Sex with Strangers

This episode features people with physical disabilities talking about the able-bodied world's tendency to erase their sexuality, using Tindr in a wheelchair, disability-related sexual superpowers, and much more. Comedian Spring Day makes her triumphant return. She and her boyfriend, comedian Tim Renkow, both have cerebral palsy and talk frankly about their sex life. The fetishization of disabled people, often called devoteeism, also comes up in this episode. Check out the excellent BBC3 documentary Meet the Devotees here. We also talk about the role sex workers sometimes play in enriching the lives of people with disabilities. Check out Rachel Wotton's Ted Talk exploring this topic. Her film Scarlet Road also comes up, as does the 2012 feature film The Sessions about Mark O'Brien's experiences with a sex surrogate. You can watch an Oscar-winning documentary short about Mark O'Brien here and read his article “On Seeing a Sex Surrogate” here. Other articles mentioned on the show include this Vice piece about Hand Angels, this guide to sexual positioning devices, and a fascinating obituary published by Salon about Mark O'Brien. Other podcasts mentioned on the show include the Death Sex and Money episodes Newlywed and Paralyzed and Two Wheelchairs and a Baby, as well as an episode of Everybody Swing entitled Swinging in a Wheelchair. Finally, Ryan Lythall can be reached at rythall@me.com if you have any follow-up questions or would like to book him for a speaking engagement.

Chris chats with 6 men who, collectively, have purchased sexual services well over 100 times. Topics discussed include buying and using drugs (mostly cocaine) with sex workers, seeing porn stars, sex tourism (mostly to Columbia and Thailand), and the sugar lifestyle/seekingarrangements.com. Articles referenced in this episode include Salon's "How risky is Oral Sex?," and CNN's cheery "Yes, Oral Sex Can Lead to Cancer."

Chris travels to Amsterdam to chat with couples and sex workers spending Valentine's Day in De Wallen, the world's most famous red light district. Chris is joined in this episode by listener Taylor Hernowitz, who helped Chris interview women working in window brothels and couples exploring voyeurism at the Sex Palace Peep Show. This episode also features representatives from a number of organizations dedicated to improving the lives of people working in the sex industry, including PROUD the official union of sex workers in the Netherlands, the Red Umbrella Fund, which supplies grants to sex worker-led organizations around the globe and is headquartered in Amsterdam, and the Prostitution Information Center located in the heart of De Wallen. Don't forget to check out the CNN article mentioned on the show: Dutch Driving Instructors Can Trade Lessons for Sex. You can find the episode of Reply All Chris referenced here. And the three episodes of Jess' podcast that are available in English are A Dutch Sex Worker, A Poly Family, and Conscious Kink. Don't let the Chinese intros for these episodes fool you; the interviews are in English. The original upload of this episode had a technical glitch that created audio gaps when played on certain speakers. That has been fixed. If you have any issues, please delete the file and download it again. If troubles persist, download or stream this episode directly at sexwithstrangersshow.com. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Chris chats with porn performers Chanel Preston and Mickey Mod about the current state of the porn industry, why they oppose condom mandates like Proposition 60, and their work with the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee (APAC). Michael Stabile from Kink.com joins the discussion to talk about the rise of anti-porn forces within US politics and corporate America. Jerry Barnett, the free speech activist and author of Porn Panic: Sex and Censorship in the UK, helps us understand what's happening across the pond. And it's not encouraging! British porn sensation Harriet Sugarcookie and her business partner Tommie round out this episode by sharing their thoughts on censorship, their unique approach to making pornography, and the healing power of harrietsugarcookie.com. Check out the official position of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) on sex/porn addiction here, and a similar statement from The Mormon Mental Health Association mentioned on the show here. Correction: Chris mistakenly refers to this show as "episode 29" when it is in fact episode 28.

Chris chats with people in the feederism (sometimes also called feedism) fetish community. All 4 featured guests get off on gaining weight as well as encouraging others to pack on pounds. Two of these guests also work as professional fetish models. You can find out more about Kimmy Crush at BBWSurf.com, and Lily’s site is through bigcuties.com. The True Life episode mentioned at the end of this episode “I Have a Feeding Fetish” is currently available on Youtube.

