Sex work is work, and sex workers’ rights are labor rights. The criminalization of the sex industry exacerbates violence and exploitation against marginalized sex workers, severs them from vital systems of support, and pushes instances of sex trafficking further underground which puts their lives at greater risk for violence. We support sex workers’ fight for the full decriminalization of selling sexual services and buying them as well as policies that protect the health and safety of all people in the sex industry.
Sex workers deserve the same rights afforded to other workers including the right to form unions and publicly organize for better working conditions. Sex workers should feel safe in reporting abuse that is inflicted on them and their communities without fear of retribution by law enforcement and with immunity from prosecution for engaging in their work. We stand in solidarity with the sex workers’ rights movement by rejecting labor exploitation and calling for the recognition of the basic human rights of all people in the sex trade.
