Ernestine Pastorello

"Poison and Wine:" A Love Letter

Added 2019-10-21 17:38:17 +0000 UTC

Hello friends,

I finally made myself dance about this. There's only one camera angle because I made my camerawoman leave the room because I was crying too much.

In March 2018, the US government passed FOSTA ("Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act," HB 1865). You may have heard of it. I go into the details in my blog post (https://thesirenernestine.nl/2019/10/12/why-im-moving-to-germany/), but this law has crippled the sex worker community, causing myriad harms that we warned our representatives and senators about before and after the bill passed in the largest lobbying effort of sex workers in US history (more about FOSTA here: https://www.businessinsider.com/fosta-sesta-anti-sex-trafficking-law-has-been-failure-opinion-2019-7).

Almost 2 years later, I am now having to deal with the reality that FOSTA has rendered my livelihood not only far more dangerous, but financially insolvent. I have always wanted to live in Europe. It's a much better place to be a sex worker and an artist, and so I have recently made the decision that my move across the ocean will take place in January 2020. Have no fear!!! The Ballet Burlesque Project will continue. Indeed, it looks like Patreon may be my ticket out of here! (More about this soon.)

This piece is about the man I will leave behind, and the horrible, crushing decision that no one should ever have to make: between their heart and their survival.

If you're not yet a patron, please sign up to support my dancing and my transition across the ocean, to rebuild my life and continue documenting it in the best, most beautiful way I know how. Thank you.

Fondly,

Ernestine