Mainstream discussions of the sex industry have mostly revolved around human trafficking. In this episode we explore why that narrative is misleading and harmful. The interviews featured here were recorded in Nebraska, Rhode Island, Alaska, California, and Illinois. Guests include Terra Burns (Community United for Safety and Protection), Maxine Doogan (the Erotic Service Providers Legal, Educational and Research Project), Bella Robinson (COYOTE RI), Monica Peterson and Rex Hamaker (University of Denver's Human Trafficking Center), Hannah Marshall (Brown University), and Erin Black (The Sexual A-Team). Articles discussed in this episode include The Banks' War on Porn Stars by Richard Abowitz and Marlow Stern, The Case for Decriminalizing Prostitution by German Lopez, Washington Post fact checker Glenn Kessler's Why You Should be Wary About Statistics on 'Modern Slavery' and 'Trafficking' and The Biggest Pinocchios of 2015, Should Prostitution be a Crime? by Emily Bazelon. Also check out Bazelon's follow-up concerning Amnesty International's Policy on State Obligations to Respect, Protect and Fulfil the Human Rights of Sex Workers. Three quick corrections: Maxine (not Terra) interviewed Keyana; Sextraffickingalaska.com is maintained by Community United for Safety and Protection (not just Terra); Last (and in fact least), Chris began gathering audio for this episode in October of 2015 (not September of 2015). We regret these errors.

Chris explores San Francisco's historic Armory also known as the Porn Palace with kink.com tour guide Quinn Quintana. Quinn is also a comedian and the host of Hot Tub Interviews with Porn Stars. Quinn and Chris spent hours exploring kink.com sets, props, and cages. Don’t forget to check out the Vice article mentioned in this episode "Why Can You Go to Prison for Making Scat Porn?"

This episode features conversations that didn’t quite fit into the sex party episode but were simply too good to leave on the cutting room floor. Ames Bex makes his second appearance on the show. This time he talks about directing porn and his ongoing transition into manhood, both legally and physically. Ames also has a podcast of his own called Mister Bex Talks Sex. Photographer and Kink tour guide Efrain John Gonzalez aka Gonzobear, takes Chris through Manhattan’s Meatpacking District where he gives walking tours “that take you back to the good old days of the 80's and 90's, when the district was packed with some of the kinkiest, sleaziest and craziest bars and underground clubs in Manhattan.” We also hear from Selena Fire, Patricia Johnson, and Mark Michaels, the three co-founders of Pleasure Salon: a monthly social gathering designed to “bring together members of the BDSM, swinger, alternative gender, LGBTQ, sex-activist, porn, sex educator, nudist, sex-magic, polyamory, Pagan, radical faerie, tantra, sex-blogger, sex writer, pervert and sex-worker communities, and others whose passion is sex or sexuality” in a casual cocktail party environment. Patricia and Mark also talk about the 5 books they’ve coauthored together.

Guest Jack from Adult Socials discusses various NYC sex parties like Chemistry, Kinky Salon, Myth, and more. Highlights include diverse party atmospheres, unique event organizers, evolving membership criteria, swinger culture, and the vibrant kink scene in NYC.

Porn performers featured in this episode include Ron Jeremy, Farrah Abraham, Nikki Knightly, Kelly Klaymore, MaseratiXXX, Carmen Valentina, Daisy Monroe, Piper Perri, Yasmine de Leon, Tyra Scott, Sarah Jesse, Angel Deluca, Lila Lovely, Riley Reynolds, Lacey Starr, Savanah Stevens, JoJo Kiss, Zoe Parker, Katalina Mills, Farah Valentine, Heather Lexi of Erotique Entertainment, Michelle Austin the voluptuous diva behind Kennston Productions and FTM.xxx, and Chaturbate cam girl Shannon Scot. This episode also features Bella Roxxx from Adult Star Makers as well as representatives from Wicked Pictures, Kink.com, Holodexxx, HoloGirls VR, and VR Bangers. And let’s not forget Dr. Ben Durover.