Press Release

Supporting trans people means supporting sex work decriminalisation

November 20, 2021

This Trans Day of Remembrance LGBTQI+ organisations must stand with the Sex Workers Alliance of Ireland (SWAI) when we call for the full decriminalisation of sex work. Any alternative is putting the health and safety of trans people at risk.

Aoife Bloom, board member of SWAI says “Today, on Trans Day of Remembrance 2021 we demand that society acknowledges how the majority of trans people who were killed in 2021 were trans sex workers.

2021 is a record-breaking year for violence against trans people. 375 gender diverse people were murdered and the majority of those murdered were black and migrant. Over half of those murdered were sex workers. When we talk about transphobic violence and Trans Day of Remembrance we’re usually talking about trans sex workers of colour.”

She continues “Here in Ireland, trans sex workers are often the victims of the spate of violence that occurred directly after the law changed in 2017. Liam Vickers preyed on a vulnerable trans woman and was enabled by our recently changed laws. The change in law created an environment wherein our vulnerability was highlighted in the media, without providing any new protections for us whatsoever. The law increased criminalisation of people co-working, under “brothel-keeping” legislation, distancing us from authorities, and also forcing us to work alone if we were trying to work within legal parameters. Since the law changed in 2017 we have seen a 92% increase in violent crimes against us.

Recent research by the European Sex Worker Alliance (ESWA) highlights that 83% of sex workers surveys felt that transphobia had a detrimental effect on their mental health. Trans people are over represented in the sex work community because they are marginsalised and unable to find other work. Sex work is an economic activity, after all.

Our current model of client criminalisation does not respond to the circumstances of deep poverty, domestic violence, homelessness, precarity and drug use that may lead to people selling sex. Sex workers exist on the sharp end of misogyny, racism, transphobia and other forms of marginalisation. Sex workers must work alone to work legally which increases our vulnerability.

How long more can government, health authorities, and gender equality bodies here ignore the growing body of evidence that shows that their policies are damaging and endangering to the physical and mental health of this precarious group of people?

SWAI demands that organisations that claim to support trans people start to advocate and agitate for the full decriminalisation of sex work. Decriminalisation is essential for combating trans marginalisation and HIV rates, building trust with marginalised communities and providing access to sexual health supports. You cannot be pro LGBT rights without being pro-sex worker rights.”

Statement on OnlyFans changes

August 25, 2021

Adult webcam and virtual sex chat concept. Laptop with whip, dildo vibrator, buttplug and gag on red pink background

The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) welcomes the news that OnlyFans will not proceed with new changes in OnlyFans announced last week which would ban sexually explicit content. This reversal is due to the sex work community rallying and ensuring that the shock and fear our community felt was heard.

Aoife Bloom, board member of SWAI said “The global pandemic continues and while we are slowly reopening some sex workers are supplementing their income through online work. Throughout the pandemic the number of OnlyFans content creators increased dramatically which undoubtedly increased the profits for the shareholder immensely.”

She continued “Sex workers are familiar with exclusion from financial platforms. PayPal, which have its European headquarters in Ireland, have closed the accounts of sex workers, refused to pay out the remaining balance which amounts to stealing money, even for those who do not use the platform to be paid for sex work. GoFundMe, a popular crowdfunding site that many trans people use to raise money to pay for the surgeries they do not have access to here in Ireland, does not allow sex workers to use their platform. Our COVID hardship fund in 2020 sought to get cash straight into the hands of sex workers who really needed it and we struggled with a reliable way to deliver it. May we remind people that sex work in Ireland is not illegal, at least according to the proponents of the Nordic Model of client criminalisation in Ireland.”

“These new regulations would have been a fallout from the FOSTA SESTA laws, introduced in the United States in 2018. These laws made advertising sex work illegal which meant workers could no longer use these sites to find clients and many were forced back to their exploitative managers (pimps) or working in the street. We have seen that these third parties have contacted OnlyFans workers in the wake of the proposed changes. Stigma and marginalisation make sex workers reliant on third parties which opens them up to exploitation.”

