“Most of the time, people are not actually concerned with prostitution and sex work. They're concerned about seeing people who they think are prostitutes and sex workers in their community. Sometimes this just comes down to profiling, the feeling of "I don't want someone who looks like that in my neighborhood." We need communities and neighbors to regard sex workers as part of the community and fellow neighbors. But that's really difficult. There's certainly nothing supporting that.” PeopleThinkingSometimesFeelingsDifficultCommunityConcernedNeighborNeighborhood Author:Melissa Gira Grant
“Our feelings alone don't change what happens with the police, what happens in jail, what happens when someone tries to go to the welfare office, the unemployment office, or any kind of state agency where a criminal record comes up for prostitution. How we feel about the commodification of sexuality and violence doesn't actually translate to those people's lives. A lot of the debate is really academic and a waste of time.” TryingKindFeelingsViolenceOfficePoliceSexualityDebateWelfareWasting TimeAcademicTranslateFeeling Alone Author:Melissa Gira Grant
“I think the anti-prostitution feminists need to do some consciousness-raising amongst themselves about their feelings. But that's a different political activity. Asking ourselves, how do we feel about the fact that our boyfriends, our husbands, our male partners might hire sex workers? They should have that conversation, but they shouldn't attach it to policy conversations that affect people.” PeopleThinkingDifferentFeelingsPoliticalPolicyHusbandFeminist Author:Melissa Gira Grant
“I wouldn't advocate for a feminism that's buttoned-up and divorced of the messiness of our real lives. Your feelings are your feelings, but you're not going to litigate your feelings about my body. The feminist ethics that I signed up for were respect for my bodily autonomy, that my experience is my experience, and that I'm an expert in my own life.” RealFeelingsFeminismEthicsFeministReal LifeAutonomyDivorced Author:Melissa Gira Grant
“I don't use "feelings" as a diminutive word. I'm trying to take feelings back. I think of everyone on the internet whose response to everything is: "#Feelings! This is important, this is real, this is significant!" That connects to power, too. Wanting to feel like you have power and control over your life.” ThinkingTryingImportantRealFeelingsLike YouInternetResponseSignificantOver You Author:Melissa Gira Grant