Sex Work in Melbourne: A historical walking tour

Sex Work may be referred to as the oldest profession but few speak of its timelessness.  


Sex Work has thrived in every major city in every time gone past and Melbourne is certainly no exception.  Our city has had a rich history of sex work.  


Myths and Legendary Characters, Lies and Scandals, Persecution and Resilience- they envelop sex workers 100 years ago as much as they do today.    

This walking tour will visit some key historical sites, highlighting how much things have changed and how much they stay the same.  


Sunday, 27th of May 2pm.  Gather at Tianjin Gardens, Sping St, Melbourne

Sex Work Policy & Law: A Public Forum

Victoria's Sex Work Laws have a major influence on the working conditions, health and human rights of sex workers.  

Yet it is clear to sex workers that these laws have been implemented with little to no consultation with us because they seem so far removed from the reality of our work.

This public forum brings together the voices of sex workers to emphasise the lived experience of stigma, discrimination, heightened risk and undermined agency created by sex work legislation, the need for reform and the lessons we can learn from other jurisdictions 

This is a free public event.  

 Speakers: 

• Janelle Fawkes, CEO, Scarlet Alliance , Australian Sex Workers Association
• Jules Kim, Migration Project Manager, Scarlet Alliance, Australian Sex Workers Association  
• Christian Vega,Vixen & Organising Committee Member, Melbourne Festival of Sex Work 

Forum Programme: 

Time	Speaker	Presentation
1:15pm –  1:30pm	Registration
1:30pm –  1:40pm	Facilitator	Welcome & Introductions
1:40pm –  2:00pm	Christian Vega	Overview of Sex Work Legislative Frameworks
2:00pm –  2:30pm	Janelle Fawkes	National Overview of Sex Work Laws
2:30pm –  2:50pm	Facilitator	Question Time
2:50pm –   3:10pm	BREAK
3:10pm –  3:40pm	Jules Kim	Human Trafficking Laws
3:40pm –   4:10pm	Christian Vega	The Impact of Victorian Sex Work Legislation on the Human Rights of Sex Workers
4:10pm –  4:30pm	Facilitator	Question Time

When: Wednesday, 30th of May, 1:30pm - 4:30pm. 

Where: Melbourne University Building 379- room B120 [Lecture Theatre 2]
 School of Population Health
207 Bouverie Street, Carlton
See http://maps.unimelb.edu.au/parkville/building/379


To register go here http://www.trybooking.com/BMMP  

Festival of Sex Work: Workshops

A big part of our festival are the community and educational workshops for sex workers.

These are facilitated by sex workers and only for sex workers. This is our opportunity to share our skills, connect with one another and learn from each other.

To protect the privacy of all participants, neither the time nor location of workshops will be made public.  The venue for these workshops will be different from any venue that accommodates a public festival event.  

This information will only be disseminated through known sex worker only networks.

Also, we still have room for workshops if you are a sex worker and there is an area of expertise you would love to share with other sex workers.  Please get into contact with us if you would like to contribute, whoreganisers@festivalofsexwork.com   

Please be aware that all workshops must be conducted in accordance with our Safer Spaces Policy.

Thanks and look forward to hearing from you.   

Sex Workers’ Digital Story Telling Screening

Aren't you over the myths and stereotypes about sex workers?

Sex workers certainly are. Overwhelmingly, dramatic performances, research articles and media portrayals make the most of the misery and desperation experienced by some people who do sex work. It’s unsurprisingly rare that these stories are told by actual sex workers. Instead, audiences are fed faceless images, caricatures that perpetuate stereotypes and stigma against sex workers and stymie the progress of our human rights.

But we would like to change that...

If you would like to see real stories told by real sex workers we’d like to invite you to this special event:

Sex Workers’ Digital Story Telling: A screening of short films made by sex workers followed by a panel discussion with the people who made them. Featuring digital stories produced with the assistance of ZERO-ONE-ZERO: Digital Storytelling Collective.

This event is open to the public. 

The Screening will happen on  Monday, the 28th of May, 8pm at 

Irene's Warehouse

5 Pitt St, Brunswick, Melbourne, VIC.


$10 Donation 


Find this event on Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/events/241767169263170/

Sex Worker Art Exhibit

As part of the Melbourne Festival of Sex Work, the Sex Worker Art Exhibition will run for the length of the Festival. 

Unlike other portrayals of sex work, our exhibition will only show work created by sex workers themselves.  The art displayed has been submitted from all around Australia. 

A diverse range of mediums will be on show - photography, sculpture, Fashion,  paintings, jewellery... just to name a few.

If you're a current or former sex worker and would like to submit work to this show please contact Alicia at curatwhore@festivalofsexwork.com with information about your proposed submission. Submissions close on the 20th of April.  

The exhibition is open to the public. 

It will be launched on Saturday, the 26th of May, 6pm at Discobeans, 236 High St, Northcote.

Statement from 2012 Melbourne Festival of Sex Work Organiser's Collective

We are a group of sex workers in Melbourne who have decided to put together a festival celebrating sex workers, sex work, and sex work culture. We are 100% comprised of sex workers past and present, and we hold a diverse range of ideas and experiences. We carry out our activities using a consensus model of decision-making.

