Mothering at the Margins: Exploring the Dual Realities of Motherhood and Sex Work

• In Event: Intersections of Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in Justice-Involved Populations

Abstract

Scholars focusing on sex work have largely examined issues of crime, sexual exploitation and venereal disease. How sex workers navigate motherhood remains an under-explored area of study. We examine the intersection of motherhood and sex work by analyzing in-depth interviews with 96 brothel-based sex workers who live and work in the largest red-light district (RLD) in New Delhi, India. Findings reveal that a majority of the brothel workers are mothers (n=82; 85%), and their children do not reside with them in the RLD, but instead, in their native villages and/or hostels. Since sex workers make a concerted effort to keep their children away from the RLD, they engage in mother-work from a distance and typically rely on their support systems, especially family members to temporarily care for their children. Results also indicate that mothers often justify sex work as central to being good mothers and providing a better life for their children. Implications of these findings are discussed in the broader context of literature on gendered labor, motherhood, and sex work, and relatedly practical support for mothers engaged in brothel work.

Authors

• Popy Begum, Saint Louis University

• Janet Garcia-Hallett, University of New Haven