LOS ANGELES — Today marks “International Sex Worker Rights Day.”
And if you haven’t figured out how to celebrate it perhaps you should check into the Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOP) USA’s website where the national grassroots social justice network dedicated to the fundamental human rights of sex workers and their communities has provided a toolkit.
SWOP says it casts a wide net when it comes to defining sex work. Jobs may include escorting, stripping, professional domination and submission, porn performing, peep show dancing, sacred intimacy, phone sex, web camming and more.
SWOP’s toolkit contains background about the annual March 3 event, print handouts and social media images, quotes and ideas for commemorating this day.
International Sex Worker Rights Day began 15 years ago when more than 25,000 sex workers gathered in India.
To celebrate International Sex Worker Rights Day this year, numerous events are planned in SWOP chapter regions worldwide and throughout the U.S., including in Seattle, the San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix and New Mexico.
“Ultimately, March 3 provides an opportunity to shine a spotlight on sex worker activism, resilience, community and strength, and away from salaciousness, violations and paternalism,” SWOP-USA leaders said on the group’s website. “Sex worker organizing extends across the globe, with efforts aimed at demanding recognition of sex worker autonomy, freedom from criminalization and legal protection from violence and abuse.”