“Reducing the income of sex workers is a core tenant of the End Demand model of client criminalisation. Many sex workers were not included in government supports which meant that over 50% of the sex workers we spoke to were unable to give up in-person work. As we have stated time and again reducing the income of sex workers does nothing to end exploitation and trafficking in the industry and in fact make sex workers less safe. Sex workers could have been forced to move away from OnlyFans into in-person work. This loss of income could have forced workers into taking risks such as not using condoms or taking on clients that they would normally turn down.”

“Despite the claims of anti-sex work organisations in Ireland and elsewhere, there is no evidence that people have been coerced into creating content. The platform allows workers to set their own time, be their own boss and avoid exploitative pornography production companies. It is clear that anti-sex work ideology is more important than mitigating risk for people working in the industry. These financial institutes claim a moral authority but continue to work with companies that are responsible for climate change, or the opioid crisis.”

“Sex workers are people, it seems we have to remind the world of this. Sex workers are excluded from financial institutions and social media platforms, even when the mantra for the past 18 months has been to stay indoors. The organisations calling for this exclusion have dark histories of religious oppression and anti-choice rhetoric, including in Ireland. Make no mistake, they will not stop at excluding sex workers, other marginalised people will be next. Where will this end?”

“Sex workers are the canaries in the coal mine for many regressive laws and regulations. Decriminalisation of sex work is the first step in ending the stigma of our work. We are entitled to work as safely as possible. Decriminalisation will not legalise exploitation or trafficking. Our current legal model is failing sex workers and has done nothing to keep us safe since its introduction.”

Ireland is failing trafficking victims by criminalising sex work

July 30, 2021

Today, 30th July is World Day Against Trafficking in Person. Ireland continues to languish in the Tier 2 Watchlist of the Trafficking in Persons Report, as we fail to tackle the root causes of trafficking while pursuing failed strategies such as criminalising aspects of sex work.

In 2017 Ireland introduced client criminalisation, increased penalties for sex workers co-working in a bid to ‘End Demand’ of sex work and thereby somehow reduce people being trafficked into Ireland. This blanket policy has had far-reaching consequences which we warned about prior to its introduction. Only two clients have been prosecuted under the law. Many more sex workers have been arrested, deported or threatened with deportation for working together for safety. Violence against sex workers has increased by 92% while trust in Gardaí has decreased to 1%.

It has also failed to reduce trafficking in Ireland. Reports funded by the Department of Justice show that we are underestimating the number of trafficking victims in Ireland by 38%. Convictions of traffickers have fallen while the number of victims identified has increased since 2017.

Organised crime flourishes in industries where a good or service is criminalised in some way. An Organised Crime in Prostitution Unit of the Gardaí was recently established, however, this unit enforces laws that marginalise sex workers and damage trust in the Gardaí. Criminalising any aspect of sex work forces it underground, away from services and justice. Politicians who support the prohibition of sex work are misguidedly supporting organised crime.

The review of the law which began in 2020 gives us an opportunity to reimagine our anti-trafficking efforts as well as putting the health and safety of those in the sex industry first. We need to tackle the reasons why trafficking exists such as repressive border regimes which increase exploitation. We need a firewall between immigration and the sex work unit of the Gardaí so that any undocumented person will feel free to report abuse without fear of deportation.

This review could also highlight that sex workers ourselves are best placed to highlight exploitation in our industry. Aoife Bloom, board member of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “No one wants trafficking and abuse to end more than sex workers ourselves. Creating laws that deal with sex trafficking separate to those that deal with other forms of labour trafficking have become anti-migrant or anti-migration measures. Our brothel-keeping laws have been applied in a racist way as highlighted by IHREC. Sex work is an economic activity and sex workers need to be able to enjoy labour rights that other workers enjoy. Trafficking can be tackled by strong unions and proper reporting mechanisms as in other sectors of the economy, but our laws prevent sex workers from doing this and it makes us more vulnerable.”

