SWOP Tucson

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The Sex Workers Outreach Project (SWOP) is a national grassroots movement which focuses on improving the lives of sex industry workers by promoting safety, dignity and diversity in sex work, and fosters an environment that affirms individual choices and occupational rights.

SWOP-Tucson is the Tucson, Arizona chapter of SWOP-USA. Tucson has been one of the nation’s foremost cities in the Sex Worker Rights Movement, hosting international events and festivals since 2001, and raising the awareness of our fight for equal protection under the law.

Who do you work with?

We work with all sex workers. LGBTQI, people of colour, men and women both street based as well as carpet walkers and immigrant workers. We are also working on establishing relationships with LE and health professionals.

How are sex workers involved in your organisation?

Our group is mainly comprised of sex workers with allie's being the vast minority. We are sex worker led, sex worker organisedd and all decisions are sex worker based.

Which of NSWP priority areas does your organisation work on?
Oppose the criminalisation and other legal oppression of sex work and support its recognition as work
Critique the trafficking paradigm that conflates representations of sex work, migration, and mobility
Advocate for universal access to health services, including primary health care, HIV and sexual and reproductive health services
Speak out about violence against sex workers, including violence from police, institutions, clients, and intimate partners, while challenging the myth that sex work is inherently gender-based violence
Oppose human rights abuses, including coercive programming, mandatory testing, raids and forced rehabilitation
Challenge stigma and discrimination against sex workers, their families and partners, and others involved in sex work
Advocate for the economic empowerment and social inclusion of sex workers as sex workers
What are the two main challenges that the sex workers you work with face

The biggest challenge I see currently is dealing with anti trafficking movement. We are repeatedly excluded from trafficking conferences as well as other events which need our voices and input. When we attend these events anyway, we are classified as 'having a false sense of consciousness' and told we are victims and do not realise it.
We also deal with repeated arrests of adult consensual workers during the anti trafficking raids seeking youth workers. We cannot come close to the funding.

Describe other areas of your work

We work directly with all sex workers to eradicate stigma, provide harm reduction as well as help. Educate the general public of basic sex worker/human rights.

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