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Supporting Brazilian sex workers

June 13th, 2013 · · Campaigns No comments - Tags: ,

Sex workers in Brazil are challenging the Brazilian government’s decision in early June 2013 to first veto and then drastically alter an HIV prevention campaign that had been developed by the Department of STD/AIDS/Ministry of Health in partnership with sex workers earlier this year. After abruptly ordering the rights based materials to be taken offline the government relaunched the campaign with sanitized and adulterated materials several days later. The government  removed slogans about rights, citizenship, and positive affirmations of the profession from all campaign materials replacing them with fear based messages such as, “AIDS still has no cure.”

Sex workers in Brazil have released statements critisizing the government’s actions both as separate NGOs and in a powerful joint statement from the Brazilian Network of Prostitutes. Davida’s newspaper, Beijo da Rua, has reported that the sex workers that appeared in the campaign are sending cease and desist letters to the Ministry of Health revoking their releases for using their images and demanding the immediate suspension of the campaign materials in which they appear. The Ministry has now taken the campaign offline, and the fight continues to request that the Minister be forced to resign, and demand that prostitutes’ voices be heard and respected.

International pressure is incredibly important and effective in swaying political decisions. Activists and allies around the world can help support Brazilian sex workers actions:

Equal rights for all professions!

Equal rights for all professions!

Challenging “Helpful” Raids in Phoenix, Arizona

May 15th, 2013 · · Campaigns, News Archive 2 comments - Tags: , ,

This week, Project ROSE—a collaboration between the Phoenix Police Department, ASU School of Social Work and a number of local service organizations–is conducting a three
day raid targeting sex workers and people in the sex trade for arrest. Sex workers and their allies have organized a comprehensive response to these rights violating raids which are planned for May 15, 16 and 17. Advocates have distributed “know your rights” information amongst communities who may be affected by Project ROSE’s raids. A public action protesting the raids is planned on Thursday May 16 at 4.30 pm in front of the “command post” at Bethany Bible Church where community members will be transported after their arrest by the Phoenix Police Department.

Project Rose is predicated on the notion that arresting people in the sex trade is the best way to link them to services. This program relies on force, not human rights and harm reduction. Arrestees who are eligible—the program is available to those with no prior arrests for sex work, no outstanding warrants, and not in possession of any drugs at the time of arrest—only have the option of “diversion” to Project ROSE or incarceration on a prostitution charge.

Sex worker rights advocates in Phoenix are challenging the utility of Project ROSE and are raising concerns about the abuses that arrested community members may experience at the hands of the police and in prisons. “Project ROSE is not a solution to violence and harm against sex workers,” said Jenelle Lovelie of the Phoenix chapter of the Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOP), adding that, “Project ROSE criminalizes sex workers and masquerades as a social service project.” Another local organizer Jaclyn Moskal-Dairman noted that the “restrictive eligibility criteria for accepting ‘diversion’ from criminal charges mean that many who will be arrested this week will not be offered services at all. Instead they will be incarcerated.” In Arizona people arrested under anti-prostitution statutes face a mandatory minimum sentence on their first charge and felony charges after the third arrest. Experience has shown that being incarcerated in Arizona can be a death sentence. In May 2009 Marcia Powell, a woman serving a 27 month sentence for solicitation of prostitution, died after being left in a prison holding cage in the blazing sun without water. Project ROSE would not have assisted Marcia, the program would have imprisoned her because she had several prior arrests for prostitution.

Sex workers and their allies are demanding rights based approaches that work such as peer based outreach programs, comprehensive services and an end to police harassment and arrest. They are adamant that Project ROSE is ineffective and the numbers confirm their claims. Of 214 people arrested since the program began three years ago only about one third complete the diversion program. The fate of the remaining 70% is not clear, but it seems likely given Arizona’s tough stance on incarceration that they have been sentenced to jail or prison.

 

Sex worker rights submission to 2013 TIP Report

March 7th, 2013 · · Policy Updates, Reports No comments

BPPP, Desiree Alliance, SWOP-NYC and SWANK collaborated to provide written information to the US Department of State for inclusion in the annual Trafficking in Persons Report (the TIP Report). This annual report is intended to illustrate the degree to which the United States and foreign governments comply with the “minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons” that are prescribed by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000.

In our written testimony our organizations strongly encouraged the US Department of State to include information in the 2013 TIP report about anti-trafficking policies that have violated the spirit of UPR Recommendation 86 leading to violence and discrimination against sex workers, people in the sex trade and people who are profiled as engaging in prostitution. Such policies include the use of anti-trafficking funding to arrest, detain, incarcerate, deport and harass sex workers and people presumed to be sex workers, their families, and people who are presumed to be their customers. We also noted that the US government still hinders effective, rights based programming domestically and globally by placing politically-driven restrictions on the criteria for organizations that may receive grants under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) and President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).  Read the full written contribution.

Hold the US accountable: Give input to TIP Report

February 27th, 2013 · · Policy Updates No comments

The U.S. State Department is seeking input for inclusion in its global Trafficking in Person (TIP) Report from organizations within the United States and from around the world. Historically, U.S. approaches to the issue have implicitly or explicitly endorsed human rights abuses against sex worker communities in the name of combating human trafficking. When members of BPPP and the Desiree Alliance met with staff at the TIP office last year, they welcomed our input into the forthcoming report. BPPP will send in a short submission and we shall see if any of our perspectives are included. We encourage other groups to do the same, if possible. State Department officials will accept additional documentation until March 6, 2013 and reporting occurs annually . Organizations can report on what is happening in the U.S. as well as what is happening abroad.

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