She continues “SWAI calls for the decriminalisation of sex work along with PICUM Members (Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, International Labour Organization and The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW). Decriminalisation of sex work does not decriminalise trafficking but will ensure that the Gardaí can utilise the best resource they have against sex trafficking, sex worker ourselves.”

Pandemic of violence against sex workers brought about by change in law has not ended

July 24, 2021

Yesterday a man who attacked and robbed two sex workers working together for safety was jailed for 10 years.

Aoife Bloom, board member of SWAI says “The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) welcomes the news that a man who violently attacked two members of our community was jailed for 10 years. We commend the bravery of these two workers in helping to bring this man to justice. However, we feel that this harrowing crime was entirely preventable. These violent assaults are the direct result of the introduction of client criminalisation and the increase in penalties against so-called brothel-keeping in 2017.”

“SWAI and other allies warned that these new laws would push sex workers away from Gardaí and drive the industry underground. Those who work together for safety risk arrest and jail time. Criminals know this and target sex workers precisely because the law forces sex workers to work alone to work legally. Those who are co-working are unlikely to contact the Gardaí if they are the victims of a crime. This makes us sitting ducks!”

“Thankfully the victims were not discouraged by these laws from reporting the assault in this particular instance. However we know that violent incidents like this have become more common since 2017 while the trust in the Gardaí necessary to report crimes like these has fallen. As a result successful prosecutions such as this one have become more difficult.”

“Since 2017 there has been a 92% increase in violence against sex workers. There has also been a reduction in trust in the Gardaí. Less than 1% of sex workers feel comfortable in reporting crimes against them. The victims, in this case, were migrant workers, forced to work by economic circumstances. As we face into a recession, more and more people will enter this industry.”

“We want to reduce the harm in sex work and ensure people in the industry are as safe as they can be. Sex work prohibitionists and misguided politicians who support our regressive laws say that sex work can never be safe. We beg of them to just listen to sex workers when we say that Ireland needs to decriminalise sex work so we can be safe. Their ideology is not more important than our safety.”

Press release: Decriminalisation of sex work is the first step to helping trafficking victims

July 2, 2021

For the second year in a row Ireland languishes in the Tier 2 Watchlist of the Trafficking in Persons report. Ireland has still not persecuted anyone for trafficking in 7 years and this year marks the fewest trafficking victims identified since 2013.

Aoife Bloom, sex worker and spokesperson for the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “This report highlights how the Nordic Model of client criminalisation has failed. The law was brought in with great fanfare as it sought to end the exploitation of people in the sex industry by ending demand. Since then victim identification has fallen and anecdotally we know that Garda intelligence on trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation has decreased since the introduction of this law. Violence against sex workers has also increased by 92% in that time.

“The Trafficking in Persons report and experts acknowledge that Direct Provision is unsuitable accommodation for trafficking victims, which is a tacit acknowledgement that Direct Provision can compound trauma and is not fit for purpose. We support the Movement for Asylum Seekers (MASI) and other organisations’ calls to End Direct Provision.

“We welcomed the news earlier this year on the introduction of the National Referral mechanism and we anticipate the inclusion of NGOs who do not conflate all sex work with sex trafficking. We also support the report’s call for an exemption for crimes committed while trafficked, as we know in Northern Ireland a woman was convicted of trafficking while being a victim of trafficking herself, and migrants have been prosecuted for working in cannabis grow houses while being labour trafficked.

“The government didn’t initiate any prosecutions for labour trafficking in 2020 but has spent significant money on ‘Awareness-raising’ schemes. The fishing industry has been highlighted as a site of exploitation by NGO’s working with migrants yet no trafficking victims were identified in 2020.”

“Sex workers have not been included as part of Ireland’s anti-trafficking forum. Sex workers and sex worker-led organisations need to be recognised as a vital part of anti-trafficking efforts. Unfortunately, Ireland’s anti-trafficking efforts intersect with our repressive laws which seek to prohibit all sex work. This conflation of sex work and sex trafficking makes sex workers more vulnerable to exploitation and violence by pushing their livelihood underground, it also diverts resources away from fighting trafficking and prolongs the suffering and exploitation of trafficking victims. In fact, these laws have focused almost exclusively on young migrant sex workers working together for safety.

