Protection of sex workers

doi:10.1136/bmj.39087.642801.BE

BMJ 2007;334:52-53 (13 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.39087.642801.BE

Editorials

Protection of sex workers

Decriminalisation could restore public health priorities andhuman rights

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Between 2 and 12 December 2006, the bodies offive young women—Gemma Adams, Tania Nicol, Anneli Alderton,Paula Clennell, and Annette Nicholls (aged 19-29)—werediscovered near Ipswich.^w1 Their involvement in street prostitutioncreated a media controversy over whether labelling them as prostituteswas dehumanising, as well as raising questions about our dutyto protect such women, and how this can be best achieved.^w2Sex workers and their families have spoken of abuse and violence,and they have added a human face to these women's lives. Thishas provoked an overdue debate, but the same stereotyping, prejudices,myths, and a failure to appreciate the complexity and diversityof sex work and its social contexts persist.¹

Sex workers around the world continue to bemurdered, including about six each year in the United Kingdom.^w3Standardised mortality rates for sex workers are six times thoseseen in the general population (18 for murder), . . . [Full text of this article]

Michael D E Goodyear, assistant professor ¹, Linda Cusick, reader in substance use²

¹ Department of Medicine and Women's Centre, Dalhousie University, NS, Canada B3H 2Y9, ² Institute for Applied Social and Health Research, University of Paisley, PA1 2BE UK

mgoodyear@dal.ca

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