Violence
Sex workers face a lot of violence. Sex workers in London are 12 times more likely to be murdered than other women. It is much safer to work indoors with others but this is illegal.
Criminalisation increases violence. Attacks on sex workers doubled in Scotland after kerb crawling laws were introduced which criminalised clients. A 2014 survey found that where arrests of sex workers and clients were high, only 5% of sex workers who were victims of a crime reported it. This compared to 46% of victims in areas where police adopted a harm reduction approach.
Metro: The social media trend leaving Soho sex workers fearing for their lives
Lauren Crosby MedlicottDressed in a black puffa jacket and box fresh trainers, a teenager scurries towards a flat door and kicks it frantically, before changing position to give it a good boot from a different angle.The flurry of frenzied blows only last for a few seconds – but it’s all been caught on camera. Not to capture […]
Westminster Extra: Sex workers’ call for Met help
Security and safety fears in Soho after spate of men storming walk-upsBy Tom FootTHE police are failing to protect Soho sex workers from a disturbing social media trend, according to campaigners who are urging politicians to make legislative reforms to better protect women.The English Collective of Prostitutes has written to Westminster’s borough commander after crowds of […]
The Times: London sex workers ‘live in fear’ of teenage harassers with cameras
Groups are filming themselves charging into premises in the West End and posting the videos onlineAndy Silvester, London EditorSex workers in London’s West End are “living in fear” after being harassed by large groups of teenagers, who film themselves “charging” into their premises.In recent weeks dozens of incidents have occurred in which groups numbering as […]
Tryst.link: D17 Reflections On The Yorkshire Ripper & The English Collective of Prostitutes
“Some were prostitutes but perhaps the saddest part of the case is that some were not. The last six attacks were on totally respectable women.” – Sir Michael Havers, Attorney General.On 13 November 2020, Peter Sutcliffe, also known as the Yorkshire Ripper, died in prison. If you didn’t know who he was, you could get an […]
Islington Tribune: Maeve Murphy’s short film about life in a pre-gentrified King’s Cross has been showered with awards
‘Let’s face it, it was an inner-city hole and you had to watch your back’Maeve Murphy’s short film about life in a pre-gentrified King’s Cross has been showered with awards. Angela Cobbinah talked to herBy Angela CobbinahIN 1979, the old Camden Journal carried a lurid double-page feature on the Hillview estate, slum Victorian tenement blocks […]
Cosmopolitan: ‘Like in Gone Girls, the neglect from police over sex worker victims is still scarily prevalent’
The new Netflix docuseries shines a light on how the victims of the Long Island serial killer were treated with contempt by the police — 30 years on, and it seems very little has changedBy Brit Dawson Published: 09 April 2025 At around 5AM on May 1, 2010, Shannan Gilbert — a 23-year-old sex worker from […]
Euro News: ‘St Pancras Sunrise’ – The award-winning short film shining a light on sex work and police brutality
Maeve Murphy is hoping to shine a spotlight on the 1981 murder of a sex worker in her new short film, exploring the powerful protest by the English Collective of Prostitutes and the ongoing battle against police brutality.“15 women, some with children, have locked themselves in Holy Cross Church of Kings Cross. They won’t leave […]
Byline Times: Sex Workers Fear ‘Disastrous’ Labour Government Plan ‘That Would Put Us Much More at Risk of Violence and Arrest’
Mathilda Mallinson and Helena Wadia Sex workers in the UK speak out after Belgium grants people in the industry employment rights in historic first Under a new law in Belgium – the first of its kind in the world – sex workers have been given employment rights. They will be entitled to official employment […]