![]() ![]() The criminalization of sex work feeds the mass incarceration system by putting more people in jail unnecessarily. Decriminalizing sex work would promote the message that Black trans lives matter. Sex workers, and especially trans women, would be more able to govern their own bodies and livelihoods. If sex work is decriminalized, police would have one less tool to harass and marginalize trans women of color. We can’t go about our lives without fear of being targeted by police. Police profile us and often press prostitution charges based on clothing or condoms found in a purse. Trans women of color feel the impact of criminalization the most, whether or not we are sex workers. The passage of anti-sex work laws like SESTA/FOSTA harms the community by dramatically decreasing incomes, which further marginalizes members of the trans community, people of color, or those with low incomes to begin with. ![]() Sex work criminalization laws impact the whole LGBTQ community because members of the community - particularly LGBTQ people of color, LGBTQ immigrants, and transgender people - are more likely to be sex workers. Here are five reasons to decriminalize sex work that would protect sex workers, help hold police accountable, and ensure equality for all members of society, including those who choose to make a living based by self-governing their own bodies. Some even think that decriminalization would harm sex workers. In 2020 the call for decriminalization has made progress, but there are still widespread misconceptions about sex work and sex workers that are holding us back. It would also help sex workers access health care, lower the risk of violence from clients, reduce mass incarceration, and advance equality in the LGBTQ community, especially for trans women of color, who are often profiled and harassed whether or not we are actually sex workers. Protecting sex workers from police violence is just one of the reasons we need to decriminalize sex work. If we lived in a world that didn’t criminalize sex work, sex workers could better protect themselves and seek justice when they are harmed. ![]() The police usually get away with the abuse because sex workers fear being arrested if they report. Police regularly target, harass, and assault sex workers or people they think are sex workers, such as trans women of color. Sex workers aren’t always a part of the conversation about police brutality, but they should be. ![]()
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