Prostitution – it’s all about sex isn’t it?
You wouldn’t be alone in thinking it was but look closer and you might begin to doubt this, at least when it comes to the people doing the selling.
Across the globe, prostitution is an activity mostly entered for economic reasons. And according to Sigma Huda, former UN Rapporteur on Human Trafficking, prostitution as it is actually practiced in the world usually satisfies the elements of trafficking.
But that’s the international perspective. It’s different in the UK, right?
We don’t know how many people in the UK work in the sex industry as a lifestyle choice but in our experience they are in the minority.
For many it’s a matter of survival.
It isn’t about sex; it’s about inequality, lack of opportunities, poverty, homelessness, drug dependency, abuse of vulnerability and power.
At Beyond the Streets...
We’re committed to empowering people who have experienced sexual exploitation and supporting them in telling their story.
Gathered Voices is an initiative dedicated to inviting people who have been exploited through prostitution or sex trafficking to speak, through poetry, testimonies, stories and art. Through local creative expression groups and an online forum we provide a safe space where people can anonymously tell their story without experiencing judgment.
You too can make a difference. Donate today to help bring life beyond the streets.
“The thing is about working on the streets – you get sick of doing it but you don’t get bored – there’s something to work for and look forward to, even if it’s only the drugs. Sometimes I feel the fight’s gone out of me. What I need to do now is to move up a level – to find something that really matters. It’s not a relationship I want. I need to find something for myself. That’s the difficulty.” - Sarah
“It is rare that one finds a case in which the path to prostitution and/or a person’s experiences within prostitution do not involve, at the very least, an abuse of power and/or abuse of vulnerability.”
(Sigma Huda, former UN Rapporteur on Human Trafficking)