Thierry Schaffauser is a French

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

, social activist, writer, and actor.

Early life

Schaffauser was born 1982 in

Suresnes Suresnes () is a commune in the western inner suburbs of Paris, France. Located in Hauts-de-Seine, from the centre of Paris, it had a population of 49,482 as of 2020. Suresnes borders the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, ...

, a commune in the western suburbs of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France.

Social activism

Schaffauser's introduction to activism was as a member of ACT UP-Paris, the French chapter of the international

ACT UP AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) is an international, grassroots political group working to end the AIDS pandemic. The group works to improve the lives of people with AIDS through direct action, medical research, treatment and advocacy, ...

movement. In 2006, Schaffauser co-founded ''Les Putes'', a Paris-based group defending sex workers' rights, and, since 8 December 2009, he has been a board member – responsible for international relations – of STRASS, the French sex workers

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

. In 2010, Schaffauser was the president of the GMB-IUSW, Adult Entertainment branch.

Out East

As part of community group Out East, Schaffauser was one of the organizers of Hackney Pride, a 2010

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

(lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) event that attracted 1,000 people in

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

, UK. Attendees celebrated all sexualities, genders, races, and religions, marching for two hours before gathering for speeches inside a church located in the

Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...

district of the

London Borough of Hackney The London Borough of Hackney ( ) is a London boroughs, London borough in Inner London, England. The historical and administrative heart of Hackney is Mare Street, which lies north-east of Charing Cross. The borough is named after Hackney, Lond ...

. Schaffauser spoke with the ''Hackney Gazette'' afterward, stating: "I'm so proud of Hackney." The following year, homophobic stickers appeared in areas of eastern London, including Hackney, and by the end of March 2011, the vast majority were found in the

London Borough of Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London boroughs, borough in London, England. Situated on the north bank of the River Thames and immediately east of the City of London, the borough spans much of the traditional East End of London and ...

. The dissemination of the stickers was described by activists as a "hate campaign", and an apolitical parade, titled "East End Gay Pride", was planned by a group of friends as a response. The event was scheduled for April, but in March 2011, Schaffauser, as Chair of Out East, published an open letter on the ''Pink News'' website, calling for the cancellation of East End Gay Pride, and was joined by Terry Stewart of the Hackney Community Engagement Board, Denis Fernando of Unite Against Fascism, and the Greater London Association of Trade Union Councils. Schaffauser wrote the letter on behalf of Out East, a member of Rainbow Hamlets, the Tower Hamlets LGBT Forum, and highlighted a range of issues, including the potential for Islamophobia, the English Defense League's links with some of the organizers, and the need for a political response. By July 2011, Rainbow Hamlets continued to intensively engage with the East London Mosque & London Muslim Centre (ELM), while Out East introduced weekly meetings in mid-2011 to provide a forum in which people could discuss what they would like to occur as a response. An event was eventually organized, and, on 24 September, the East London Pride march set off from

Hackney Town Hall Hackney Town Hall is a municipal building in Hackney, London. The town hall, which is the headquarters of Hackney London Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building. History The original town hall in Hackney was a private house, erected i ...

. In what was a much smaller event than Hackney Pride, participants walked to the Oxford House building on Hackney Road, where the mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman, a British-Asian Muslim, addressed the crowd: "I want you to be in no doubt I will fight to ensure there is respect for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender culture and rights in the same way I will for all communities."

Writing and acting

Schaffauser co-authored ''Fières d'être putes'' (with Maîtresse Nikita, 2007), and wrote six articles on sex work for the ''Guardian'' in the first half of 2010, including a piece titled "Time for porn stars to self-organise". He also appeared in a few pornographic films, produced by Eurocreme and Triga Films, and was the winner of an Erotic Award in 2010. In 2014 Schaffauser published Les luttes des putes with Paris-based publishers éditions La Fabrique.

Personal life

In September 2010, during the organization of Hackney Pride, Schaffauser was a resident of the

London Fields London Fields is a park in Hackney, London, although the name also refers to the immediate area in Hackney surrounding it and London Fields station. It is common land adjoining the Hackney Central area of the London Borough of Hackney. The p ...

district of East London, located in the Hackney borough of England, UK. In 2011, Schaffauser continued his involvement with East London LGBT issues.

References

External links

Hackney Pride March Tumblr page

''Pink News'' official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schaffauser, Thierry 1982 births French trade unionists French LGBTQ rights activists Actors in gay pornographic films French male pornographic film actors Members of ACT UP French sex worker activists Living people People from Suresnes Male actors from Île-de-France French people of German descent Gay pornographic film actors French gay actors French gay writers French expatriates in the United Kingdom