During a special session at the
XX International AIDS Conference, 2014, Geldof referred to
sex workers as "
hookers",
[67] for which he was subsequently criticised. Christian Vega, a
sex workers' rights activist and a member of
Victoria's peer-only Victorian Sex Industry Network (VIXEN), criticised speakers including Geldof for their use of pejorative language; Vega contended that this language perpetuated stigmas that are among the key barriers to HIV prevention.
[68] Geldof responded to the criticism during the closing session of the conference: "I read today in the paper that my talk yesterday was littered with profanities – fuck them." In Geldof's view, rights-based language hampered HIV prevention, and he defended using terms such as "hookers" and "
junkies": "Let's not get distracted by diversionary language. Let's call it as it is".
[69] In a radio show after the conference on
Joy 94.9, Vega dismissed Geldof's view that rights-based language was a waste of time as "ridiculous". In Vega's view, this language served as an important tool to challenge
stigma and discrimination, particularly within an HIV context.
[70]