Episode Summary
The Trump Administration's wars on federal employees and research science are getting a lot of headlines, but there's a third war that's being conducted by the radical right that doesn't get nearly as much attention as it should, and that is its efforts to control Americans’ bodily autonomy.
Whether it’s trying to outlaw abortion, even in cases of rape or incest, or trying to place restrictions on birth control, the reactionaries are trying to control sex itself. They’re even supporting laws to eliminate restrictions on child marriage so that minors can be forced to have babies.
As disparate as right wing’s wars on governance, science, and sexuality may seem, they are actually linked because all three of these things are expressions of knowledge—about the world through science, about how to serve the public, and about ourselves and who we are. That is ultimately what these attacks on bodily autonomy are.
Savannah Sly, my guest on today's program has thought a lot about all of these issues because she has been an advocate for sex workers' rights for quite a long time, including her efforts as founder of the New Moon Network, a board member at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, and with the Free Speech Coalition.
The video of our conversation is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full page.
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Audio Chapters
00:00 — Introduction
03:18 — Understanding sex work and its misconceptions
12:10 — Religious fundamentalism and control over sexuality
17:07 — Impact of changing gender roles on society
24:28 — Normalization and stigma of sex work during the pandemic
27:54 — Sex work in right-wing political environments
33:14 — Sex workers' access to power
36:05 — “Traditional values,” polygamy, and non-heterosexuality
41:29 — Moving forward
48:28 — Right-wing groups want to ban porn via disingenu
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