We wish to create an online platform and networking space for sex workers in order to communicate their every day experience for each other and the outside world. By providing insight into the sex worker realities, we wish to prevent that people feel that violence against sex workers, including rape, crime, bribe, blackmailing and exploitation is justifiable.
Topical focus:
Country:
What locality or neighborhood will your project focus on?
Budapest
Describe the specific community with whom you will be working.
Sex workers in Hungary build a hiding population and suffer from stigma and widespread discrimination. There are app. 15 000 sex workers in Hungary, most of them are female and undereducated. In order to reveal their own issues, emotions and every day struggle, we will have the opportunity to combat hate crimes against them and to increase the prejudices they face.
What kinds of news, stories and other content will be created?
The method of digital storytelling will be used and featured on our website and facebook site. Sex workers will be trained on using this method and will receive mentoring on how best to use it. They will compile short stories on their everyday life, challenges they face, hardships they have so that people get familiar with their background and reasons for opting for this way of life (poverty, divorce, etc.).
What technologies and digital tools do you plan to use in the trainings?
Describe the connections that you or your organization have already established that will contribute to the success of the project.
We have established partnerships with several national human rights watchdog organizations and sex worker rights networks (Global Network of Sex Work Projects, Sex Workers’ Rights Advocacy Network, Mama Cash, Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, Hungarian Helsinki Committe).
How many participants do you think will be involved in your project?
10 sex workers will be trained in the project, we will use giving out harm-reduction tools that are otherwise expensive to access (including condoms) and provide petty cash for motivating participation.
Besides the microgrant funding, what other resources and support are you seeking for your project to ensure its success?
Technical expertise, presentation of best practices in amplifying marginalized groups’ voices.
Contact name
Agnes Foldi
Organization
Association of Hungarian Sex Workers