The question of women’s liberation is central to any revolutionary project, and thus so is the question of “sex work.” Esperanza Fonseca’s contribution, although coming from a Maoist political orientation with which we often have differences, [1] makes the stakes of this debate crystal clear, as she combines personal experience, public policy research, and historical materialism to argue that Marxists cannot uphold what she calls “sex-trade-expansionary feminism.”
Content Warning: Descriptions of rape.
…
The right of the subordinated classes of men to buy access to women’s bodies has been used historically to break class solidarity in order to maintain the dominant social relations of the time. This was true in feudal Europe and remains true today: when proletarian and petit bourgeois men get to buy women too, they develop a false consciousness and build solidarity with bourgeois men of their own gender rather than aligning with women of their own class. And because the overthrow of capitalism is only possible by the overthrowing of the bourgeoisie, prostitution serves two great purposes: (1) allows bourgeois men access to a reserve army of women for their pleasure, and (2) prevent class consciousness and thus helps stop the proletariat from organizing as a class.
A Socialist, Feminist, and Transgender Analysis of “Sex Work” (2020)
Tag: Sexual consent
I forgot to bite my tongue again 😬
Florida schools recently removed most information on sex in their sex education curriculum. My initial shock was over the removal of the teaching of sexual consent from the program. Apparently, it’s okay to rape Floridian children. Anyway, I shared the video and got a comment making fun of LGBTQ+, as teaching about that was removed as well. I forgot to bite my tongue and let loose in my response. I’ve posted it below. I’ve covered the stats before, so I’m not posting sources.
Did you know that more cis (straight) boys get gender-affirming surgery than those who identify as transgender? Breast reductions are considered gender-affirming. I remember going to school with a guy who had to wear a bra because his breasts were so big that they caused him problems in gym class. The other kids made fun of him for it. He was straight, or what is now termed cis. Besides, less than 3% of Americans identify as transgender and less than 7% identify as LGBTQ+. Right-wingers (and some so-called Communists/Left-wingers) blow the LGBTQ+ issue out of proportion. I identify as queer. I just don’t flaunt it, but I will stand up for my fellow LGBTQ+. Criticize the U.S. government for how it weaponizes LGBTQ+ rights, human rights, or women’s rights, as an excuse for overthrowing other governments, instead. Capitalism and American Imperialism are the real problems.
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 