The state of sex in the city
People connected to the sex trade in various ways talk about their lives and what the landmark prostitution ruling means to them
Alandmark ruling by Ontario’s top court on Monday legalized brothels and allowed sex workers to hire bodyguards and accountants. Soliciting sex on the street is still illegal.
The ruling left something to hate and something to love for almost everybody. Some are cheered that sex work is being legitimized and that women can take their safety into their own hands. Others are frightened that buying a prostitute could become just like buying a burger.
Those whose lives stand to change the most are the sex workers themselves. The Star’s Kate Allen and Jayme Poisson spent a week speaking with people in, and close to, the trade. These eight voices are a snapshot of vastly different experiences with a complicated, age-old industry.
The interviews have been edited for clarity and condensed for space. Some names have been changed and details omitted to protect identities.
Clair, 36, (not her real name)
She began advertising her services — sex implied — online eight years ago, after her husband’s job was downsized. Before that, she worked a 60-hour week in IT while a nanny took care of her children. Now she’s her own boss, sharing an upscale downtown condo with other working women. She’s concerned that if pricey licences are imposed on legalized brothels, they’ll attract unsavoury owners with deep pockets. THE STORY: Now I’m home most of the time, being home for my kids. Get up in the morning, send them off to school. Work 9 to 5. Be home on the weekend and take a week off, do all the class trips. When I first got into it I did it because I thought: It’s something I can do. A couple hundred extra dollars for my family to pay the bills. Did I expect to stay? No.