Community Guide

The Homophobia and Transphobia Experienced by LGBT Sex Workers COMMUNITY GUIDE THE HOMOPHOBIA AND TRANSPHOBIA EXPERIENCED BY LGBT SEX WORKERS

Introduction Homosexuality is criminalised in 72 countries, with punishments Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender including life imprisonment and (LGBT) people experience targeted the death penalty. Some countries homophobia and transphobia at even ban the promotion of LGBT every level – including legal, political communities or identities. Countries and social. For sex workers who are such as the UK and some states in LGBT, discrimination on the grounds the USA and Australia allow the ‘gay of sexual orientation and gender panic’ defence, where perpetrators identity adds to and intensifies the can seek a reduced sentence where discrimination they experience the victim of certain crimes is gay, as sex workers, who are subjected based on an alleged fear of ‘unwanted to a distinct set of violations. The homosexual advances’. ‘Corrective’ …discrimination on dual identities of LGBT sex workers rape and forced marriages are the grounds of sexual therefore have the potential to further also common for lesbians in some orientation and marginalise individuals and render regions. There are further human gender identity adds them more vulnerable to increased rights transgressions for transgender to and intensifies levels of violence, human rights’ people – many countries do not legally the discrimination abuses, and decreased access to recognise preferred gender identities, they experience as services and justice. deny transgender people equal sex workers… rights, and criminalise non-gender This Community Guide collates conforming behaviour. experiences of stigma and discrimination by LGBT sex workers The criminalisation of same-sex and highlights differences when relationships and gender identity compared to other members of their is often underpinned by regressive respective communities. moral and religious beliefs. Legislative reform is also only a first step. Regardless of the legislative context, Criminalisation of homophobia and transphobia persist Sex Work and LGBT long beyond decriminalisation or liberalisation of the law. Changing Communities – the the hearts and minds of people can impact of double take generations and individuals discrimination retain their own beliefs and prejudices long after written laws are changed. The criminalisation of the clients of Having a dual identity further sex workers profoundly negatively marginalises those who are subjected impacts the safety of sex workers, to dual criminalisation. forcing them to rush screening of their clients, and displacing them to outlying areas with increased risks of violence – including being forced to engage in unprotected sex. HIV prevention is further compromised under criminalisation. Globally, many countries use possession of condoms in prosecutions as evidence of sex work in prosecutions, while aggressive policing makes it more difficult to negotiate condom use with clients. A 2014 study published in The Lancet concluded that 33–46% of HIV infections could be averted in the next decade if sex work was decriminalised.

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Policing of LGBT Social, cultural and Sex Workers religious barriers

Law enforcement officials in many that impact LGBT areas of the world target and sex workers persecute LGBT sex workers, putting them at an even higher risk of facing Social, cultural, political and imprisonment, rape and violence religious views, sustained by a lack of from police. Dual criminalisation of education, tolerance and awareness sex workers and LGBT people poses also have an impact on the human increased and extensive barriers rights violations experienced by …violence increases LGBT sex workers. to well-being. vulnerability to HIV by limiting the Discrimination from ability to negotiate Access to healthcare safe sex, and to within communities LGBT sex workers report facing access health discrimination, humiliation and Homophobia and transphobia often and other critical denial of services from healthcare manifest as family rejection, difficulty services due to workers, either based on their sexual finding a job and poverty. As a result, fear of reprisal, orientation, gender identity, their sex LGBT people often engage in sex work discrimination, and work or any combination of these. to support themselves and also to denial of services. This further restricts their access to escape physical violence from family essential health services, including and friends. LGBT sex workers face HIV prevention and treatment physical and psychological violence services, sexual and reproductive from broader society, but also health services, and gender transition sometimes stigma and discrimination health services, placing them at from within the LGBT and sex work additional risk. If LGBT sex workers communities themselves. do not feel they are able to be open LGBT sex workers reported being with healthcare professionals, marginalised by the wider non-sex misdiagnoses and incorrect treatment worker LGBT community who hold prescriptions can result. negative views on sex work. They also report being marginalised and treated Vulnerability badly by other sex workers. to Violence

Violence is an endemic social and public health problem for LGBT sex workers. Violence affects almost every aspect of their health and the full enjoyment of their legal and human rights. The link between violence and HIV are well established – violence increases vulnerability to HIV by limiting the ability to negotiate safe sex, and to access health and other critical services due to fear of reprisal, discrimination, and denial of services. A range of actors perpetrate this violence.

