Big Susie's Mission Statement:
Big Susie's is a working group by and for sex workers in Hamilton and the surrounding areas. Our purpose is to fight back against the stigma and silence that degrades, devalues and dehumanizes sex workers and their work. Big Susie's is a sex-positive and sex worker- positive organization that advocates for the total decriminalization of sex work to allow sex workers self determination of their own bodies.
The History of Big Susie's:
Big Susie"s developed largely out of a response to a problematic arts show that happened in downtown Hamilton in the Fall of 2009. The art show was entitled "The Hood, The Bad, and the Ugly" and featured photographs taken by Gary Santucci. It depicted images of local street based female sex workers that were taken without the consent of the women and put on public display. This in effect "outed" the women and put their safety at risk. The show further dehumanized, stigmatized, and blamed the women for destroying and making Santucci's downtown neighbourhood unlivable.
A group of sex workers, acitivsts, community members and academics came together and protested this event. Several articles were written and Gary Santucci along with local neighbourhood associations were confronted. However it quickly became clear that there were few if any services in the Hamilton area that supported or understood the issues surrounding sex workers or their rights. During this time a tremendous amount of ignorance around the issue surfaced in both the local community, the arts, women's organizations and the media.
It became clear there was a critical gap in the system and an urgent need for a organization such as Big Susie's. A working group was put together to help create an organization, ideal based on similarly sex worker empowering models and principles like Maggie's or Stella. Since that time Big Susie's has done several actions and events and is now working towards it's incorporation.
Future Goals for the organization include:
- To provide support, education and information to sex-workers so that they may live in safety and with dignity
- To sensitize and educate the public and service providers about sex work and the realities faced by sex workers
- To fight stigma and discrimination against sex workers
- To promote the decriminalisation of sex work
- To provide sex worker positive referals, informal counselling and peer support
- To offer safer drug, HIV & STI, Heath, education and materials
- To provide a safe place and activities for sex workers to interact, network and socialize
- To actively maintaining and operate within an anti-racist, anti-oppression framework
Fighting for the rights of Sex Workers!
| The information presented on this website is not intended to influence anyone to commit an illegal act. This website is a tool offered to sex workers so they may improve the quality of their lives and their working conditions. |