Sex Workers and Mental Health Professionals: A Troubled History (Pt.2)

The history of mental health care professionals in North America is in many ways a history of structural violence against marginalized peoples. Social workers in particular often find themselves in the troubled position of acting as an extension of the criminal legal system. The history of sex work in the United States and Canada is inextricably tied to the historical desire to control “unruly” bodies.

Due to the criminalized nature of sex work, sex workers and social workers often find themselves at odds with one another. In this training, we will learn about the history of the interaction between mental healthcare workers and sex workers. We will grapple with what it truly means to serve as accomplices, not just allies, to our sex worker clients. To ethically engage with sex workers, the clinician must engage in ethical rebellion within the systems in which we work.