Woman Dies in 107-Degree Cage in Prison: SWOP Remembers Marcia Powell

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Reposting this important piece from Bound not Gagged:

Woman Dies in 107-Degree Cage in Prison: SWOP Remembers Marcia Powell

For Immediate Release
Contacts: SWOP-USA 1-877-7... ext 2
Liz Coplen- SWOP-Tucson Peggy Plews- Arizona Prison Watch
info@swop-tucson.org freemarciapowell@gmail.com


On Friday December 18th sex workers from around the country are gathering to remember Marcia Powell, a woman considered mentally impaired by the court, who was incarcerated for solicitation of oral sex and sentenced to over two years in prison. On May 20, 2009, Marcia Powell died after being left in an uncovered outdoor cage in 107-degree heat at Arizona’s Perryville women’s prison. Sex workers and prisoners’ rights activists rally at the Arizona Department of Corrections as part of a series of events in conjunction with the 7th Annual International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.
Tucson, Arizona December 15, 2009 -December 17th is International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. This event was created by Sex Workers Outreach Project, SWOP-USA (http://www.swopusa.org), a national social justice network dedicated to the fundamental human rights of sex workers, focusing on ending violence and stigma through education and advocacy.
In 2009, sex workers from around the globe met gruesome deaths and endured unspeakable violence. Some died at the hands of a solitary perpetrator; others were victims of serial “prostitute killers.” While some of these horrific stories received international media attention, other cases received little more than a perfunctory investigation. Many cases remain unsolved, sometimes forever.
On Friday December 18th, SWOP-Tucson calls on sex workers and other activists from around the country to gather in remembrance of Marcia Powell, a woman considered mentally impaired by the court, who was incarcerated for solicitation of oral sex and sentenced to over two years in prison. On May 20, 2009, Marcia Powell died after being left in an uncovered outdoor cage in 107-degree heat at Arizona’s Perryville prison for women. Attention to Powell’s death revealed that this type of confinement was routine; women were left in these cages regularly.
“Marcia was the victim of dual forms of injustice, as a sex worker and as a prisoner,” said Liz Coplen of SWOP. “The prohibition of prostitution results in selective prosecution that puts some of the most vulnerable in our society at the mercy of a system that robs them of their basic respect and dignity.” For decades efforts to curb sex work have not only failed to reduce incidences of prostitution, but they have corrupted our justice system resulting in selective enforcement, racial profiling and inhumane treatment of those who don’t have the financial resources to fight back.
Violence against sex workers is epidemic and rarely taken seriously. The criminalization of prostitution legitimizes this abuse so that sex workers are the targets of violent crime with little recourse. Incarceration is not a solution to the issues of poverty and security that some sex workers face. As the death of Marcia Powell in the custody of the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) shows, prison sentences can include the most extreme form of neglect and abuse. As a result of an internal investigation, 16 people were disciplined. A criminal investigation, ongoing at the Maricopa County Attorney’s office, will determine whether criminal charges should be filed in her death. See “AZ corrections workers disciplined in inmate death,” Associated Press, 9/22/09 (http://www.newsvine.com/_news/2009/09/22/3302271-az-corrections-workers-disciplined-in-inmate-death) ; “Inquiry: Inmates often left in sun-exposed jails,” Arizona Republic, 9/25/09 (http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/2009/09/25/20090925powell0925-CP.html).
On December 18th, noon, SWOP, Arizona Prison Watch and Friends of Marcia Powell are gathering at the Arizona Department of Corrections in Phoenix for Marcia and other prisoners, and sex workers everywhere, as we call for respect for human rights.
To see full letter submitted to AZ Department of Corrections here: http://www.swopusa.org/files/December18thLetter.pdf
What: Rally-Remembering Marcia Powell and other prisoners and sex workers
When: Friday, December 18th, 2009, 12 Noon
Where: Steps of the AZ Department of Corrections, 1601 West Jefferson St. Phoenix, AZ 85007
On December 17th SWOP-Tucson, is presenting two events in Tucson:
http://www.swop-tucson.org/?page_id=4
A performance art/art installation called “No Human Involved (NHI),” 5- 6 PM at El Presidio Park,160 West Alameda Street, in Tucson, AZ and a “Memorial Ritual and Vigil” 6:30 – 7:30 PM at El Tiradito Shrine, a national historic site at 354 South Main Avenue in Tucson, AZ.
Visit SWOP USA’s website at http://www.swopusa.org/dec17 to find a December 17th event in your town.
2009.National.Release.Letterhead

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Against Anti-Prostitute Violence

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From Stella, Montreal's sex-worker advocacy group:

Stella invites you to support our actions in December to denounce violence against sex workers and to fight for our rights and the recognition of our work. The criminalization of our work robs us of the right to security. Security that is much needed: at Stella, we record more than 60 attacks per year.

The trials of two alleged sex offenders who targeted sex workers starts in December 2009. We invite you to support the victims by demanding no to impunity towards sex worker related violence. We call for decriminalization of the sex industry to give workers more control and safety in our workplaces.We are counting on you, sex workers and allies, who believe in our mission, to join us for our actions. Bring a red umbrella if you have one, and your high heels (optional):

December 7th
Action to support the 5 sex workers who pressed charges against Giovanni D’Amico:
10am: Demonstration in front of the Montréal courthouse (1 rue Notre-Dame Est).

