Fact-checking myths about sex work in the United States is crucial for protecting the human rights of sex workers and promoting sexual freedom. Misinformation often leads to harmful policies and social stigma that endanger sex workers’ safety and well-being. Accurate information helps combat discriminatory practices, reduces violence against sex workers, and promotes access to healthcare and legal protections. Furthermore, dispelling myths about sex work is essential for advancing equality for marginalized communities, particularly LGBTQ+ individuals and people of color, who are disproportionately affected by criminalization and stigma.
Criminalization of sex work is often falsely believed to improve societal health, minimize sex trafficking, and keep sex workers safe. However, criminalization worsens these outcomes by driving both sex workers and trafficking victims underground, where they experience more violence, fewer social services, and less access to adequate healthcare. Decriminalization would be far more effective at ensuring sex workers’ physical safety, economic stability, and physical and mental health.
The media frequently reports the Super Bowl to be a huge event for sex trafficking. However, sex trafficking during the Super Bowl is not higher than the rate of sex trafficking in general and efforts to curtail the alleged higher numbers of trafficking actually hinder overall anti-trafficking efforts.
Are all sex workers victims of trafficking and exploitation? No, many sex workers choose their profession voluntarily and have agency in their work. Conflating sex workers with sex trafficking victims dismisses this agency and, as a result, diminishes…
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