Sex Worker Participatory Decision-Making in Brazil
In the words of two committee members at the final evaluation meeting, “We practiced a politics of care,” and “did political education through our humanitarian work.”
Jornada Izadora, a group of 50 sex workers in Belo Horizonte, came together in March 2020 to develop eight community projects that were focused on physical health, psychosocial health, dialogue with society, and other needs. A week after the launch of the projects, the pandemic hit urban areas of Brazil and Belo Horizonte, sending cities into lockdown. The sex worker community was particularly hard hit, both economically and in regard to housing, with many workers living in “sex work hotels” that were closed with the lockdown.
To help the community, all eight sex worker projects donated BR$1,000 ($200) from their original budgets to a common Emergency Fund managed by one representative elected from each project. The Fund collectively gave out these funds to relieve some of the suffering faced by sex workers and their families. This new committee of representatives met online weekly over three months. Escola de Ativismo,1 a local civil society capacity-building organization, helped to host and facilitate the meetings, offering advice when asked for. Among other recommendations, it encouraged committee members to consult frequently with their project group members.
The committee decided to reach out and ask 80 sex workers to identify urgent support needs. Priority was given to pregnant women, mothers, and the elderly. Instead of offering a one-size-fits-all kit, each person was asked to list their main needs from an offering, which included milk, diapers, clothes, hygiene products, fresh produce, non-perishable food items, financial support for utility bills, and medication. Other donations came in from local associations and individual donors, and 100 sex workers ultimately received packages.
For the sex workers, these collective actions built their sense of autonomy and confidence in being able to address their own needs. The community of workers who directly benefited from the Emergency Fund felt supported. New women were successfully brought into the community through the efforts, and the democratic governance of the Fund was an important lesson for the community as it plans its work going forward. In the words of two committee members at the final evaluation meeting, “We practiced a politics of care” and “did political education through our humanitarian work.”