Norma Jean Almodovar is a self-described activist, but she isn’t selling tickets for a Darfur benefit concert or raising awareness about global climate change. Almodovar represents the International Sex Worker Foundation for Art, Culture, and Education (ISWFACE), an organization run exclusively by current and former prostitutes.

ISWFACE seeks to convince the general public that prostitutes are active members of society, in ways different from their traditional role.  talented sculptor, Almodovar showcases her art at many ISWFACE events, like the biennial Sex Worker Film and Art Festival in San Francisco. Other ISWFACE prostitutes in the festival perform in concerts or comedy routines. If the idea of sculpting, singing, joke-telling prostitutes comes as a surprise, then Almodovar has achieved her goal: “We aim to use these events to put the general public in non-threatening positions such as art shows, film festivals, and cultural events,” Almodovar told The Yale Globalist. She wants the general public to “see prostitution in ways different than how the religious right and radical left feminists portray us.”

ISWFACE is a prostitution union, and not the only one of its kind. Like most unions, prostitution unions advocate for their members’ basic rights and living conditions. Unlike most unions, however, they must overcome accusations of depravity, immorality, and lawlessness.

The task is not an easy one, especially considering that prostitutes and politicians have never made good bedfellows. More than anything else, the politics of prostitution is largely about staying as apolitical as possible.

 Going against the tide

The movement began during World War II in Honolulu, where soldiers anxiously awaited battle and the gender ratio was 500 men to every woman. Business looked as good as ever for the world’s oldest profession.

While prostitution was officially illegal, the infamous Hotel Street district, through which 30,000 servicemen passed each day, became a place where 8,000 men were serviced each night. The army, fearful of falling morale, tacitly condoned the Hotel Street brothels and pressured local police to leave them alone. Yet, when the local police nevertheless began to crack down on the brothels, the prostitutes did something unprecedented—they went on strike.

It was an immediate success, since the prostitutes exploited the enormous demand for their services to guarantee that they could work freely. The army, desperate to preserve morale, stepped in and negotiated with the local police to relax their enforcement. The Honolulu prostitutes also established an important precedent. Instead of aligning themselves with any political party or ideology, they only sought to protect their own liberty and improve their own standard of living.

This model was repeated throughout the world, most often led by ex-prostitute Margo St. James, who founded a prostitution union called C.O.Y.O.T.E., or Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics, in 1973. C.O.Y.O.T.E.’s creation was spurred in large part by the feminist left’s political rejection of prostitution. Feminist theory holds that prostitution is little more than sexual slavery—women, who in general own less property and make less income than men, are forced to sell their bodies for sex in order to survive under the capitalist system. C.O.Y.O.T.E. rejected that position (and accordingly, feminist activists have adamantly opposed it and other prostitution unions), contending that sex workers were little different than other workers, and that the industry should be decriminalized and regulated.

Despite the challenges posed by the feminists, C.O.Y.O.T.E. remained surprisingly apolitical and confined itself largely to public relations. Occasionally, it would also support the creation and organization of international prostitution unions. It held a Hookers Masquerade in which rich donors mingled with masked prostitutes. It also organized a concert called the “Ladies of the Evening at the Improv,” in which prostitutes and porn stars showed off their artistic skills and performed comedy routines. Ron Jeremy was even said to have played piano for one event. C.O.Y.O.T.E. also contributed to the World Whores charter, which outlined the principles that serve as the basis for many international prostitution unions.

These apolitical acts were not designed to change the laws as much as they were designed to change perceptions. C.O.Y.O.T.E.’s actions helped spur the creation of countless state and local prostitution unions and sex worker advocacy groups, as well as international heavyweight NGOs such as the International Prostitutes’ Collective. Today there are major prostitution unions in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and the United States. In the U.S. alone there are 14 major unions operating on either the national, state, or local level. While the public may not widely support prostitution unions, through the actions of C.O.Y.O.T.E. the sex worker community certainly does.