Rep. Ro Khanna to Reintroduce Bill to Study FOSTA/SESTA Effects

Rep. Ro Khanna to Reintroduce Bill to Study FOSTA/SESTA Effects

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) has announced he is planning to re-introduce a bill to study the effects that FOSTA-SESTA legislation has had on sex workers' safety, rights and issues.

Khanna told Capitol Hill news site Roll Call that the bill — which he first introduced during the last Congress and was supported by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) in the Senate — was inspired by what he saw as a lack of representation of sex worker voices in the legislative process.

“There’s no politician who gains political currency for standing up for the voices of sex workers,” Khanna told Roll Call. “They’re not a voting bloc, they’re not a donor bloc, lobbyists don’t represent them on Capitol Hill. And they were just totally shut out. They were simply invisible.”

Roll Call also interviewed sex workers’ advocate Kate D’Adamo, a partner with the organization Reframe Health and Justice, who explained that “there are so many people advocating for the criminalization of the sex industry, whether it’s law enforcement or religious movements, folks who think they can criminalize the sex industry out of existence,”

“They have people on the Hill meeting with offices regularly, and sex workers don’t,” D’Adamo added.

A Crucial Context for Section 230 Reform

Sex worker advocates have pointed out that their voices and experiences are crucial to frame the current bipartisan debates on making further changes to Section 230 protections. FOSTA/SESTA was conceived as a Section 230 exemption, and drafted by religiously inspired Midwestern Republicans like Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) who said it was the “most effective way to ensure websites can no longer traffic children with impunity.”

Khanna’s bill from last year was called “The SESTA/FOSTA Examination of Secondary Effects for Sex Workers Study Act” (aka the "SAFE SEX Workers Study Act") and would have required the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct a study on sex workers' health and safety, particularly how they've been affected by the 2018 passage of FOSTA-SESTA.

Last month, Roll Call reported, sex worker groups signed a letter from more than 70 organizations to the Biden administration and Congress “warning that further changes to Section 230 would do more harm to already at-risk communities than it would to embattled social media companies such as Facebook and Twitter.”

The organizations recommended passing Khanna’s bill to study the effects of FOSTA-SESTA before making any fundamental changes to Section 230 protections.

“It’s a cautionary tale,” Khanna told Roll Call. “Could you craft reforms to Section 230 that I could get behind? Yes. But we have to be thoughtful and understand that we may not be able to anticipate all the consequences.”

To read “Sex Workers, Sidelined in Last Section 230 Debate, Seek a Seat at the Table,” visit Roll Call.

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Tyler Wu Guests on Chaturbate's 'Sex Tales' Podcast

Tyler Wu is the latest guest on Chaturbate’s “Sex Tales” podcast, hosted by Melissa Stratton and Vanniall on the company’s “Camming Life” YouTube channel.

Fleshy to Launch Interactive Cam Site 'Eremote'

Male pleasure brand Fleshy has announced that it will launch an interactive, bidirectional cam site next month called Eremote.

XBIZ LA Show Introduces New 'Crib Crawl' Feature

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the 2025 edition of its flagship conference, the XBIZ Show, will debut a brand-new feature: Crib Crawl, offering attendees the chance to meet and greet representatives from leading brands and organizations in dedicated suites at the host venue.

Pre-Nominations Now Open for 2025 TEAs

The pre-nomination period for the 2025 Trans Erotica Awards (TEAs) is now open.

Byborg Invests $22.35M in PLBY Group

Luxembourg-based Byborg Enterprises SA is investing $22.35 million in Playboy parent company PLBY Group.

Supreme Court to Hear Oral Arguments on Texas AV Law in January

The United States Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for Free Speech Coalition's challenge to Texas’ age verification law to take place Wednesday, Jan. 15.

2025 XBIZ Exec Awards Nominees for Online Industry Announced

XBIZ is pleased to announce the nominees for the online industry edition of the 2025 XBIZ Exec Awards, set to be presented as part of the annual XBIZ Honors ceremony on Wednesday, Jan. 15 in conjunction with the XBIZ 2025 conference.

Project 2025 Leader Claims Big Tech Companies 'Deliberately Fuel Pornography Addiction' Among Men

Heritage Foundation president and Project 2025 leader Kevin Roberts published on Wednesday the text of a speech in which he persists with his past claim that “predatory Big Tech corporations” are “deliberately fueling pornography addiction” among young men.

FSC Petitions 10th Circuit for Review of Utah AV Dismissal

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) on Wednesday petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit to review a decision handed down earlier this month by a three-judge panel of the same appeals court, which denied FSC the right to challenge Utah’s controversial age verification law by suing state officials.

MyAdultAttorney's Corey D. Silverstein to Hold Post-Election Legal Impact Webinar

Industry attorney Corey D. Silverstein will hold a “Legal Impact” webinar titled “We Have a New U.S. President: Legal and Community Implications” on Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. PST.

Show More