An ad in last week’s Echo advertising a business that employs sex workers contained, as part of a sentence ‘…men, ladies available for your pleasure …’
What the freaking hell? Women are NOT on earth for men’s pleasure. I have a close relative who works in the sex industry and I support and love her. It makes no difference to me how she earns her money, but in no way, shape, or form is she fundamentally here on earth for ‘men’s pleasure’! I really thought we had moved past that, especially in the Northern Rivers.
And while I’m presenting this tangent, what about articles in newspapers that refer to ‘men having sex with a child’? Consenting adults ‘have sex’ – men do not have sex with a child – that’s called rape. These differences with words are not even subtle attempts to undermine equality and safety. And as for women being ‘available for men’s pleasure’ – whichever business placed this ad – you should be fucking ashamed of yourself: one for denigrating women, and two for being so stupid when you could and should be enlightened.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
