International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers

International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers is December 17, 2008. Advocates for sex workers include SWIRL, a nonprofit radio station, $PREAD magazine and Dr. Annie Sprinkle, a retired porn star and prostitute. Within the feminist community the pros and cons of prostitution, stripping and pornography are highly debated issues. Some feminists, like Andrea Dworkin, devoted their careers to protesting pornography and sex work, claiming that it was extremely detrimental to women. However, some people claim that prostituion, porn and stripping are empowering for women and are done by their own volition.

What is not being debated though is the fact that sex workers are at greater risk of being raped, murdered and contracting STDS then other women, and there is not enough being done by the law to protect them. When a prostitute is murdered or raped, the message from society tends to be along the lines of "Well they were asking for it" or "They put themselves in danger and therefore it is partially their fault" or "How is it possible to rape a prostitute?". What International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers is about is drawing attention to these social misjudgments. Sex workers are human beings and deserve the same rights as any other person in this world. To read more about this check out Annie Sprinkle's essay "Stopping the Terror: A Day to End Violence Against Prostitutes".

International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers