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Press Release

June 2nd, 2026 · · Press Release Comments Off on Press Release

June 2, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Sex Workers Rights Coalition: World Cup No Excuse to Increase Criminalization of Sex Workers

Newark, NJ – The FIFA World Cup will be held in 11 US host cities beginning June 13 and ending with the finale in East Rutherford, NJ on Sunday, July 19, 2026. For months public officials in New Jersey have been suggesting that human trafficking will increase as a result of the World Cup, repeating a false discourse that has emerged time and time again at events such as the Olympics. Yesterday, the NJ Office of Attorney General released a statement regarding “sex and labor trafficking” concerns during the events in NJ, and announcing “significant resources” for law enforcement operations before and during the World Cup to carry out raids and “rescues.” 

Our organizations are dedicated to human rights, ending violence and getting resources to community members for their wellness, health and safety. What New Jersey does not need right now are more raids and more opportunities for law enforcement to harm communities of low income folk, trans people, sex workers and immigrants. It is folly to provide more resources for widespread law enforcement in New Jersey as we learn of devastating human rights abuses being perpetrated at Delaney Hall, a private prison operated for ICE. Without a doubt, as has happened via increased policing during global sporting events in the past, sex workers, immigrants and trans folks in NJ will be detained, arrested, displaced, and harmed. 

“New Jersey already has a terrible track record of disproportionately arresting and incarcerating Black and Brown folks,” note Penelope Saunders and Erika Smith, co-Executive Directors of the Best Practices Policy Project, “and pumping resources into policing during the World Cup will lead to BIPOC trans folks, sex workers and immigrants being detained in the name of ‘ending trafficking.’ In 2026 no one is safe in any form of detention anywhere in the US.”

“Resources need to be directed to the services that all sex workers in New Jersey need. Not policing. Not incarceration,” says N’Jaila Rhee, Executive Director of NJ Red Umbrella Alliance, an organization representing sex workers. “We call upon our NJ public representatives to stop funding the police to ‘rescue’ sex workers and to instead invest in economic justice and services led by the communities themselves.”

Members of the Sex Workers Rights Coalition, a national multi-organizational group, are raising the alarm today June 2nd, International Whores Day, about the increased criminalization and policing nationwide that is occurring under the guise of combating trafficking during the FIFA World Cup. The purported increase in human trafficking–and justification for policing– is without any evidence. 

For additional comments please contact:

Penelope Saunders and Erika Smith at BestPracticesPolicyProject@gmail.com and cell +19178170324

N’Jaila Rhee – newjerseyrua@gmail.com and +15515878079

Sex Worker’s Rights Coalition – email rightsnotrescue@protonmail.com

An open letter expressing concern can be signed here https://forms.gle/w1jLeF2JSCFkrGRz7

Justice for All Sex Workers CSW70

March 11th, 2026 · · Events Comments Off on Justice for All Sex Workers CSW70

By Erika Smith – Supported by the Sex Worker Rights Working group – Justice for All Sex Workers – March 11 in person at 2.30 pm on the 11th Floor of the UN Church Center (opposite the UN, free to enter, no pass is needed).


Erika Smith moderates the BPPP and friends in person session during the Commission on the Status of Women. Speakers include Gigi Thomas, appearing for the first time at the CSW, Beyonce Karungi and Monica Jones.


Live streamed @blasianbytch on TikTok with BlueSky live tweeting. https://www.tiktok.com/@blasianbytchhttps://blueskydirectory.com/profiles/njrua.bsky.social


Sign up here – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/justice-for-all-sex-workers-eliminating-discriminatory-laws-and-policies-tickets-1982411265460?aff=oddtdtcreator


We have 100 copies of our magazine Being Heard to distribute.

What to do in the evening? We will be heading to Liberation Looks Like a Dance Floor at 6 pm. We are not running this show but we think it will be fun. Follow the pink boots to find us, see below for the boots in an actual photo of an actual working group member at the CSW.

Liberation Looks Like a Dance Floor

Without joy and community, the long fight for liberation becomes impossible to sustain. That is why we are hosting a celebration at Henrietta Hudson, the longest-running lesbian bar in the United States, and a vital, historic space that continues to serve as a home for queer women and the broader LGBTQ+ community.

Coming together at Henrietta is both an act of celebration and affirmation: honoring queer legacy, creating space for connection across movements and generations, and reminding ourselves that our communities deserve joy, safety, and collective restoration.

Event details:

Date: March 12, 2026

Time: 6 PM – 10PM

Location: Henrietta Hudson, 438 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014

Please RSVP and confirm your attendance here. 

Like what you are seeing here – get your friends to sign up for the Sex Worker Rights Working Group, liberating the Commission on the Status of Women, one person at a time.

