in #socialwork, “rational choice theory” describes the way people make the best choices for themselves, weighing risk & benefit—even when none of the choices seem particularly great (to us). many of us seem to understand this concept of choice except when it comes to #sexwork.

we can wrap our heads around parents fleeing with their children, or a decision to smoke cigarettes while in recovery from alcohol. but #sexworkers are a group of people who we have unilaterally decided have no choice, no agency in any of their decision-making.

anti #sexwork folks often “blame trauma.” the narrative is: something traumatic happened in a sex worker’s past that influences their decision to enter sex work (therefore their choice is no longer valid). here’s the thing: 10/10 of us make decisions based on our trauma.

if you don’t like the decision to engage in #sexwork, just say THAT. because what I hear is “I don’t trust survivors to make decisions about thier own lives if their decisions don’t match mine.” and what does that say about how you feel about ALL survivors?

if you don’t like someone’s choice re: #sexwork because they are a survivor of childhood trauma, what other survivor choices are you filtering through this lens? it’s infantilizing. not to mention that obviously, not every sex worker has a history of abuse—

we don’t pathologize how social workers entered #socialwork & trust me, there are likely *very few* of us who are not survivors of abuse, rape, parents who abused substances, the foster care system, etc. ourselves. but we don’t study that because we see that job as legitimate.

I implore #socialworkers to really listen to sex workers and what they need, instead of moralizing and demonizing the choices #sexworkers make. oh, and don’t forget to never partner with cops to “rescue sex workers!” (or for anything!)! rights, dignity and justice, not rescue!