On Oct. 14, a video of Twitch streamer and commentator Hasan Piker admitting to hiring sex workers sparked a Twitter debate. He specifically stated that he has hired workers from the Berlin brothel Artemis.
He was asked if he ever had an escort and he answered it by saying that there should be no shame in sex work because it is considered as real work.
He admitted that he went to a brothel in Berlin called Artemis and had sex with workers and he wa not ashmed and did not try to hide it from the public.
There was an independent journalist who posted the stream last October 14th and according to Vice, the video was taken months ago.
Anti-sex work sentiment has been spreading across Twitter in the days since Rubinstein’s tweet. Some sex workers have reacted to anti-sex work tweets by pointing out that Piker’s remarks are ultimately beneficial to the public’s perception of sex workers.
In another related tweet, Hasan’s visibility and status can work to destigmatize seeing sex workers in a nonjudgemental, non-romanticized way.
Violeta Félix, a NYC-based dominatrix, echoed Valens’ remarks in response to tweets from @bimbocommunist, who called Piker’s actions not normal.
In response to @bimbocommunist’s claim that literally no one hires sex workers, Félix tweeted that it is the oldest profession for a reason and sex workers are seen by a lot more people than Hasan thinks.
Piker’s comments, Félix said in a phone interview with the Daily Dot, normalized sex work and supporting sex work by hiring them, rather than just verbalizing one’s support.
Furthermore, Félix claims that Piker publicly discussing the hiring of sex workers dispels the stereotype that only perverts, “weirdos, and losers interact with sex workers. In another tweet, she said that the majority of her clients are normal-ass people who are just exploring/engaging in their sexuality in a non-judgmental and non-committal environment.
Félix’s remarks were echoed by other sex workers. Those who hire sex workers are more mentally healthy than those who don’t, according to Princess Poison, a Texas-based dominatrix, who coerce their tinder dates into fulfilling their highly specific fantasies for free and then ghost afterwards.
In 2016, Artemis was raided for human trafficking, according to Rubinstein. Artemis, according to its website, is still operational and human trafficking and sex work are not the same thing. In addition, the Urban Justice Working Group on Sex Work and Human Rights has stated in their media toolkit that rescue missions such as raids are not the answer.
Most rescues, like sex workers, are large-scale police raids that sweep up everyone present for arrest, interrogation, and detention, ignoring the difference between those who are there under duress or are under the age of 18, and those who are not.
Those detained in the raid were accused of tax fraud and withholding social security contributions according to the Guardian reported in 2016. Despite the fact that police said they were looking into possible human trafficking by the biker gang Hells Angels at the club, no charges appear to have been filed.
