Opinion 51 | Guest Column

Sex work is work

Sex workers are marginalized, stigmatized and discriminated against as if it were part of their employment status.

By Rosalba Mora Sierra

The trans deputy María Clemente García monopolized the moral judgments for the publication of a video in her Twitter account exercising her other profession: sex work. Conservative groups and sex work abolitionists, with a transodiant discourse and contrary to the free development of personality, pointed out that it could not be allowed from the lower house to sustain a discourse in favor of "trafficking, objectification of bodies, harassment and violence".

Members of the legislature filed a complaint and it was declared that such conduct would be investigated. Maria responded that sex work is work, that she was doing, as other deputies do, her other work, and that if that were prohibited, those who had positions in administrative councils or legal offices should also have to give up their other income.

The congresswoman indicated that she would present an initiative to regulate sex work as work. So far, so good in the face of the conservative signals, since the representation of historically marginalized groups such as trans women and sex workers seemed to be moving forward.

Sex work in Latin America and the Caribbean has been in a limbo of irregularity since it is not typified in the penal codes -with the exception of Puerto Rico where it is considered a crime- but neither is it regulated as work -with the exception of Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay-. This leaves room for the discretion of the authorities who arbitrarily detain and harass those who practice it. Mexico is no exception.

Thus, sex workers are marginalized, stigmatized and discriminated against as if it were part of their working condition. In addition, the intersectionality that trans women go through becomes relevant. According to data from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, in the Latin American region it has been reported that around 90% of trans women are engaged in sex work.

The conditions in which they work place them in a risky situation in which they can be victims of sexual exploitation, trafficking, extortion, sexual violence and attempted transfeminicide, as Natalia Lane recently suffered. The lack of regulation also leaves them outside of any social security benefits, which prevents them from preventive care for their particular risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and they are subsequently stigmatized because of their health condition.

Historically, especially in Mexico City, regulations have represented a greater stigma and disproportionate burdens for those who practiced it. In the regulations of 1862 and 1865, under the argument of "public hygiene," sex workers had to submit to sanitary controls, paid fees to the authorities, and were locked up when they had venereal disease. The androcentric and patriarchal intent of the regulation was to protect male clients and perpetuate a particular moral order.

For all these reasons, the initiative presented by a transgender sex worker woman living with HIV was promising. However, it requires reformulation due to its generality and its stigmatization of those living with HIV and other STDs, since it takes up the figure of "risk of contagion", which has been criticized for being used to criminalize and persecute people living with HIV.

The presence of a person who is part of a group in a situation of vulnerability does not guarantee that they have clarity to legislate on their needs and the protection of their human rights. It will be the task of the advisors. What is not in dispute is that the deputy has to justify the exercise of her sexual freedom.

The important thing about what has happened in recent days is that the need for a regulation that truly protects the rights of sex workers has been placed at the center. This is an opportunity so that, through a real exercise of open parliament, an issue that has been relegated and stigmatized is reformulated from an intersectional approach to ensure that sex work is exercised as what it is, a job that should be dignified. Let us hope that San Lazaro does not miss this opportunity.