LOS ANGELES—The Adult Performer Advocacy Committee (APAC) has issued the following statement regarding the recent death of actress Olivia Lua and the issues surrounding the health of performers in general:
The adult industry mourns Olivia Lua, 23-year-old performer. We have lost community members, peers, friends, and loved ones. There is no way to simplify the complexity of these performers’ lives, deaths, and the vacuum left behind in their passing. We kindly remind our community that mourning, coping, and healing is seldom a linear process. We ask you to be kind to yourselves, to take space and time as needed, and to lean into the communities to which you belong.
At APAC, we see that our community faces the stigma that comes with being in adult film. Compounding that with the stigma surrounding mental health issues and the pursuit of mental health support, we see the intersectional challenges that our community faces. A continued aim at APAC is to combat the stigma through which the world views sex work as well as the internal stigma within our own industry. Due to the difficulty we know sex workers encounter finding resources for mental health support, APAC is compiling a directory of sex worker friendly mental health services, organizations, and professionals. This directory will be continually updated and accessible here.
There are generations of inherited sex negativity that we must overcome in legislative, social, and internal arenas, but we are putting in the work to bring about change. The sex negativity, violence, and harassment performers face online and in real life is condemnable. We ask that our community practice compassion, sympathy, and empathy with one another because there is so much outside of our industry working against us.
Going forward, APAC will be launching a peer-to-peer mentoring program, conducting surveys to assess community needs to best meet them, and continue to hold space for our performer community. Although we are a grass roots, volunteer organization, all of us on the board can agree we want to see our community thrive, weather storms in solidarity, and grow. To the new and veteran performers, you are not alone.
In this difficult time, APAC urges performers to make space for self-care and reach out for professional counseling if needed. If performers are struggling, APAC has adult-friendly mental health resources readily available. We must come together as a community to support one another.
Our condolences,
The APAC Board
Trevor Project: (866) 488-7386
Trans Lifeline: (877) 565-8860
Crisis Text Line: 741-741