“Sex workers can be an ally in anti-trafficking efforts but we are unutilised and over-policed, making more difficult for us to report exploitation.

“Sex trafficking is a complex and abhorrent crime and the solutions to trafficking in Ireland lie in prevention. Oppressive border controls and lack of legal migration avenues, as well as poverty and addiction increase trafficking. SWAI also calls for a firewall between immigration and other parts of the justice system so that undocumented people who have been exploited, assaulted or raped do not fear deportation.

“Sex work must be recognised as work so that sex workers can enjoy the same labour rights as other workers. In other sectors, strong unions and proper reporting mechanisms have a role to play in ending exploitation. But as sex workers operate in a partially criminalised environment we cannot organise like other workers. Separating out sex trafficking from other forms of trafficking has created laws that make us more vulnerable.

“SWAI continues our call to decriminalise sex work to ensure the health and safety of consensual sex workers and those exploited in the sex industry. The focus on clients and sex workers working together for safety does nothing to combat trafficking. Decriminalisation of sex work will not decriminalise trafficking but will allow sex workers to report exploitation without fear.”

Press release: Expunging Of Criminal Records for “Sale of Sex” Cautiously Welcomed

April 26, 2021

Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) Welcomes Minister McEntee’s Initiativeto Expunge 607 Convictions for the Sale of Sex but says it does not go far enough.

The Criminal Law Sexual Offenses Act 2017 criminalised the purchase of sex and nearly tripled penalties for sex workers working in pairs or groups. In the late stages of the passing of the bill SWAI managed to succeed in getting decriminalisation of outdoor workers as an amendment, despite it not being the original intention of the law.

Kate McGrew, Director SWAI: “We can assume that the convictions that are being overturned are instead for outdoor workers, and not for workers sharing a workspace, as under this law they face tripled penalties, and potential jail time, We have seen workers serving sentences under this law since its inception in 2017. However outdoor workers are criminalised in a number of other ways, including under COVID regulations.

For sex workers who would like to move on to other work, a criminal record is a major obstacle in doing so. SWAI demands that criminal records for brothel-keeping also be expunged, as this is defined as criminalisation of merely co-working, and this is where the majority of sex worker convictions have occurred since 2017. This law continues to force us to work alone if we are to work legally.”

SWAI advocates for full decriminalisation of the sex industry, including a reversal of client criminalisation, which criminalises our income and pushes us deeper into precarity, in order to remove barriers to justice. Worldwide evidence has shown that this is the best legislative model for best outcomes for a marginalised and diverse population.”

Press Release: For Woman Charged with Facilitation of Prostitution, Sex Workers Alliance Ireland Demands Court Obey Deportation Moratorium

January 27, 2021

Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) demands that the courts obey the blanket ban on deportations reinstated by the Taoiseach since Level 5 Covid restrictions began.

A 32-year-old Polish native with an 11-month old son was handed down a suspended sentence yesterday in Waterford court for facilitating prostitution. She was given the choice of a 1 year prison sentence in Ireland or leaving the Republic within the next 14 days, with a promise to not return for 5 years. Her resultant departure from Ireland – whilst not officially a deportation – flies in the face of the health advice that led the Taoiseach to reinstate the deportation moratorium.

The judge incorrectly stated that “the sale of sex is a crime”. He, however, acknowledged that no one involved had been coerced and that the sex work was an economic activity. Notably, there was mention of a man present whom it was believed the women in the apartment were “fearful” of, yet it was the new mother herself who was faced with any charge. The judge also mentioned that “Society has to be protected from this sort of behaviour” harkening back to an old Ireland where stigma and shame of sexuality subjugated women.

This is another case where the brunt of the so-called brothel-keeping laws are born by migrant sex workers, as highlighted by the brothel-keepers research. The brothel-keeping law means that even two workers working together for safety are working illegally which increases our precarity.