December 9th
Action to support the 3 sex workers who pressed charges against Marco Chevalier:
9am: demonstration in front of the Saint-Hyacinthe courthouse (1550 rue Dessaulles); meet at Stella: we will be headed by bus (please RSVP in advance).

December 17th
International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers:
4pm: The Red Umbrellas March begins at Papineau Metro
6pm: Café Cleopatra and Discussion Panel on violence against sex workers.

Call for Solidarity
Stella calls out for all sex workers to come support and encourage the victims in the process of denunciations of violence that they have undertaken. You are encouraged to support these women by sending them your anonymous letters of courage and support. We invite you to send your letters by email or mail at "Stella - Appel à la solidarité". Your letters will be given to the victims at the time of their appearance by members of the Stella team and will be shown during our actions related to these two lawsuits.

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Criminalization and Violence Against Sex Workers: the Context Behind the Pickton Trial

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canada's disappeared have a gender:
pictures of women who have gone missing
from missingpeople.net

On January 26th CKUT's radio show Off The Hour interviewed Sue Davis of Prostitution Alternatives Counseling and Education Society and Jenn Clamen of the International Union of Sex Workers.

Sex trade workers' struggles against violence and criminalization make them a potentially key section the emergent radical female working class, but sex work and violence against sex workers remain under-theorized (or worst) by both the left and feminist movements.

So this interview, while just an interview, is worth listening to. It is available from the National Campus and Community Radio Association (you'll have to sign up - it is the second segment) and i have mirrored it here.

Here are some highlights:

It comes down to homelessness, poverty, and tax cuts to great programmes, you know this is the result, and people have to understand that all of us are responsible for the dangerous environment that is created by crimiinalizing sex work. (Davis)

In Edmonton the police in response to a lot of the serial murders out there put together a project called Care, but what it means is that they're running around chasing sex workers down the street and they're trying to identify sex workers through their DNA but they're not actually protecting sex workers but they're sort of keeping a tab on them... they started this DNA bank so that they can identify sex workers as they go missing, but they actually haven't put any measures into place that will say they'll stop chasing them down the street or provide better security when they are working. (Clamen)

Absolutely - they tried the same thing here in Vancouver. They cataloged us all with some little polaroid picture and that kind of thing and tried to take notes of us or catalog us in some way so they would know us when they found us... they're crossing where we are, noting where the strolls are, trying to criminalize us... (Davis)

The man who tried to kill me was acquitted, he didn't even have a lawyer with him in court, he got to cross-examine me himself, and then the judge threw out the whole case based on my testimony because I'm a sex worker so I must be a liar. This concept, and this betrayal of sex workers by the upper echelons, by the justice system, by everybody, has led men to, or predatory people in general - because it's not only men as we know, Homolka - has led them to think that this is ok, that nobody will care, and in truth nobody does care. This is the tragedy that comes from a badly written law and a total social outlook of class separation where because you've made this choice, you are less than us somehow, and this makes it ok to kill you. (Davis)

When we talk about violence here and around the world we're not just talking about violence from potential clients or when clients turn too aggressive, but we're talking about police violence as well, and police are responsible for a lot of the violence that happens, and a lot of the harassment. And the government is responsible in the sense that they just spent 3 years going over, speaking to sex workers speaking to people who are in touch with sex workers trying to make the situation more safe but they actually decided to do nothing in the end and yet they're not claiming any responsibility for what happens - who are they suggesting changes the conditons and what are they suggesting is meant to happen? Nothing. So they're essentially leaving sex workers in all areas of the trade basically to ourselves, and with no recourse. (Clamen)

This is not localized to the downtown eastside of Vancouver. There are women missing in every single city in this country, the Higway of Tears will attest to that, even rural communities are missing sex workers. This is systematic, and we need to all stand up and do something about it. (Davis)

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The Boundaries of Eros by Guido Ruggiero, etc.

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Alright, having finished The Boundaries of Eros by Guido Ruggiero, I have a few things to say about sex in Renaissance Venice, about books that I read, and about this blog.

First off, a few observations about The Boundaries of Eros: Sex Crime and Sexuality in Renaissance Venice.

The final chapter of this book is called “Perspectives on Normal Sexuality: An Essay”, but as much as anything else it is really a conclusion to all that came before, for throughout this book Ruggiero draws conclusions about “licit sexuality” from his examination of the illicit. Besides polishing his previous observations and giving the reader a sense of closure, there’s not a whole helluvalot new here.

Well, with the exception of a particularly noteworthy quote from the court records of the Patriarchal Court of Venice in the 1470s.

It would seem that here was this fellow Nicolo whose wife wanted her marriage annulled, claiming that he was unable impotent. Nicolo’s boss Francesco Barbetta was for some reason interested in helping him out, and so he arranged for Nicolo, the local priest, a scribe, and Francesco’s father all to get together with two female prostitutes.

