Category: Updates

Washington employs new approach to end online commercial sexual exploitation

Washington employs new approach to end online commercial sexual exploitation

In a first-of-its-kind case, the King County Sherriff’s Office, the Bellevue Police Department, King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and the FBI charged over a dozen sex buyers with the felony crime of “promoting prostitution.”

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UN meets to discuss human trafficking in conflict areas

UN meets to discuss human trafficking in conflict areas

In response to the disturbing trend of extremist groups engaging in human trafficking in war-torn areas, the UN Security Council recently held the first ever meeting on modern slavery as it relates to armed conflict.

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Supporting the health and safety of prostituted people

Supporting the health and safety of prostituted people

People in prostitution are too often subjected to violence—often by the men who buy them. We all need to work together to stop it.

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I do not stand with Margret Cho

I do not stand with Margret Cho

The Internet buzzed around a Twitter “true crime” story based on a woman’s experience in prostitution. Many women have stood up in support of prostitution, including Margret Cho, who used the opportunity to come out as a former sex worker.

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Campaign targeting Phoenix sex buyers shows positive early results

Campaign targeting Phoenix sex buyers shows positive early results

Top Phoenix officials including Mayor Greg Stanton, Co-Chair of the Arizona Human Trafficking Council Cindy McCain, and Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, recently held a press conference celebrating the early success of “Not Worth It,” a sex-trafficking prevention campaign spearheaded by CEASE Phoenix Metro in partnership with Clear Channel Outdoors Americas. The Not Worth It […]

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Pimps are criminals—not costumes

Pimps are criminals—not costumes

Please watch and share this video from a survivor leader with an important message for the Halloween faithful: “Pimps are criminals–not costumes.”

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Ambassador Swanee Hunt wants you to contact Amnesty International about its policy on “sex work”

Ambassador Swanee Hunt wants you to contact Amnesty International about its policy on “sex work”

Here’s a personal appeal from Demand Abolition Founder and Chair, Ambassador Swanee Hunt, asking you to reach out to Amnesty International. You can intervene at a crucial moment. At its summit in Dublin this past August, Amnesty International passed a resolution calling for the full decriminalization of prostitution, including brothel owning, pimping, and sex-buying. As […]

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Swanee Hunt participates in CNN’s “Fight for Freedom: Confronting Modern-Day Slavery” forum

Swanee Hunt participates in CNN’s “Fight for Freedom: Confronting Modern-Day Slavery” forum

Five human trafficking experts, including Demand Abolition’s Founder and Chair Swanee Hunt, addressed a packed crowd last night for the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum, “Fight for Freedom: Confronting Modern-Day Slavery, at Harvard’s Institute of Politics. One of the world’s premier arenas for political speech and debate, the JFK Forum presented the perfect backdrop for […]

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Tell Amnesty International to stand with survivors NOT exploiters

Tell Amnesty International to stand with survivors NOT exploiters

On August 11, Amnesty International passed a resolution calling for the full decriminalization of prostitution. The organization adopted this position on the grounds that decriminalization will make life safer for people in prostitution, but this is misguided thinking. Full decriminalization of the sex trade, which could include lessening or removing legal penalties against sex buyers, […]

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Amnesty International’s support of fully decriminalized prostitution will further harm those in the sex trade

Amnesty International’s support of fully decriminalized prostitution will further harm those in the sex trade

We at Demand Abolition are deeply disappointed with a resolution the International Secretariat of Amnesty International passed on August 11, calling for full decriminalization of all aspects of what it terms “consensual” prostitution.

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Survivor Rachel Moran releases American edition of “Paid For”

Survivor Rachel Moran releases American edition of “Paid For”

Paid For: My Journey Through Prostitution is the emotionally gripping memoir of sex trade survivor and anti-trafficking activist Rachel Moran. In it, she details the psychological costs she paid after being sold for sex on the streets of Ireland, night after night, from ages 15 to 22. Her story is a difficult one, recounting the […]

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President Carter asks Amnesty International to reject total decriminalization of sex-buying

President Carter asks Amnesty International to reject total decriminalization of sex-buying

In a personal appeal to Amnesty International delegates voting on the organization’s proposed policy advocating for full decriminalization of prostitution, including sex-buying, pimping, and brothel-owning, President Jimmy Carter has this to say: Download a hard copy of this letter.  To learn more about this issue, including Demand Abolition’s stance that prostituted people should be decriminalized […]

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