Margo St. James
Encyclopedia
Margo St. James a self-described prostitute and sex-positive feminist
, founded the organization COYOTE
(Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics), which advocates decriminalization of prostitution.
.
St. James founded COYOTE in 1973. The forerunner of COYOTE was WHO: Whores, Housewives and Others; Others in this case meant lesbians. The first meeting of WHO was held on Alan Watts
' houseboat; and the name COYOTE came from novelist Tom Robbins
who dubbed St. James the coyote trickster.
St. James began attending international conferences: the United Nations
Decade face of Women Conferences in Mexico City
, the 1976 Tribunal of Crimes Against Women in Brussels, the 1977 International Women's Year Conference in Houston, the 1980 Decade of Women Conference in Copenhagen
, the 1976 Democratic Convention in New York
—where St. James organized loiter-ins—and the Republican Convention in Kansas City
. In 1974, St. James lectured at Harvard, among other campuses.
In 1976, COYOTE, led by St. James filed a law suit against Rhode Island
. In the case, COYOTE v. Roberts, the argument was based on how much power the state should have to control the sexual activity of its citizens. The law suit also alleged discrimination on how the law was being applied. Data was submitted that demonstrated selective prosecution, the Providence Police was arresting female sex workers far more often than the male customers. St. James testified in the case. Although the case eventually was dismissed when RI General Assembly changed the prostitution statute in 1980, COYOTE and St. James are given credit as one of the reasons prostitution in Rhode Island was decriminalized, prostitution was outlawed again in 2009 (see Prostitution in Rhode Island
).
Other documentaries detailing St. James' activism include Hard Work, directed by Ginny Durrin, Ain't Nobodies Business, and Hookers. Hard Work, which is set in Washington D.C., was filmed in 1976 during the Bicentennial. The short documentary won the NYC Golden Eagle Cine Award in 1978 and the Edinburgh, Scotland award for Best Documentary in 1979.
St. James claims to be a former prostitute and has been criticized by the anti-pornography feminists
, including Dorchen Leidholdt
. Her claim to have been a prostitute is based on a 1962 prostitution conviction. According to St. James, her conviction was based on her knowledge of the word trick. From 1974 to 1979, COYOTE published its newsletter—COYOTE Howls—from St. James' office in San Francisco. Fund-raising involved an annual hosting of the well-attended Hooker's Ball, which nabbed 20,000 attendees in 1978.
In 1985, COYOTE’s records were archived at Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
, Harvard University
, in the prestigious Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library
on the History of Women in America.
In 1993, St. James returned from France, where she had organized for decriminalization internationally, and married journalist Paul Avery
. Avery, who died in 2000, was best known for his investigation of the Zodiac Killer
and Patricia Hearst cases.
In 1996, St. James received approximately 76,000 votes in her bid to become a member of San Francisco's Board of Supervisors, finishing fifth in a race where the top four were seated. In the late 1990s, she served on the Board of Supervisor's Drug Abuse Advisory Board.
St. James sought the Republican Party
nomination for President of the United States
in 1980.
In 1998, Margo St. James founded the St. James Infirmary in San Francisco to help provide health care to the sex worker
community.
As of May, 2009, St. James is reported as living in Orcas Island, Washington with her cat, Lovey Dovey.
, who gained fame while writing for the San Francisco Chronicle
during the Zodiac Killer
case. He was one of the leading reporters on the case, and at one point received a personal threat, in the form of a greeting card, from the killer. He was portrayed by actor Robert Downey, Jr. in the 2007 film Zodiac
. Avery and Margo St. James were married until his death on December 10, 2000 from emphysema
on Orcas Island, Washington.
Sex-positive feminism
Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism is a movement that began in the early 1980s...
, founded the organization COYOTE
COYOTE
COYOTE, or Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics, is an American sex worker activist organization. COYOTE's goals include the decriminalization of prostitution, pimping and pandering, as well as the elimination of social stigma concerning sex work as an occupation.Though it is frequently described as a...
(Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics), which advocates decriminalization of prostitution.
History
Margo St. James (Margaret Jean St. James) was born in Bellingham, WashingtonBellingham, Washington
Bellingham is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is the twelfth-largest city in the state. Situated on Bellingham Bay, Bellingham is protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the Lummi Peninsula, and opens onto the Strait of Georgia...
.
St. James founded COYOTE in 1973. The forerunner of COYOTE was WHO: Whores, Housewives and Others; Others in this case meant lesbians. The first meeting of WHO was held on Alan Watts
Alan Watts
Alan Wilson Watts was a British philosopher, writer, and speaker, best known as an interpreter and popularizer of Eastern philosophy for a Western audience. Born in Chislehurst, he moved to the United States in 1938 and began Zen training in New York...
' houseboat; and the name COYOTE came from novelist Tom Robbins
Tom Robbins
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins (born July 22, 1936 is an American author. His best-selling novels are serio-comic, often wildly poetic stories with a strong social and philosophical undercurrent, an irreverent bent, and scenes extrapolated from...
who dubbed St. James the coyote trickster.
St. James began attending international conferences: the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Decade face of Women Conferences in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, the 1976 Tribunal of Crimes Against Women in Brussels, the 1977 International Women's Year Conference in Houston, the 1980 Decade of Women Conference in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, the 1976 Democratic Convention in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
—where St. James organized loiter-ins—and the Republican Convention in Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
. In 1974, St. James lectured at Harvard, among other campuses.
In 1976, COYOTE, led by St. James filed a law suit against Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. In the case, COYOTE v. Roberts, the argument was based on how much power the state should have to control the sexual activity of its citizens. The law suit also alleged discrimination on how the law was being applied. Data was submitted that demonstrated selective prosecution, the Providence Police was arresting female sex workers far more often than the male customers. St. James testified in the case. Although the case eventually was dismissed when RI General Assembly changed the prostitution statute in 1980, COYOTE and St. James are given credit as one of the reasons prostitution in Rhode Island was decriminalized, prostitution was outlawed again in 2009 (see Prostitution in Rhode Island
Prostitution in Rhode Island
Prostitution in Rhode Island was outlawed in 2009. On November 3, 2009, Governor Donald Carcieri signed into law a bill which makes the buying and selling of sexual services a crime....
).
Other documentaries detailing St. James' activism include Hard Work, directed by Ginny Durrin, Ain't Nobodies Business, and Hookers. Hard Work, which is set in Washington D.C., was filmed in 1976 during the Bicentennial. The short documentary won the NYC Golden Eagle Cine Award in 1978 and the Edinburgh, Scotland award for Best Documentary in 1979.
St. James claims to be a former prostitute and has been criticized by the anti-pornography feminists
Anti-pornography movement
The term anti-pornography movement is used to describe those who argue that pornography has a variety of harmful effects, such as encouragement of human trafficking, desensitization, pedophilia, dehumanization, sexual exploitation, sexual dysfunction, and inability to maintain healthy sexual...
, including Dorchen Leidholdt
Dorchen Leidholdt
Dorchen A. Leidholdt is an activist and leader in the feminist movement against violence against women. Since the mid-1970s, she has counseled and advocated for rape victims, organized against "the media’s promotion of violence against women", served on the legal team for the plaintiff in a...
. Her claim to have been a prostitute is based on a 1962 prostitution conviction. According to St. James, her conviction was based on her knowledge of the word trick. From 1974 to 1979, COYOTE published its newsletter—COYOTE Howls—from St. James' office in San Francisco. Fund-raising involved an annual hosting of the well-attended Hooker's Ball, which nabbed 20,000 attendees in 1978.
In 1985, COYOTE’s records were archived at Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard is an educational institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and one of the semiautonomous components of Harvard University. It is heir to the name and buildings of Radcliffe College, but unlike that historical institution, its focus is directed...
, Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, in the prestigious Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library
Schlesinger Library
The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America is a research library at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University. According to Nancy F...
on the History of Women in America.
In 1993, St. James returned from France, where she had organized for decriminalization internationally, and married journalist Paul Avery
Paul Avery
Paul Avery was an American police reporter, best known for his stories on the infamous serial killer known as the Zodiac, and later for his work on the Patricia Hearst kidnapping.-Career:...
. Avery, who died in 2000, was best known for his investigation of the Zodiac Killer
Zodiac Killer
The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The killer's identity remains unknown. The Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa and San Francisco between December 1968 and October 1969. Four men and three women...
and Patricia Hearst cases.
In 1996, St. James received approximately 76,000 votes in her bid to become a member of San Francisco's Board of Supervisors, finishing fifth in a race where the top four were seated. In the late 1990s, she served on the Board of Supervisor's Drug Abuse Advisory Board.
St. James sought the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
nomination for President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
in 1980.
In 1998, Margo St. James founded the St. James Infirmary in San Francisco to help provide health care to the sex worker
Sex worker
A sex worker is a person who works in the sex industry. The term is usually used in reference to those in the sex industry that actually provide such sexual services, as opposed to management and staff of such industries...
community.
As of May, 2009, St. James is reported as living in Orcas Island, Washington with her cat, Lovey Dovey.
Personal
St. James was married to journalist Paul AveryPaul Avery
Paul Avery was an American police reporter, best known for his stories on the infamous serial killer known as the Zodiac, and later for his work on the Patricia Hearst kidnapping.-Career:...
, who gained fame while writing for the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
during the Zodiac Killer
Zodiac Killer
The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The killer's identity remains unknown. The Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa and San Francisco between December 1968 and October 1969. Four men and three women...
case. He was one of the leading reporters on the case, and at one point received a personal threat, in the form of a greeting card, from the killer. He was portrayed by actor Robert Downey, Jr. in the 2007 film Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
. Avery and Margo St. James were married until his death on December 10, 2000 from emphysema
Emphysema
Emphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath. In people with emphysema, the tissues necessary to support the physical shape and function of the lungs are destroyed. It is included in a group of diseases called chronic obstructive pulmonary...
on Orcas Island, Washington.
See also
- A Vindication of the Rights of WhoresA Vindication of the Rights of WhoresA Vindication of The Rights of Whores, is an anthology edited by Gail Pheterson with a preface by Margo St. James.The book consists of the voices of a diverse group of prostitutes, Sex worker's rights activists and feminist scholars from around the world, discussing their lives and their...
- COYOTECOYOTECOYOTE, or Call Off Your Old Tired Ethics, is an American sex worker activist organization. COYOTE's goals include the decriminalization of prostitution, pimping and pandering, as well as the elimination of social stigma concerning sex work as an occupation.Though it is frequently described as a...
- International Day to End Violence Against Sex WorkersInternational Day to End Violence Against Sex WorkersInternational Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers is observed annually on 17 December by Sex workers, their advocates, friends, families and allies....
- Sex worker rightsSex worker rightsThe term sex worker rights encompasses a variety of aims being pursued globally by individuals and organizations that specifically involve the human and labor rights of sex workers....
- Sex workerSex workerA sex worker is a person who works in the sex industry. The term is usually used in reference to those in the sex industry that actually provide such sexual services, as opposed to management and staff of such industries...
- World Charter for Prostitutes Rights
External links
- Margo St. James for San Francisco Board of Supervisors
- Margo St. James Fan Club
- The St. James Infirmary
- Speech by Dorchen Liedholdt, attacking Margo St. James
- Summer of Love: 40 Years Later, by Joel SelvinJoel SelvinJoel Selvin is a San Francisco-based music critic and author known for his weekly column in the San Francisco Chronicle which ran from 1972 to 2009. Selvin has written books covering various aspects of pop music and has interviewed a large number of musical artists...
, San Francisco Chronicle, May 20, 2007 - Rough timeline by Dick Boyd, St. James' friend and former employer