If you want to help sex workers but don't know where to start, the nswp website is a good place to start. You can read through some of the many, many articles they have on the issues currently facing sex workers, like why decriminalization is good, current research, myths about sex work, etc. A page I want to highlight is the legal map, which shows the legality of sex work worldwide. There are lots of resources on that page on understanding decriminalisation, legalisation and other common policies that affect sex workers. There's also a news section for issues regarding sex work. The nswp is a global organization, and they get news from all over the world. Chances are, there's something in your country worth fighting for.
For those who can spare a few bucks, please consider donating! You can donate to the nswp directly by scrolling down and finding the 'donate' button at the bottom of the cage, or you can donate to one of their member groups. Every member of the nswp is led by sex workers. The members page is here, and the page for North America and the Caribbean here. Check to see if they have any members listed for your city! Of course, you don't have to donate only to your local groups. If you live in a place like the United States, or Australia, or any of the "richer" and more "developed" countries, remember that one dollar/one pound can stretch much further in countries that have a lower gdp. For example, the current exchange rate right now for 1 Canadian dollar is 5 yuan, 58 rupees and 51 pesos.
If you do want to donate locally but you don't see your own city on the list, feel free to do your own research! Just keep in mind that a lot of charities stated to help sex workers do not support sex work in itself. They are looking to 'rescue' women from an 'exploitative career' that they MUST be forced into. Be wary of orgs whose stated purpose is to 'end trafficking' or 'end sexual exploitation'. Those are noble goals, but many charities interested in helping women escape sex work also support the criminalization of sex work. Not only does that actively undermine their own stated goals, criminalization is actively dangerous to ALL sex workers, especially full-contact sex workers, ESPECIALLY for the trafficked and exploited women that they supposedly want to help.
Please be careful about doing your own research. Even if you jump off from the nswp list, you should still look into the specific group you want to donate to. Look through their website to see what, exactly, their stated purpose is. Search up their name in local news to see what they do around the community. Look into the founders and glean their values, and look into previous projects they've started in the past and the people they associate with. Ties to religious institutions are not always a red flag - Christianity gets a bad rep, but it's not synonymous with far-right evangelism. It is also true, however, that many religious organizations staunchly oppose sex work as a whole and want it stamped out.
If you don't have money to spare, you can still help us by reading up on the legal issues facing sex workers worldwide, supporting our efforts to end criminalization and spreading the news to other people in your life. Self-advocacy is extremely hard for sex workers when many of us can't even disclose what we do. The fact that I can even write this post puts me in a very privileged position. People who aren't involved in sex work generally don't think about us. Get them to think! Get people talking. In order for us to gain the rights that we deserve, people have to care. We need to be seen as more than just stories, a quirky thinkpiece on how an influencer makes $10k a month on onlyfans or as another tragic victim of violence. The fight isn't about religion or morality. It's about labour. We deserve to exist in the world without hiding what we do.
