March 3rd is International Sex Worker’s Rights Day. Today, we stand in solidarity to support the human rights of sex workers all over the world. This annual day of awareness originally began in 2001 when over 25,000 sex workers gathered for a sex worker festival in India. Ever since, women across the globe have been observing this day as a time to educate, advocate, and fight for the rights of sex workers.
I recently came across the book, “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.” Although I have only begun to read the first few pages, it already seems like an important read. Authors Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn, a Pulitzer-prize winning couple, have written this book to advocate for the health, rights, and autonomy of women all over the world. The book focuses on women who have been sex trafficked, forced into prostitution, and who have been victims of gender-based violence. The purpose of the book is to shed light on these issues and hopefully inspire its readers to also become involved in the movement. It seemed an appropriate book to mention today.
If you are looking for a way to observe International Sex Worker’s Rights Day check for local events in your area.
By Krystal Chan, Development and Communications Intern
Half the Sky doesn’t do a great job of highlighting the work of sex workers to claim their rights. Instead, Kristof and Wudunn treat sex workers as voiceless victims in need of rescuing. While conditions in the sex industry are deplorable around the world, the rescue mindset is patronizing and overly simplistic.
I highly recommend the books “Reluctant Bedfellows: Feminism, Activism and Prostitution in the Philippines” and “Sex at the Margins: Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue Industry” – both are really thoughtful and complex books about an often ugly business and the human rights work that people are doing in and around it.
Thanks for the clarification Audacia. It’s unfortunate that that’s a common trope among books like those.
Thank you for the other book recommendations!
Yes, thanks for the recommendations! However, I think books like Half the Sky might be a good starting point for people to get introduced to this horrible problem. The fact that it is backed by huge celebrities like George Clooney, helps people that would not have otherwise cared about the book or movement, become interested. I guess my hope is that in turn, those people will become so engaged that they will want to become further educated and perhaps pick up books like the ones you recommended! Thanks!