Queer sex worker offering discounts to clients who vote ‘Yes’ for same-sex marriage in Australia
By Joshua Haigh
A sex worker in Australia is offering discounts to clients who support same-sex marriage.
Politicians in Australia’s Senate have repeatedly shot down attempts to hold a referendum on equal marriage. In 2016, the Liberal Party was re-elected with a promise that they would let voters decide on same-sex marriage through a popular vote.
However, the vote was blocked, and the result could have technically been ignored by lawmakers anyway. The government is now going to hold a plebiscite to gauge public opinion on the issue.
Amber Lee, a sex worker from Melbourne, has revealed that she’s giving clients a $100 discount if they vow to vote “Yes” in the upcoming plebiscite.
“I am an advocate for human rights, including LGBTI rights, and Australia still has a long way to go where that is concerned,” she told Star Observer. “I understand that many people are very set in their beliefs and a special offer to see me is not enough to change that,” she said.
“However, keeping the conversation going is the best thing we can do at this stage. The more informed people are, the more likely they are to vote. We never know what life throws at us and I would like to have the option [to marry] if one day I decide to,” she said.
Lee added that she knows many LGBT+ who work in the same field as she does who are desperate to marry their partners.
“I have many loved ones in the LGBTI community and sex worker community alike who need this option in order to marry their partners.
“Formal marriage gives spouses more rights in situations like death, divorce, and rights to their children. Under the current civil union [arrangement] we do not have as many rights as those in a heterosexual marriage. It is pretty stone-age that so many people do not have these basic human rights just because they are gay,” she added.