Kate McGrew, sex worker and director Sex Workers Alliance Ireland, stated: “We advocate for a decriminalised sex industry in order that sex workers can avail of safe and vetted work environments. It is due to the current criminalization, direct and by proxy, that sex workers are forced onto a black market where criminals are poised to take advantage of our lack of options.”

She continues: “Where we are concerned about the well-being of those in the sex industry, we must acknowledge that our ability to make safe decisions is curtailed by this criminal law.”

Press Release: Misguided law led to attack on trans worker, says Sex Workers Alliance Ireland

January 22, 2021

Liam Vickers preyed on a vulnerable trans woman and was enabled by our recently changed laws

Kate McGrew, director of Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) applauds this brave sex worker who reported the crime and we call for an end to the criminalisation and stigmatisation that leaves this vulnerable population in the shadows.”

She continues “This occurred immediately in the wake of increased criminalisation of both this worker and her client. The change in law created an environment wherein our vulnerability was highlighted in the media, without providing any new protections for us whatsoever. The law increased criminalisation of people co-working, under “brothel-keeping” legislation, distancing us from authorities, and also forcing us to work alone if we were trying to work within legal parameters. Since the law changed in 2017 we have seen a 92% increase in violent crimes against us. This is yet another example.

SWAI calls for full decriminalisation of the sex industry. Were Ireland to repeal the criminalisation of brothel-keeping and the purchase of sex, we would see more sex workers engaging with the justice system. We will see better outcomes for sex workers when we have legal and vetted options within the industry. We will see better outcomes for sex workers as society begins to acknowledge the reality that sex work is an economic activity, and therefore sex workers are labourers deserving of protections afforded to all workers. Irish culture is moving in this direction, it is time that this be reflected at state and policy levels.

In the 2017 incident, the escort was obviously the victim of a violent crime. Yet, in Vickers’ statement the court heard that he brought the knife that he used to stab the victim because it was he himself who was afraid of “being robbed”. Sex workers are forced to work alone by our laws, which increased penalties for so-called brothel-keeping in 2017.

Sex workers are perpetually bound by the dichotomy of victim and criminal identities. Depending on the moment, either will be deployed against us and used to erase our perspective of our own experiences.”

Structural and actual violence against sex workers did not end under COVID

December 17, 2020

December 17th marks International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers.

Kate McGrew, director of Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “This year the review of the sex work laws has begun and we worked to ensure that sex worker’s voices were heard in the policy decisions that govern our lives. These laws have kept us isolated by ensuring we work alone or forcing us to break the law when we work together with another worker for safety. Poverty is brutal and taking away our options does nothing to increase our safety. These laws have increased violence against us and only by fully decriminalising sex work will we begin to remedy that and centre the safety of sex workers.”

She continues “The End Demand laws were purported to end trafficking but Ireland has moved down to the Tier 2 Watchlist in the US Trafficking in Persons Report this year.

This year so-called brothel workers remain imprisoned. In Limerick, co-workers were attacked precisely because they were working together for safety and they had no legal recourse that would not result in them also being arrested. We have seen more migrant workers sentenced around the country. Our sex work and so-called brothel-keeping laws continue to be applied in a racist way.

This year has been devastating for all marginalised people including sex workers. Because of the quasi-legal nature of our work, most sex workers did not qualify for PUP and were left behind. Our organisation was also refused funding and admission to government committees for vulnerable people because we recognise that sex work is an economic activity.

Almost half of sex workers in Ireland were unable to give up work during the pandemic and even now most have returned to work. It is simply unfeasible to expect people not to work for 9 months of the year, even if your job is intimate work. Demand for sex work was severely reduced this year and yet there were little to no supports for sex workers. Laws that are based on ideology instead of worker safety are state-supported violence against us.

Gardaí also used COVID laws to move on and detain workers and they continue to misrepresent the law. Street sex work is decriminalised in Ireland yet street workers have been pulled off the street and photographed in Garda stations so that the Gardaí can more easily identify them if they are murdered. They are then released back onto the street hours later with their whole night’s work ruined. This forces street workers to take on work they would normally turn down because the need for money is more important than the fear for their own safety.

