Culture

OnlyFans Is Finally Showing Some Political Support for Sex Work


In a major victory for sex workers, OnlyFans has pledged to financially support the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, an advocacy organization that fights for sexual freedom as a human right.

The organization did not specify an amount, but according to the adult industry trade publication XBiz, OnlyFans’ investment is considered “substantial financial support.” Woodhull was the first organization to mount a legal challenge against SESTA-FOSTA, the internet privacy legislation that gutted the online adult industry and endangered LGBTQ+ sex workers; the case is ongoing to this day.

The organization will use the funds it receives from OnlyFans to continue its work in the realm of policy and litigation, according to Ricci Joy Levy, the president and CEO of Woodhull. Levy told XBiz that Woodhull plans to “further the understanding of discriminatory laws and policies around sex and sex work, and to ramp up its public advocacy work in protecting sexual expression.”

“The incredibly generous support from OnlyFans couldn’t have come at a more pressing time, and I’m thankful for their commitment to our mission,” Levy said. “In just the past year, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in both cultural and governmental attempts to deny people’s fundamental right to sexual expression. This will help us fight back.”

As previously reported by Them, hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ bills have flooded state legislatures once again this year, in addition to the potential impending repeal of constitutionally protected abortion rights. Although LGBTQ+ identities are not inherently sexual, the rhetoric deployed by the right against even the most chaste displays of queerness demonstrates that the fight for sexual freedom and the fight for LGBTQ+ liberation are one and the same.

Levy outlined this connection herself, telling XBiz that “censors often go after sex and sex work first because they think few will object.”

“They depend on stigma to silence,” Levy said. “But censorship of sex degrades our entire society — our healthcare, our educational system, our labor and legal rights, the fight for gender equity and bodily autonomy. That’s why, at a time of increasing repression, it’s more important than ever to stand up.”

OnlyFans CEO Ami Gan agreed, telling XBiz that the company is “acutely aware of the serious stigmatization often faced by adult content creators and other sex-positive creators.” He added that he hopes that Woodhull will help “pave the way” for greater recognition of sexual rights.

The statement represents a pivot from OnlyFans’ position not even a year ago, when the company announced that it would be prohibiting sexually explicit content, despite the fact that sex workers popularized the site for that very purpose. After outrage from sex work advocates and allies, who pointed out that LGBTQ+ creators would be disproportionately harmed, OnlyFans walked back its decision to ban porn less than a week after the initial announcement.

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