International Sex Workers Rights Day is celebrated on March 3rd every year. On this day every year, activists organize gatherings, protests and lectures to raise awareness about the human rights abuses that sex workers face.
International Sex Worker Rights Day, March 3rd 2001 marks the day when over 25,000 sex workers in India mobilised in public demonstrations when sex work prohibitionists and the Conservative government attempted to shut down the Kolkata Sex Worker Freedom Festival.
In 2024 on the Whore Intifada takeover of Global Intifada- we pay homage to the history of International Sex Worker Rights Day by inviting all sex workers and allies to ‘Give Inglenook the Boot.’Migrant sex worker advocate Bee examines how misrepresentation of Australian-based Asian migrant sex workers is complicit in the racist harassment of the sex worker community by the Australian Border Force under ‘Operation Inglenook.’Advocate Bee reminds us that some groups in our community including migrant sex workers are targeted, criminalized and also denied basic labour rights.
The Benefits of Sex Work
Just like any other job, sex work exists on a pendulum. It has both awesome and awful days. The freedom to set your own rules is unparalleled. Sex work is built around your life as opposed to building your life around work. It gives people space to drag themselves out of poverty although it’s on a most basic level.
Sex work also gives students the time to focus on their studies and allows parents to spend more time with their children and caretakers to look after sick family members. Sex work also allows privileged people who make a high income to travel and enjoy themselves. Why would we think of giving it up?
Sex Workers’ Rights
Module two of the Sex Workers Academy Africa (SWAA) Programme, highlights the eight rights of sex workers namely;
The right to privacy, and freedom from arbitrary interference
The right to health
The right to move and migrate
The right to work and free choice of employment
The right to associate and organise
The right to be protected by the law
The right to be free from violence
The right to be free from discrimination;
The right to privacy, and freedom from arbitrary interference.
Why Do Sex Workers Deserve Rights?
Sex workers globally face human rights abuses as a result of the policies, laws and practices of their governments that are tasked with their protection.
Even in countries where sex work is legalized, sex workers are victims of inappropriate and illegal policing tactics which include physical and sexual violence in addition to false arrest and extortion. They often fear to report these crimes committed against them since they fear that their reports may lead them to further violations.
REAct, a system that monitors and responds to violations of community rights recorded 2,900 complaints about the violation of the rights of key communities. Out of the 162 complaints relating to the violation of the rights of sex workers, 96% of applications were received from women and 4% – from men. 86% of the registered cases were solved either partially or completely.
