Twenty years ago, author/activist Veronica Vera organized the first D17 vigil in New York at the Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village to remember the sex workers who were victims of fatal violence in an attempt to change the way the world looks at them.
While it’s true that the stigma of sex work is slowly lifting, it’s also true that this vigil remains necessary to both remember those lost, and further shatter negative stereotypes.
Sex workers and their advocates gathered again at Judson on Dec. 17, holding candles inscribed with the names of people who we have lost this year. In a change from previous ceremonies, the names also included some who passed from natural causes as well as violence.
Miss Vera, as she is known, considers “sex workers’ rights and the decriminalization of sex work to be of utmost importance.” She notes that the groups that have sprung up to further the cause “are more savvy” now and that the “public is starting to see sex work as work.”
Everyone who held a candle read the written name out loud, a presentation that Vera calls “a holy, sacred task”, adding that “it’s a privilege to be able to do it. This year I saw more than ever that the vigil unites the community.”
Speakers included co-organizer Kaytlin Bailey, founder of OldProsonline.org; Gerard Damiano Jr., son of the late director Gerard Damiano of “Deep Throat” fame; and Leah Moon, who read a Jewish prayer of the dead “for movement leader Priscilla Alexander and all the deceased.”
Vera noted that the Judson Church has always been supportive of sex-positive initiatives and has a fund specifically for sex work projects. “It’s a church which has always been a bastion for social justice and the arts,” Vera says.
Juline Koken, a professor at LaGuardia Community College in Queens, was also at the first vigil in 2003. A former sex worker herself, she called the event “an act of resistance.”
“If society discriminates against a group,” she muses, “the message is that those people are worthless. But they matter – they are part of our community. The question that arises is, how do we keep those members of our community safe?”
“There are many more sex workers’ voices that are being heard now,” Vera adds. “The activism is being highlighted more and more – but we’ve still got a long way to go.”
More info about D17 can be found at december17.swopusa.org. Miss Vera’s website is veronicaverawrites.com