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LGBT migrant In June of 2018, WHO released the eleventh version of their International sex workers Classification of Diseases (ICD 11). It removes transgender identities Migrant LGBT sex workers, both from classification as a mental documented and undocumented, health disorder, representing a experience high rates of violence, historic achievement for the global exploitation and policing; transgender community. The consequently, they fear registration, pathologisation of gender identity and are afraid to report violence or within the ICD has contributed to exploitation to the police in their stigma, harassment, criminalisation, new countries. discrimination and abuse for transgender people. WHO invites Allies and Safety nation states to adopt ICD 11, Migrant LGBT implement transgender healthcare sex workers, both While competition across genders policies in their countries and begin documented and and sexual orientations exists in the to sensitise healthcare providers to undocumented, context of sex work, the reverse is the needs of transgender persons. experience high also true – non-LGBT sex workers are rates of violence, There are clear opportunities often valuable allies. The same can be exploitation for increased partnership and said for LGBT organisations and LGBT collaboration between LGBT and policing… community members who are non- community organisations and sex sex workers, who can protect LGBT worker-led organisations to foster sex workers and help them find safety. understanding. Bridging this divide is necessary to eliminate tensions that further marginalise LGBT sex Potential alliances workers and keep them isolated for development from the support they need. Kenya and Botswana report the strongest The LGBT and sex worker movements relationships between LGBT and sex have much in common in their worker organisations. Key populations historic struggle for decriminalisation have formed coalitions that unite if and recognition of their human rights. there is an attack by the government Unfortunately, insufficient progress on the rights of any one group. has been made in uniting the LGBT and sex worker movements. International organisations, national governments, the media, and mainstream LGBT and sex worker organisations all have the potential to better support LGBT sex workers.

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Recommendations • Donors should consider prioritising funding for LGBT and sex worker- • Governments, policy-makers and led organisations to conduct more advocates must actively pursue research that identifies the sexual the full decriminalisation of sex orientation and gender identities of work, same-sex activity and variant sex workers in order to improve the gender identities. Criminalisation design of interventions is a primary driver of the stigma • Donors should fund multi-sector and discrimination experienced partnerships between LGBT and sex by LGBT sex workers when worker-led organisations to improve accessing health services, and of cooperation and strengthen increased violence. It is a major alliances, particularly at national reason for why they continue to be and local levels Legislative reforms disproportionately affected by HIV • Sex worker-led and LGBT and societal • States must ensure that police and organisations should actively seek changes are critical law enforcement personnel are held opportunities for partnership and to protecting the accountable for acts of violence or collaboration to ensure they can fundamental human abuse against LGBT sex workers better meet the needs of LGBT rights of LGBT and improve mechanisms of legal sex workers. sex workers. recourse and access to justice • States must investigate and prosecute all cases of violence Conclusion against LGBT sex workers This Community Guide provides a within the full scope of the law. snapshot of the experiences of LGBT Governments should also invest sex workers and of the impact of in targeted violence prevention homophobia and transphobia on their programmes, meaningfully lives and work. Steps must be taken involving both sex worker and LGBT to protect LGBT sex workers from communities in their development multiple criminalisation, continuing • Governments and programmers marginalisation, violence, stigma should invest in awareness-raising and discrimination, and barriers to and sensitisation training for law their access to health, justice and enforcement, religious and cultural other services. Legislative reforms leaders, health service and other and societal changes are critical to key providers to reduce barriers protecting the fundamental human LGBT sex workers experience in rights of LGBT sex workers. accessing services and justice, and to reduce societal stigma • Comprehensive sexual health and rights and HIV prevention services must be inclusive and sensitive to the needs of LGBT sex workers. Nation states should adopt ICD 11, implement transgender healthcare policies, and begin to sensitise healthcare providers to the specific needs of transgender persons

NSWP Global Network of Sex Work Projects | MPact Global Action for Gay Men’s Health and Rights 4 The Global Network of Sex Work Projects uses a methodology that ensures the grassroots voices of sex workers and sex worker-led organisations are heard by using Global and National Consultants. Community Guides aim to provide simple summaries of NSWP’s Briefing Papers, further detail and references can be found in the accompanying Briefing Paper. The term ‘sex workers’ reflects the immense diversity within the sex worker community including but not limited to: female, male and transgender sex workers; lesbian, gay and bi-sexual sex workers; male sex workers who identify as heterosexual; sex workers living with HIV and other diseases; sex workers who use drugs; young adult sex workers (between the ages of 18 and 29 years old); documented and undocumented migrant sex workers, as well as and displaced persons and refugees; sex workers living in both urban and rural areas; disabled sex workers; and sex workers who have been detained or incarcerated.

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MPact and NSWP are alliance partners of Bridging the Gaps – health and rights for key populations. This unique programme addresses the common challenges faced by sex workers, people who use drugs and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in terms of human rights violations and accessing much-needed HIV and health services. Go to: www.hivgaps.org for more information.

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