Sex workers celebrate pride in Cape Town

A sex worker pride event was held at the Village Green in Observatory, Cape Town, on Saturday. Photos: Brenton Geach

Bright orange T-shirts, costumes, music and performances were on display at the Village Green in Observatory, Cape Town on Saturday at a sex worker pride event.

Using the #SexWorkerPride2024 across social media platforms, Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT), in partnership with other organisations, sought to raise awareness about criminalisation, discrimination and stigma across the sex worker movement.

“We started celebrating sex worker pride five years ago,” said Constance Mathe, national coordinator for the Asijiki Coalition for the Decriminalisation of Sex Work.

“We believe that the decriminalisation of sex work will protect and advance the rights of sex workers because currently they have no rights under criminalisation. Decriminalisation will create a safe space especially for street and brothel sex workers.”

Mathe said people needed to start recognising sex work as work and that the labour laws needed to recognise it as legitimate employment.

“Sex workers are turned away from clinics because of the work that they do,” she said. “They end up using the services of NGO clinics, and some of those are here today.”

At the event people wore colourful costumes.

A sex worker for over 20 years, who identified herself as Bubu, started when she was a teenager being raised by a single parent. Sometimes there was no food in the house, and they would go to bed on empty stomachs, she said.

She said she has suffered police harassment, abuse and wrongful arrest. She wants her profession immediately decriminalised.

Lloyd Rugara, provincial coordinator for Sisonke, which advocates for the rights of sex workers, said, “Today, we are wearing the face of pride, and embracing sex workers. We are breaking stereotypes by sharing our lives with our communities.”

“We have sex workers who work on the street, who experience police brutality and unfair arrests; we have those who work in brothels, where these brothels are constantly raided by police.”

“Decriminalisation will allow freedom for sex workers to move from one place to another for work; it will allow sex workers to access services without being discriminated against,” said Rugara.

After extensive public consultation, the current draft bill decriminalises sex work to ensure better protection for sex workers. However, critics of the bill say it does not provide for the effect it will have on existing regulations. In May, over 50 sex workers and activists protested outside Parliament, calling for decriminalisation bill to be fast-tracked.

Many people wore orange T-shirts with, “This is what a sex worker looks like” on the front and “It’s a business doing pleasure with you” on the back.

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