Thousands of people have petitioned a university to cancel its lessons on how to make porn for profit.
Sharon James, a social policy analyst at the Christian Institute, explained, “Prostitution should never be condoned or facilitated in any way. It is shocking that Leicester University is telling students that it’s OK to sell access to their bodies. This guidance will only serve as a green light for abusers and exploiters.”
She continued, “So called ‘sex work’ is the most exploitative industry in the world. It’s built on pain and oppression – especially of women and girls. Those who do get caught up in it need help to exit, not encouragement to stay. Young students should not be directed into the traps that could be laid for them by potential abusers.”
The institute report explained more than 11,000 people have signed a petition calling on the school to scrap its advice.
That comes from two “toolkits” the school has produced for students and staff.
“While the Student Sex Work Toolkit does explain that soliciting for sex or running a brothel are illegal, it highlights that activities including being an escort, stripping in person or on camera and working in the porn industry are all legal,” the report said.
Staff are instructed to be “non-judgmental.”
The petition states: “These documents claim to be aimed at supporting ‘students who are sex workers’ but they read more like a guide to getting into the sex trade and fail to provide substantial support for students in difficulties.”
The warning continues, “Picture this: a young female student is being coerced into the sex industry by her boyfriend to fund his drug habit. She turns to the toolkit for advice but there’s no guidance about protecting herself from coercion and pimping. There’s not even a mention that they are common in the sex trade.
“What about a young woman who realizes she’s made a terrible mistake and wants to get out? Again, no help whatsoever.”
The petition further warns the university, “The toolkits fail to mention a single organization whose primary focus is helping women quit the sex trade. Warnings about the well-documented physical and psychological harms that prostitution causes? Total silence. Signposting to guidance on budgeting, hardship loans and grants, and other employment options? Nothing.”
The implications of the school’s offerings are even worse, the petition charges.
“While the documents don’t explicitly promote prostitution as a reasonable response to students struggling to pay their tuition or halls of residence fees, that is the implicit message. By using the ‘sex work’ terminology, the documents frame prostitution as a normal form of work and not as the violation of human rights recognized under international law,” it warns.
According to the Daily Mail, a school official, Geoff Green, said, “We are aware that some students may decide to undertake different types of sex work for a number of reasons, and this is a reality at universities across the world.
“Our priority remains the care and wellbeing of all students, who have the right to be safe and free from harm whether they are studying or working,” Green said.
The project apparently was funded by an Impact Accelerator Account grant at the university.
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