Sex Work Harm Reduction

In the sex work community, there are a lot of issues around safety and discrimination. The sex work community overlaps with the highly drug-affected communities in many ways, which has inspired this project to become a reality to save the lives of many people. Harm reduction in highly populated drug and sex work communities can change people’s experiences, and keep families together longer.

There are many people who would not be alive if it weren’t for clean needles and someone to talk to. It is too often that people in these communities are treated as if they are less than a human. More communities need groups to advocate for sex work and harm reduction. Although it can be tough to have these conversations, it is important if keeping people in these communities safe. Even if you do not live or work in sex work or a highly drug-affected area, there are many people who have lost loved ones or friends to preventable situations.

Harm reduction has been an outlet for many people to change their lives from addict to advocate, and to keep people safe with new items like condoms or needles. In many states, there are laws that a sex worker can be arrested for possession of a needle, and charged as a drug offender without questions. It doesn’t seem to matter that more than half of the transgender sex workers out there are using needles to inject hormones and such. This project was made for more communities to step up, and fight for change. Drug users and sex workers deserve to be treated like people. They can not be treated as a problem that will just go away. If you want the communities around these communities to remain safe, then we have to build up the less fortunate.

There are manysex workers and drug users with mental issues in these communities that get overlooked or pushed aside. They need someone to believe in them, look them in the eye, talk to them with respect, and give them a real option for getting clean. Many people in these situations do not think they can or deserve to have a good life. Having somewhere to go and get clean supplies can make them feel better about life and keeping them safe. Why should you keep yourself safe if no one else cares if you are safe? Many people do care and this project is the first step to getting these communities the help the help they deserve.