Sex Work Studies & History Workshop

Event details

This half-day hybrid workshop at the University of York invites scholars, students, and those in related fields from to explore the challenges in researching sex work across history. It particularly addresses the difficulties when dealing with historical sources, literature, visual culture, and other secondary accounts.

The workshop will open with a talk and Q&A by Lynsey Walton, CEO of National Ugly Mugs. NUM is a UK-wide charity working with sex workers to do research, design and deliver safety tools and to provide support services to people in adult industries. Lynsey Walton will talk on critical perspectives to sex work informed by contemporary advocacy. This will be followed by a roundtable discussion for the workshop participants to share and discuss challenges in their fields.

Talk from Lynsey Walton: From moral panic to modern policy: how sex work continues to be misunderstood 

Debates around sex work are often framed as contemporary policy or moral dilemmas, yet many of the underlying assumptions made have deep historical roots around the world. This talk traces the journey of past and present ways of thinking about sex work and how these persist in modern public perception, research and legislation. 

We will combine reflection on how we got here with present day policy and lived  experience expertise to highlight how inherited frameworks continue to shape  decision making today. It will encourage attendees to consider how disciplinary traditions influence what is seen, studied and acted upon - and what remains invisible. 

This workshop is open to all scholars and students, and those in related fields. It is free to attend.

To apply, please send the following to ezra.horbury@york.ac.uk by February 28:

• Your name, position, and affiliation
• A short (100-200 word) summary of your interest in the workshop and reason for wanting to join.
• If you wish to attend in person, online, or either