Nicolo not only proceeded to fuck both of these women, but at one point came in the priest’s hand, at another point had the priest feel his cock while he was having intercourse. And this is in the court records, and nobody at the time thought it scandalous, wrong, or abnormal…

All of which is, quite graphically, to say that “normal” sex in other times might not quite be what Pat Robertson or Pope Benedict XVI – or, for that matter, Dr. Phil or Oprah – think it should be today. Which isn’t to say it was necessarily any more liberated or less patriarchal than sex today – the same legal system that did not blink at this public sex was busy executing sodomites in record numbers – just to say that it was different.

The only other new observations which made an impression on me in this last chapter were (1) Ruggiero’s speculations that increasing age segregation may have been related to the general explosion of homophobia at the time, as there was often a teacher-student older-younger active-passive structure in gay male relationships at the time and (2) that affective bonds between sex partners may have been more common amongst the working class than amongst the nobles. This point in particular I found interesting, not only as it flies against certain stereotypes of “courtly love”, but also because it tends to lean against Sylvia Federici’s claim that the fifteenth century saw a dramatic rise of working class male sexual violence. I say “lean against” because it does not contradict it – just etnds to point in the other direction.

A few last points regarding The Boundaries of Eros:

• qualifying what I wrote a couple of days ago, regarding the hierarchy of different sex crimes: these are inexact categories, that line up with Ruggiero’s categories. The legal cases seem to have been prosecuted an a more ad hoc basis, the categorization here is based on Ruggiero’s thorough sifting through the legal records of the time, specifically looking at penalties handed out.


• Furthermore, regarding Fornication, it should be pointed out that especially amongst the working class and poor people fornication was a common and accepted behaviour – the cases prosecuted were cases where someone complained, often because the guy was not willing to follow through and marry the woman as he may have promised beforehand. So not only were the cases brought to trial the tip of the iceberg (as is to be assumed with all of these categories), in the case of Fornication the cases brought to trial were certainly not representative of the pre-marital sex that was common in Renaissance Venice.


• Regarding sodomy, which I dealt with at greater length a couple of days ago, Ruggiero’s last chapter brings out an additional detail which shows how the 15th century was a time of increasing persecution of gay men. It seems that anal sex between husband and wife – while always illegal – was also subject to increasing levels of punishment:

Most suggestive is the fact that the early cases [14th century] of this activity reported between husbands and wives invariably ended with acquittal. Eventually, however, as paranoia about sodomy grew, the Ten did convict and punish husbands, first with lesser penalties, but occasionally toward the end of our period [15th century] with execution. It appears that as the Ten became more concerned with what they saw as a growing subculture of sodomy, they became more willing to burn out of society what they had previously viewed in the light of contraception and thus been willing to overlook. (pp. 165-166)

Ruggiero finally mentions the word “abortion” on page 166, but just to say that it must have occurred. That’s it! It “nonetheless seems to have been used”! Nothing more to say on the subject!

This is kind of disappointing. I mean I have no idea what politics Ruggiero has – he’s a professor of history at the University of Miami, that’s all I know about him – but his silence about both abortion and lesbianism are in sad contrast to the useful observations and speculations he does make about women. I guess this book would be best described as a look a how men and women dealt with illicit male sexuality in Renaissance Venice, and perhaps this is merely a necessary result of the fact that the law codes that prosecuted sex crime then were blind to these female realities, but if this is the case at the very least Ruggiero should have said so!

That said, I did like this book, and did find it interesting. I guess on a scale of one to ten I would have to give it a 5 for politics, a 7 for information, and a 9 for readability.

All of which brings me to my next point, which is how I read books, and how I intend to write about them on this blog.
Sketchy Thoughts is going to be a less-than-formal brain dump for me. I hope to publish entries most days of every week, mainly dealing with books as I read them. Perhaps I’ll also talk about television shows or movies I’ve watched, music I’ve listened to, the state of the world or the weather, but for the immediate future I see the focus being on books.
However, what I will be writing will most likely fall short of actual book reviews – not only am I writing as I read the books but I am not holding myself to incredibly high standards. I may have misunderstood something in the book, I may be interested in an aspect which is not central to what the author is dealing with, i may have my own interpretation which may actually be dead wrong – and most importantly I may change my mind after writing what I write.
So let me reiterate: these are not book reviews – if I manage to write something coherent which works as a review, I will post it to the Book Reviews page on my website. What you see here are Sketchy Thoughts – no more, no less.
Finally, I have not been in the “educational system” since I dropped out of high school twenty years ago. I don’t get as much time to read as I would like, and I don’t often find myself reading the same things as my friends, this despite the fact that we often have relatively similar politics and interests. One part of why I am doing this blog is to have the pleasure of putting down what I am thinking about what I am reading, one part is to give myself an incentive to actually remember what I’m reading – but another part is to hopefully be able to discuss what I am reading with others.
So if you have read any of the books I deal with, and have something to say – either in agreement or disagreement with yours truly – please don’t hesitate to share.

Next book on my list… Marilyn Waring’s Counting for Nothing: What Men Value and What Women Are Worth (University of Toronto Press 1999) – a critique of economics from an ecological feminist perspective.

Categories: book-review,history, queer, sexuality, violence-against-women

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