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Press release: Review will show that the current law is a failed experiment

Sex workers must be listened to in the review of the sex work law Currently working sex workers in Ireland are central to the review of the law, says Kate McGrew, sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI). We are the experts in how this law has affected the health and […]

Press release: Time to decriminalise sex work in order to combat Ireland’s failure to combat trafficking

Ireland has moved from Tier 2 to Tier 2 Watch List in the US State Department Trafficking in Persons report, released yesterday. This shows that our sex work laws are failing to help sex trafficking victims. Gardaí are ignoring and creating antagonism with their best resource to identify victims of sex trafficking, which are sex […]

Press release: Ireland is a safer place thanks to sex workers coming forward

“When sex workers work together with Gardaí we can make society better,” says Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) commenting on two court cases involving attacks on sex workers which were reported on today. She continues “In the case in Tralee the judge warned the accused to […]

Blood donation and sex work in Ireland

by Adeline Berry The world appears to be in turmoil and many of us are looking for ways to be part of the progress in making things better. In that spirit I recently emailed the blood donation service in Ireland to ask about their restrictions on donating. I must confess that it’s been a while […]

Time to get real about sex work in Ireland on International Sex Workers Day

“Today is International Sex Workers Day and we are marking it while slowly emerging from the throes of a global pandemic”, says Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI). She continues “Even a global pandemic cannot successfully eradicate the in-person sex industry in Ireland. Over half of the […]

Neon sign of workers holding a hammer and a vibrator

International Workers Day – Sex Work is Work

Has your income dried up because of the pandemic? Do you put in more hours online for less money than you would have before Covid-19? As a freelance worker do you find it hard to prove where your money came from to apply for emergency welfare? Well, then your experience of the coronavirus is much […]

Press release: Over 100 European NGOs endorse a statement calling for emergency support to sex workers amid the COVID-19 crisis

The International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe (ICRSE), a network of more than 100 organisations supporting sex workers has published its demands to European institutions and national governments, including emergency income replacement, a moratorium on fines, arrests and prosecution related to sex work and immigration status, access to health care for […]

Harm reduction, sex work and Covid-19

For sex workers As sex workers ourselves, we know that when everyone is being told to isolate our work gets hit. If you can take some time off to stop working and social distance now is a good time. We also know that some people will need to work to survive. This blogspot outlines a […]

Press Release: Sex workers need supports too says Sex Workers Alliance Ireland

Kate McGrew current sex worker, director of The Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) and co-convenor of the European Network for Sex Workers’ Rights (ICRSE) is calling for the Irish government to urgently act to ensure that sex workers, along with their families and communities, can access social protections during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says “As […]

SWAI Hardship Fund

On Saturday 21st March the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland launched our crowdfund to ensure that some of society’s most vulnerable people can survive. All non-essential workplaces have closed and people are being advised to stay indoors and to ‘social distance’ from each other. This is having a particular impact on the sex industry. Already sex […]

Covid-19, sex workers and the state’s response

Earlier this week we sent the following email to the caretaker Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and caretaker Minister for Health Simon Harris as well as other state departments. Sex workers who are experiencing financial difficulties, much like other precarious workers during these times, are being affected by Covid-19. We must be included in any plans for […]

Press release: Sentence of rapist shows all-too-rare justice for sex workers possible

We want to work with Gardaí so that crimes like these can come to justice On Monday Nolan Keown was sentenced to 14 years in prison after attacking, sexually assaulting and robbing two sex workers in 2016 and 2018. Kate McGrew, director of SWAI and current sex worker sais “These attacks occurred before and after […]

Press release: New liaison officers and dedicated email address show the PSNI are taking sex workers safety seriously

Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland said “Yesterday, Thursday 5 March, a private meeting was held between the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI), The Rainbow Project, UglyMugs.ie and sex workers. It was a constructive meeting and was well-attended by sex workers […]

Press statement: Public’s support of sex workers is not reflected in Ireland’s laws and policies

Today SWAI marks it’s 10 year anniversary and reflects over the work we have done and the work we need to do. Kate McGrew, current sex worker and director of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) says “Since its inception in 2009 SWAI have sought to bring an alternative voice to the discussion around sex […]

Press release: Attacks, robberies, rapes and assaults on workers in 2019 all caused by sex working laws

Today is International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Sex Workers. Safety and a life free from violence is everyone’s right. But sex workers are put in danger because of our laws and the stigma surrounding sex work. Catriona, current sex worker and chairperson of the Sex Workers Alliance Ireland (SWAI) said “Since the sex work […]

2nd Annual Laura Lee lecture speech

In November 2019 we spoke at the 2nd Annual Laura Lee lecture. We read out a speech by a male sex worker. Male sex workers are absent from the conversation about sex work in Ireland. His speech highlights the stigma and shame that exists around sex work. We have helped this man get refugee […]

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