The Center for LGBTQ Studies (CLAGS) at the City University of New York is the oldest program of its kind in the US. CLAGS convened a conference on the topic of Queer-Class, and a panel discussion I proposed was on the schedule. Burlesque Performer, Educator, and Headmistress Jo Wheldon and I had a free-wheeling discussion of how sex work either upholds or subverts class and capitalism.
I got to know Jo in preparation for this panel and during the panel itself and she’s now a role model for me as a worker who thinks deeply and writes beautifully. (Unfortunately the other two panelists listed were unable to attend :/)
We gave a shout-out to a SW in the news: Shy Sotomayor (below) the “Mistress of ICE” who brought down the execrable Kristi Noem.
An audio recording is posted on CLAG’s YouTube page here.
Money Quote from me: “Class is a fiction, and the only real thing in the work is touch.”
Money Quote from Jo, on aging (another class): “You find (people) who want what you have to offer instead of offering what the majority of them want.”
Many thanks to Matt Brim at CLAGS, Kassandra Sparks for moderating, and all the thoughtful attendees.