As we face into a recession we know more and more people will turn to sex work, as they did in 2008, to make ends meet. Our laws should ensure safety for these new workers, not put them in more danger as they have since 2017.

In the last few weeks, the sex worker community has been devasted by blow after blow. Scotland is currently consulting on introducing the Nordic Model and the UK passed its first reading on legislation to introduce End Demand laws there too. These laws are being introduced for moral reasons with no evidence that they work. Sex workers are being ignored again about the reality of lives and our safety. Sex workers continue to have their income curbed as various platforms such and Instagram and Facebook have banned us and many financial platforms such as Paypal, Visa and Mastercard do not allow us on them. During a global pandemic, we need to be able to access cash. SWAI struggled with this issue when giving our hardship funds.

However, as always the sex work community takes care of our own because no one else will. We created a hardship fund which gave small grants to over 170 sex workers during the first lockdown. We also created a number of harm reduction guidelines for those who could not give up work.

The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland also received our first Irish funding, a milestone for us and an acknowledgement that affected led advocacy is key. Despite the constant cruel stigma, laws that have made us less safe and a society that wishes we weren’t there we are resilient and we deserve to be heard.”

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

Press Release: “It’s a brothel. I’ll end you!” – chilling words of a man who attacked two sex workers

October 14, 2020

Today the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) learned that two sex workers working together for safety were attacked precisely because they were, in the eyes of the law, working illegally.

Two workers were sharing a premises in Limerick when a client refused to shower properly. When he was requested to shower thoroughly he lost his temper and threw objects at the worker. She politely asked him to leave and when he reacted badly again she asked the other worker on the premises for help. He attacked them, and in the worker’s own words “He treats us with violence”. The workers involved want to warn any other sex workers in the area.

Barbara*, the sex worker involved said “This is why it has to be legal to share a flat with another worker. I can’t imagine what would have happened to her if she was here alone. One of the things that he screamed at us was “its two of you! It’s a brothel. I’ll end you!”

Kate McGrew, active sex worker and director of SWAI said “Incidences like this are the reason that sex workers work together for safety and risk breaking the law by so-called brothel-keeping. Who knows what would have happened if the worker was on her own when the client assaulted her? We need policymakers, politicians and sex work prohibitionists to understand that this is what happens when you criminalise one part of transactional sex.”

She continued “Sex workers warned that the End Demand model, brought in with great fanfare in 2017, would mean increased violence for sex workers. In fact, violent crime against sex workers has increased by 92%! The law prohibited the purchase of sex and increased penalties and added a jail sentence for workers sharing a premises. Decent clients disappeared and it became necessary to take on clients with nothing to lose, more dangerous clients to make ends meet. This is evidenced also by the fact that even in a pandemic the client refused to shower thoroughly, showing scant regard for the sex worker’s health.

Sex work is an economic activity and until it is understood as such and our needs are met in other ways sex workers will continue working. Sex workers have been forced to return to work as they have been out of work for over 7 months. Would you be able to survive without an income for that amount of time?

It is extremely unlikely that these workers will report to the Gardaí as they themselves risk arrest for breaking the law. No exploitation was involved, these women were working together for safety but, as evidenced by the HIV Ireland report published recently, sex workers are at pains to avoid interaction with the Gardaí. The so-called brothel-keeping laws have been almost exclusively used to prosecute young, migrant sex workers. Today’s incident comes on the back of the news that another migrant was prosecuted last week for brothel-keeping. These are not hypothetical scenarios, these are very real concerns of a population who are already extremely marginalised.

Sex workers look out for each other because no one else will. We have been marginalised even in discussions that affect our lives and livelihood. We need to decriminalise sex work in Ireland so that we can work with another worker legally and we can report crimes against us without fear. We all deserve to be safe in our job.

The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland is a peer-led service for anyone who sells sexual services in Ireland. Please contact us at [email protected] or 085 824 9305 if you are a sex worker and need our help.

#DecrimforSafety #SupportSafeSexWork

*Real name not given