NEW YORK—American journalist Pamela Paul, a New York Times opinion contributor, caused a stir in the sex work advocacy community last week when she wrote an op-ed criticizing the term “sex worker” and efforts to decriminalize and legalize the selling and buying of sex.
Paul has received aggressive criticism since the column's publication but has support from right-wing organizations and those who disagree with the concept of consent at the center of a financial transaction between grown adults. The argument she presents aligns with that of conservatives and progressives who claim sex work is misogynistic and should remain illegal. Sex workers’ rights activists have publicly disagreed with Paul’s position through social media channels. Some have gone as far as to express disgust at Paul herself for even writing on the topic, arguing that she doesn’t understand the subject. One user on X (formerly Twitter) reacted to the column with the slam: "Every time Pamela Paul publishes something I'm like, 'That's the dumbest shit I've ever read' and then she publishes something else."
At the end of the column, entitled “What It Means to Call Prostitution ‘Sex Work,’” Paul proclaims that “language has undergone drastic shifts in an effort to reduce harm. ... Sometimes these shifts result in contorted language that obscures meaning. To help people hurt by the sex trade, we need to call it like it is.” However, "sex work" is a term that is widely used by major humanitarian organizations and human rights organizations across much of the world. For example, Amnesty International advances the princple that sex workers’ rights are human rights—one that is crucial for some activists to note because the debate on human rights, trafficking and commercial sex work is an intersectional one that encompasses much more than what Paul reduces it to in her op-ed. Consider the position of Manhattan-based attorney Eliza Orlins, for instance. In a note to AVN, Orlins said that Paul’s views on sex work—among other social issues—are quite alarming.
“Pamela Paul’s dangerous rhetoric that conflates sex work with sex trafficking is an outrage,” Orlins said. And this isn’t the first time that a commentary piece by Paul has angered many in her readership and those who identify as members of specific at-risk and protected communities. Shortly after Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling was “canceled” in some circles on social media, Paul authored a column defending the young adult novelist for publicly maintaining anti-LGBTQ and transphobic viewpoints. In July 2022, Los Angeles Times contributor Dorany Pineda wrote critically of Paul for penning a column “criticizing language that is inclusive of transgender and nonbinary communities.” Orlins, in her remarks to AVN, added that Paul’s viewpoints are problematic on numerous fronts. “Her denigrating language regarding sex workers, trans folks, and women show that misogyny, whorephobia, and transphobia are all interconnected. It's sickening that the New York Times continues to give this bigotry a platform,” Orlins said. She expressed her feelings on Paul more bluntly in a post last week to her X account that read “Fuck you, Pamela Paul,” as well as in a similar TikTok video.
Phoenix Calida, a spokesperson for Sex Workers Outreach Project-USA (SWOP-USA), offered like sentiments. A former sex worker themself, Calida told AVN that “conflating sex work and sex trafficking doesn’t help anyone. ... It relies on a lot of white savior narratives. Oftentimes, the argument is that ‘nobody would willingly choose to be a sex worker,’ yet we live in a world where people choose sex work every day.
“Instead of moralizing about what you think someone should or shouldn't do to earn a living, focus on what resources sex workers themselves say they need,” Calida said, pointing out that Paul’s remarks in the op-ed are harmful to public perception of consensual sex work in general.
One element that was overlooked in Paul's piece was the success of existing sex work legalization frameworks across the world. In particular, the Nevada legal brothel system continues to flourish and offers sex workers the broad opportunity to capitalize on their customer base and earn large incomes.
“My personal experience has been one where I’ve willingly and knowingly entered this field through the legal Nevada brothel system,” said Alice Little, a prominent sex worker who is often based out of the Chicken Ranch Brothel in Pahrump, NV, in a brief statement to AVN.
“Those of us actively engaged in the profession advocate specifically for the designation of ‘sex worker’ when it comes to finding language to describe ... [our role] ... within society,” Little said, pointing out that she’s “had the privilege of meeting dozens of sex workers” during her 8 year career. She noted: “I’ve ... witnessed how legal sex work has benefited their lives and allowed them opportunities they wouldn't have had access to in any other career field.”
Madam Bella Cummins of Bella’s Hacienda Ranch, based in Wells, NV, corroborated Little's comments, calling Paul’s column nothing more than an exercise in “perpetuating stereotypes.”
Paul’s “piece overlooks the historical baggage and negative associations that the term ‘prostitution’ carries, which often reduces complex individuals to harmful stereotypes,” Cummins said. “In contrast, the term 'sex worker' is preferred as it acknowledges the agency and autonomy of the vast majority of individuals within the adult [and] sex industries.” AVN has written about the advocacy work of Cummins through her nonprofit, Onesta Foundation. Cummins and the Onesta Foundation promote public policy solutions and legislation that legalizes and regulates sex work in a manner that is similar to the format of Nevada’s local brothels. She has unique experience in dealing with labels and terms when there needs to be an additional designation for sex workers.
“In my role as an advocate for the rights of sex workers and as a legal brothel proprietor in Nevada, I have been actively engaging with my local city council in a concerted effort to eliminate the use of the term 'prostitute' on [the local] Sheriff's work cards that are issued to individuals in the sex work industry,” she explained. “I have had the privilege of addressing legislative bodies on multiple occasions, thereby gaining firsthand insight into the pervasive stigma surrounding negative terminology.” Cummins has appealed to the council to adopt the term “courtesan” in place of “prostitute.”
“By shifting our vocabulary to more inclusive and respectful terms, we contribute to the broader movement of dispelling societal bias and fostering an environment of understanding,” she explained. “It is high time we discard the harmful lexicon of the past and embrace language that reflects our commitment to empathy and equality.”
Other elements in the adult entertainment space, like online content creators and performers, were also angry about Paul's op-ed. In a direct message to AVN, performer and ePlay.com talent recruiter Allie Awesome, succinctly remarked, “It’s bullshit.” Mike Stabile, director of public affairs for the Free Speech Coalition, called the column “egregious” and compared Paul’s writing to a recent blog post published by the far-right National Center on Sexual Exploitation, which also argues against sex work legalization.