CSW70 – Join Our Working Group

January 27th, 2026 · · Events Comments Off on CSW70 – Join Our Working Group - Tags: ,

As we prepare for the 2026 Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) we invite advocates and organizations committed to the rights of sex workers to join our working group. The group is managed by the Sex Worker Coalition and draws on the access provided by one of our members’ ECOSOC status to apply for events and submit statements. Join us.
Sign up here:  https://forms.gle/L2D2EzuT36cuuvYW8
The direct email for the working group is swrworkinggroup@gmail.com

Please take a moment to read over our statement sent in advance of the CSW70 to UN Women. This will explain more about sex workers’ long term engagement with UN Women and why you should join us in the work we are doing.

Sex workers and trans folks have advised the Commission on the Status of Women of key issues communities are confronting in the United States and globally. In March 2026, the Commission will discuss “[e]nsuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls, including by promoting inclusive and equitable legal systems, eliminating discriminatory laws, policies, and practices, and addressing structural barriers.” The Commission will also review five year progress towards, “[w]omen’s full and effective participation and decision making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls (agreed conclusions of the sixty-fifth session).”

We submitted a 1500 word statement via BPPP, stating that, “justice cannot exist in spaces where fear, stigma, and criminalization persist. To achieve equality, we must build systems that see, hear, and protect every woman and girl including those society has pushed to the margins.” Read the full report here or download the report as a pdf.

BPPP signed on to a collective statement by the LGBTI Caucus. The caucus stated that, “[e]nsuring access to justice, participation, and protection from violence requires deliberate attention to the lived experiences of LBTI+ persons, reflected in national laws, global policies, and multilateral mechanisms.” Download the LGBTI Caucus report as a pdf.

AIDS2026: Rio

January 12th, 2026 · · Conferences Comments Off on AIDS2026: Rio - Tags:

authored by PJ Starr, graphic design by PJ Starr

Right now communities all over the world are facing instability and rights violations due to the impact of US policies on immigrants, trans folks, immigrants, sex workers, people with disabilities and BIPOC folks. We encourage readers to access our reports to the United Nations about these issues and our art published in our magazine. Our organizing as sex workers and trans folks continues and we plan to bring our materials to the International AIDS Conference in Rio, to connect and share. For those who cannot travel, we will plan ways to connect with you virtually and/or come to you.

Sex workers everywhere organize to address the impact of HIV/AIDS.  Representatives and advocates for sex workers and trans people choose to attend the International AIDS Conference so that accurate information can be provided to our communities.  As sex workers and trans people, we also attend this conference because it is one of the very few opportunities we have to network with our colleagues from all over the world, form new connections to learn and to inspire.  We have supported sex workers’ and trans folks’ attendance at the International AIDS Conference for more than 25 years and are here to help our community as much as we can.

The International AIDS Conference is a very large event and can be daunting.  Sex workers have organized protests and actions about specific issues at the conference over the years and have demanded change from the conference itself.  If issues arise that you would like to address at the AIDS2026 you can email (hivaidsbppp@gmail.com) at any time and we will do our best to connect you with the information you need.

This year the International AIDS Conference will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from July 26 to 31, 2026.  The conference can be attended in person or virtually.  The AIDS2026 conference will include people living with, affected by and working with people living with HIV. A major concern being raised by all communities is the unprecedented funding crisis and major cutbacks to HIV programs.

Apply to present your work or organize a workshop at the Global Village – Applications are due January 27, 2026. The exact time applications are due on that day is unknown, so get your application in as early as possible.

Apply to present your work via an abstract submission – This process opens November 2025 and closes January 27, 2026. For additional information about abstract submission contact the AIDS2026 abstract team at the International AIDS Society. Our community is often shut out of the main conference as abstract presenters.

Scholarships – Scholarship applications open November 20, 2025 and close January 27, 2026.  We recommend getting your application in the day before to avoid any confusion with the AIDS2026 system closing early across time zones (many people have missed out in the past because the system closed early, don’t miss your chance to go to Rio). Applications are accepted through conference accounts only.  Use this link to sign in or create an account or use this direct link https://profile.aids2026.org/. Check out our webinar recording from 2018 with tips about how to apply and be successful. When will you hear about the outcome of your application? Scholarship recipients are usually announced in early April.

Media scholarships and registration – opportunities exist for representatives of the media for both scholarships and registration (cheaper or free). https://www.iasociety.org/conferences/aids2026/media/registration

Key dates from the conference are listed at https://www.iasociety.org/conferences/aids2026/about/key-dates

Find a complete list of opportunities at AIDS2026 at the drop down menu at https://www.iasociety.org/conferences/aids2026

Want to learn more about International AIDS Conferences from the past and/or more about the ways in which sex workers are kept out or limited at this event, please check out our links from previous years.

AIDS2024 in Munich

Navigating AID2022 (first steps) by Beyonce K

Navigating AIDS2020 (first steps)

HIV2020: why? how?

Sex Workers Unite for AIDS2018