On March 23, the Free Speech Coalition (FSC) issued a statement about its COVID-19 related Emergency Fund. They stated that:
Due to the production hold associated with coronavirus, Free Speech Coalition is activating emergency funds to help talent and crew with their living expenses while they are unable to work. As a member-based trade association, our mission is to protect the rights and freedoms of the adult industry so that we all continue to prosper.
Talent and crew are the foundation of the adult industry — for the industry to emerge intact from this, we’re asking those who are able to work and generate revenue during this time to help those who aren’t. FSC’s relief plan will distribute donations from companies and individuals to talent and crew who are out of work.
There is currently $30,000 in the FSC Emergency Fund, which we will begin to distribute to eligible talent and crew in need by April 1.
This is very interesting news — especially when you consider it in conjunction with the US Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program for Businesses, Private Non-profits, Homeowners and Renters.
The site for this program explains (emphasis added):
SBA is collecting the requested information in order to make a loan under SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program to the qualified entities listed in this application that are impacted by the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The information will be used in determining whether the applicant is eligible for an economic injury loan. If you do not submit all the information requested, your loan cannot be fully processed. (emphasis added)
In order to apply for the loan, seeking parties must complete a very short/two-part “Eligible Entity Verification” questionnaire.
First, you have to choose one of eight options that seems to establish your occupational status — eg “Applicant is an individual who operates under a sole proprietorship, with or without employees, or as an independent contractor” or “Applicant is a business, including an agricultural cooperative, aquaculture enterprise, nursery, or producer cooperative, that is small under SBA Size Standards found at sba.gov/size-standards.”
Then, in the second part, the “Applicant must review and check all the following” (emphasis added) seven declarations. The form notes that “If Applicant is unable to check all of the following, Applicant is not an Eligible Entity.” So, if you cannot confirm all seven of the declarations listed on the page, you are not even eligible to apply for the US GOVERNMENT FUNDED disaster loan.
And guess what — the fourth of seven things an applicant must check is: “Applicant does not present live performances of a prurient sexual nature or derive directly or indirectly more than de minimis gross revenue through the sale of products or services, or the presentation of any depictions or displays, of a prurient sexual nature.”
In other words, you can’t be a part of the adult entertainment industry in order to apply for the loan. So basically, we all can click off the SBA’s program at that point…. because we certainly can’t click on.
In other news, the FSC’s Emergency Fund is active as of today, April 1. It does have its own set of stipulations, but many people in the community may qualify for some assistance via that route.
Below is their most recent update in full. It is also available on the FSC’s website.
how is it that the government will take our tax money, but when it comes to federal aid during #covid19 the only workers singled out as automatically denied are those involved in the sex trade- dancers, cam girls, porn actors, and clip creators- LEGAL TAX PAYING WORKERS!?
— Alana Evans (@alanaevansxxx) April 1, 2020
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The FSC Emergency Fund has been activated to help talent and crew who can’t work during the COVID-19 production hold. To date, we have received over 300 applications from talent and crew, with more coming in. We will start disbursing funds by April 1.
How can I help?
If you don’t need funds, but would like to donate, please do so here: https://bit.ly/FSCemergencydonate
What’s happening with my application?
We have already started verifying the first 300 applicants. This is what the verification process looks like:
— Verify that talent is in PASS
— If not in PASS, verify that talent worked on gay or trans sets that used alternate testing protocols or safer sex practices
— Verify that crew worked on PASS-regulated sets
— If not on PASS-regulated sets, verify that crew worked on gay or trans sets that used alternate testing protocols or safer sex practices
We have already verified all PASS talent — about 230 people — and are working to verify an additional 70 applicants who are crew and non-PASS talent. The latter takes a bit longer as it involves checking the production references provided.The speed with which we are able to approve and verify depends on our ability to reach those references.
How do you decide who gets money?
Based on the number of applications, the amount of available funds, and the amount of expected funds, we believe we will be able to give all eligible applicants $300 each.
How do you decide who gets paid first?
Because many crew don’t have alternative revenue streams (like camming or clips) available to them, we have prioritized eligible crew applicants in the first round of disbursements. Approximately 60 crew members applied for aid so far.
For talent, we are using a combination of factors to determine who is included in the first round of disbursements and who will be included in subsequent rounds. These factors include:
— Recency and frequency of testing in PASS
— Date of application
— Financial need
We have a wide and diverse performer community, ranging from amateur couples and new models to contract stars. We view all as equal and are working hard to make sure we take care of the entirety of our community.
When will I receive a check?
We will start sending checks by April 1. However, we will need to contact each person individually to confirm payment details.
We are disbursing $30,000 each round, so the first 100 people will receive $300 this week.
We are already halfway to the next $30,000, and are on track to disburse $300 payments to another 100 people next week. After that, we will continue to pay 100 people each time we raise another $30,000.
Can I apply more than once?
Yes. However, since we have received more applications than we currently have funds for, we won’t be accepting applications for additional funds until we have paid all eligible applicants at least once. We will inform you when you are eligible to apply for additional funds and provide a new application form. Do not submit more than one application now.
What if I have another question?
Email us at emergencyfund@freespeechcoalition.com
If you live in the LA area and need food, My Pure Life Foods is providing 25 food assistance packages to members of the adult industry. Each package contains food for 10 meals for the week (protein, carb, vegetable). For more information, contact Joshua Phelps at info@mypurelifefoods.com.
Word of the day #Prurient #PrurientAndProud pic.twitter.com/oBCkp9AAeQ
— Alana Evans (@alanaevansxxx) April 1, 2020
Erika is a sex positive people watcher (and writer). Email her at erika@ynotcam.com.
Header image by via Pexels here.
