteran of “Comics for a Cause” awareness-raising events, will bring his cheeky but worldly point of view to the event, drawing on his 21-pluis years of experience to keep the laughs going strong.
Frigolette has worn his support of sex workers on his professional sleeve over the years, as well including hosting the “Porn Stars Are People” podcast, which focuses on “destigmatizing the adult film industry” and reversing negative associations the public may harbor about adult performers and others in the sex trade.
SWOPNH representative and adult film director Angie Rowntree says that besides having a great time, she hopes all who attend the event “walk away with a better understanding and a greater appreciation of our community and the discrimination it continues to face.”
For more information, visit SWOPNH.org or email newhampshire@swopusa.com.