Our peers may be aware that we have previously put out a call-out for contributions for our festival, and we acknowledge that we may have been a bit hasty in doing so. Problems with venue hire has meant that we have been unclear which of our events would be restricted to peer only, and which events would be more public. We apologise for our lack of clarity with you and will make sure that we will contact everyone who has offered contributions to make sure they are fully aware of the peer or non-peer status of each event.

We are not seeking to recreate a Scarlet conference, or a sex worker university – this is a completely unique event that reflects the passions and enthusiasms of those involved. As such we ask for your support and patience. If you give us space to grow, we will continue to build positively on our endeavours and learn from our mistakes.

We are really excited about the festival, and we hope you share that excitement! We will release further information as soon as we can. We welcome your critique and suggestions, and can be contacted at: whoreganisers@festivalofsexwork.com

We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you at the festival!

Scarlet Road: A Screening and Q&A

Impassioned about freedom of sexual expression, Australian sex worker Rachel Wotton has become highly specialized in working with clients with disability. 

Rachel’s philosophy, that human touch and sexual intimacy can be some of the most therapeutic aspects to our existence, is making a dramatic impact on the lives of her clients, Mark and John. Both have nothing but praise for her talents. 

Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis 26 years ago, John now drives around in a chin-controlled wheelchair, but after ongoing sessions with Rachel, he has regained body movement that he thought was lost forever. His self-esteem and overall improvement have amazed his doctors.

A screening of the director’s cut version of the documentary followed by a Q&A with Rachel Wotton. Part of the Melbourne Festival of Sex Work. 

For more information about the documentary visit  http://www.scarletroad.com.au/trailer/ 

Thursday, 31st of May, Doors open 7:45pm, Film Starts 8pm at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI), Federation Square, Melbourne.  

Tickets on sale here: http://www.acmi.net.au/scarlet_road.aspx

Sex Worker Quilt Project

Call out for current or past sex workers to participate in a collaborative art projects for Melbourne’s Festival of Sex Work in May 2012.

What are some of the positive things sex work has brought into your life? 
This is a question I am always so fascinated to hear the answer to. The answers can be so varied and often inspiring.

It is also an opportunity to educate non-sex workers about the positive aspects of sex work, and to give them a better understanding of our lives and culture of sex work. It is also for us as peers to celebrate our culture and our work.

This question is the subject for this art quilt project. You do not need to be able to sew or have artistic experience to participate, you just need to have a willingness to share your thoughts and ideas.

The concept is a blank square with a patchwork frame is to be the canvas for your work. These have been made and can be collected or posted to you. You may choose to draw, sew, applique, collage, use digital photography transfer to decorate your square, with your thoughts about some of the positive things sex work has brought to your life.

You may write poetry and wish to share one of your poems or songs. You may love photography and use transfers and painting to produce your square. You may just have a list of five things that you may just simply write on your square.

I will then collect all the squares and them together to make a larger art quilt, to be displayed at Melbourne’s Festival of Sex Work and with hopes the quilt with be able to be shared at future exhibitions and sex worker events.

For expressions of interest please send an email to baysidecassie@hotmail.com or send me an sms at 0468 940 229
Follow the Quilt Project on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sex-Worker-Quilt-Project-2012/309579219099166

Welcome to the Festival of Sex Work Blog.

The place where you can get the latest information about the festival starting on the 26th of May for a week.  Keep an eye on this blog for all the latest updates.

Professional Disability Awareness Training for Sex Workers

TOUCHING BASE Inc

Invites you to a Professional Disability Awareness Training

Melbourne CBD, Victoria, (exact location will be disclosed to participants after registration)

1st June, 2012 (all day workshop, exact time will be disclosed to participants after registration)  

WORKING WITH CLIENTS WITH A DISABILITY

This workshop is reserved for sex workers only. 


Some sessions during the day may be facilitated by a disability service provider and a person with a disability who may be non-sex workers.

Goals and objectives of this workshop:
• Background the sexual rights & diverse sexuality of people with disability
• Understanding how discrimination may create barriers for people with disability
• Inform on how to arrange services through a third party, eg: personal care attendant
• Gain knowledge and skills on how to increase the accessibility of your services
• Gain skills in working with clients with various disabilities
• Increased awareness and skills on a range of Occupational, Health and Safety issues
• Increase the number of sex workers available for referrals through Touching Base
• Increased networking and support for sex workers who see clients with disability

Workshop will be interactive with group activities and plenty of group discussions

You will receive a Certificate of Attendance - in your nominated name

Where: Melbourne, VIC (exact address given after registration)

Cost: $100. (- tax deductible) 

We need a minimum of 10 registrations paid by 22nd May in order to ensure that this training can go ahead. 

Please get in early!! Places limited (max - 20)

Between the 22nd and 24th of May, Rachel - a sex worker on the Touching Base Committee - will telephone everyone who has registered to confirm your attendance. At this time Rachel will give you the exact address of the workshop and answer any final questions you may have about the workshop.

If you would like more information about this workshop, or a copy of this flyer and the registration form: please go to:
http://www.touchingbase.org/workshops-and-training/pdat

Supported by: People with Disability Australia Inc & Vixen

For a registration form,  email Christian Vega on christianbvega@gmail.com or call 0403 941 185