Cover Photo: In this photo from a book cover, taken from Masochism: Coldness and Cruelty, and Venus in Furs, we see a naked woman lying on a bed. Her arm is thrown over her head, and she reaches her other arm toward two dogs, which stand next to her bed as if she is their owner. The photograph is overlaid with squares of reds and blues, so it almost looks like a collage
Cover of 'Masochism: Coldness and Cruelty, and Venus in Furs' from Zone Books

On Sex Work and Risk During a Pandemic

I couldn't afford to live on academic wages, so I became a dominatrix. But after Covid-19, the risks became too great.

The Chronicle

Brett

Your students are adults with sex lives. You are an adult with a sex life. There is no overlap between the two.

To be deemed an “eligible entity” for relief, one must not “present live performances of a prurient sexual nature.” I called to check in on all of my prurient friends, some of whom don’t have the privilege that I have to find working through a pandemic unfathomable.

The Advocate

Chris Belcher is a writer and educator based in Los Angeles. She earned her PhD in English and Gender Studies from the University of Southern California. Her essays have appeared in Salon, Autostraddle, them, and Public Books. Her memoir, Pretty Baby, is forthcoming from Avid Reader Press. You can find her on Twitter @chris_belcher.