Sex workers in Vancouver–the scene of Canada’s worst suspected serial murder case–are planning a cooperative brothel, which they say will give them a safe place to work as officials polish the city’s image for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Susan Davis considers herself one of the lucky ones.
In her 21 years as a sex worker, Davis, 39, has known countless peers who have died of suicide, murder, AIDS or drug overdose in Vancouver’s gritty Downtown Eastside.
She herself has experienced four heart attacks from smoking crack cocaine and survived several assaults by violent clients while working on the streets.
“I’m a one-percenter,” Davis said, referring to the notion that the other 99 percent fail to survive this impoverished, drug-infested neighborhood. “It’s nuts down here.”
Now, Davis and other local sex workers have banded together to establish Canada’s first cooperative brothel in an attempt to offer women a safe place to work.
Prostitutes who work out in the open continue to be preyed upon by violent clients, they said. And while opponents of the co-op brothel plan disagree, Porth and Kiselbach said that the incidence of violence is greatly reduced–though not eliminated–when sex workers work indoors, such as in massage parlors or through escort services.
The incorporated group would operate a museum and gallery to showcase the artwork and history of showgirls and prostitutes, she said. It would also run a dinner club with burlesque performances under the same roof as the brothel.
Any sex worker could join for a nominal fee and be able to rent clean rooms cheaply, she said. Although they would share expenses, members would set their own fees and keep their profits. The co-op would also enforce labor standards.
So far, some of the strongest opposition has come from escort agencies threatened by the prospect of organized competition, Davis said. Politicians and local businesses have largely been supportive. Davis said the sex workers’ group aims to have the co-op brothel and museum fully operating in time for the influx of tourists expected during the Olympics.
By Wency Leung, WeNews correspondent
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