Many of you are familiar with the burgeoning sex ed platform, O.school. Touting itself as the cure to our sex-negative culture, it promised sex educators struggling at the economic margins a place to self-market and support ourselves.
Unfortunately, the reality for most educators on the platform is far less rosy. O.school subjects its contracted educators to constantly shifting administrative policies, silences dissent by firing educators, and offers sub-minimum wage compensation for our services.
That doesn’t mean you should stop supporting sex educators through this platform, but we need your help to effect change in how O.school is run.
Wait, What Happened?
This past week, two bills passed through Congress that focus on the role online platforms play in the facilitation of sex work: Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA) and Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA).
These bills ostensibly are meant to punish websites that knowingly aid and abet sex traffickers, but in practicality are shutting down spaces where non-coerced sex workers advertise their services. The reach of these bills can be interpreted to extend to platforms that discuss sex work in other capacities.
In light of SESTA/FOSTA’s passage, O.school decided to halt hosting educational content that addressed sex work in any way, without consultation from any of the sex workers who educate on the platform.
When sex worker and educator Andre Shakti protested this policy, she was summarily fired from O.school.
Transparency Issues
O.school touts itself as a platform that emphasizes equity, but its lack of transparency around administrative actions contradicts that commitment.
- O.school fires educators with no explanation, transparency, or notification to others. Kenna Cook was the first sex educator to be “fired” from O.school, with no notice or avenue for recourse. She never heard from founder Andrea Barrica, but was terminated by another staff member who told her "she's not a good fit for the platform." Multiple other educators have similarly been let go since.
- The tipping model for sex education. Sex educators on O.school invest countless hours preparing material for their streams, but are compensated primarily by tips from their viewers, with some educators making as little as $5/hr for their time. This model devalues educator expertise and puts further financial strain on already economically marginalized workers.
- The lack of transparency around payment for O.school sex educators. O.school inconsistently provides “streaming bonuses” to certain sex educators, again with no transparency of policy.
Lack of Administrative Support
O.school’s administrative team responds to almost all concerns with requests for patience, noting that there are only 4 team members handling incredible amounts of work. Yet the platform continues to onboard new sex educators, a process that is time and resource intensive, while neglecting the concerns brought forward by current educators. O.school staff’s priorities can be seen as means of diluting the organizing power of current educators by bringing in as many new sex educators as possible.
Much the same way Uber is able to push prices down by decentralizing its workers and ensuring there is an ever-replenishing supply of drivers, O.school continues to recruit new sex educators to prevent any one set of centrally-organized and powerful educators from rising up to effectively demand better working conditions.
What do the workers want, then?
- The lifting of the ban on sex work discussions via livestreams so that educators can continue to educate and advocate for this vulnerable community.
- An end to the tipping system in favor of a more sustainable form of payment for sex education services.
- A moratorium on recruitment of new educators until a sustainability plan is made publicly available and tested over a period of 6 months.
- An actionable accountability statement from O.school senior management regarding a commitment to transparency in future administrative actions and pay negotiations.
WELL FUCK, HOW DO I HELP?
O.school is a mess. So what do you do, when you still care about inclusive, pleasure-centered sex education?
- Keep tuning in. Many educators on O.school count on the income they receive from your tips during streams. Don’t boycott the platform entirely.
- Let O.school’s admin team know how you feel. Tweet at them, comment on their Instagram, send them emails. (I'll be releasing a press kit with sample tweets in the next few days!)
- Donate to O.school sex educators directly. school is not the only hustle for any of us. Commit to our Patreon channels, send us money via paypal, buy our coaching packages, and promote our content to the rest of your network.
Don’t give up on sex ed. This platform has problems, but we as a community are committed to doing better.
