How Stigma, Criminalization, and Limited Support Keep Sex Workers in the Cycle of Housing Instability
Sex workers are disproportionately at risk of chronic homelessness and violence. Yet, despite this stark reality, the connection between homelessness and sex work is rarely addressed. A 2022 study titled Earning Housing: Removing Barriers to Housing to Improve the Health and Wellbeing of Chronically Homeless Sex Workers confirms the inextricable link between homelessness and sex work, but this issue remains overshadowed by other discussions about homelessness.
Many individuals enter sex work as teenagers, often as a last resort to survive on the streets. For these youth, sex work frequently becomes their only reliable source of income. This reliance leaves them with significant gaps in their employment history, creating further challenges as they age into their 20s and 30s with an essentially blank resume. The illegality of sex work in most states and the societal stigma attached to it only compound these difficulties.
Despite these barriers, many homeless and formerly homeless individuals continue to make a living in the sex industry. Platforms like OnlyFans offer safer alternatives for some, but the connections between sex work, addiction, trauma, and housing instability remain undeniable.
Challenges Faced by Homeless Sex Workers
Sex work offers minimal barriers to entry, making it one of the few accessible job options for homeless individuals. Maintaining a traditional job is nearly impossible without stable housing and access to basic necessities. That is to be expected when you don’t have access to a roof, a bed, a shower, or regular meals. For many, sex work provides temporary relief, such as a hotel room for the night, a safe place to sleep, and an income to cover basic needs like food and medical expenses.
However, this short-term solution perpetuates a cycle of instability. Homeless sex workers face numerous barriers, including:
- Stigma and Discrimination: Sex workers often avoid social services altogether due to experiences of mistreatment, discrimination, and judgment from providers. These negative interactions erode trust, a cornerstone of effective social work and essential for building supportive relationships.
- Criminalization: Many sex workers fear arrest if they seek help, which discourages them from accessing vital services. The criminalization of homelessness further compounds these issues, intersecting with punitive laws targeting drug use and sex work to intensify cycles of oppression and marginalization.
- Limited Resources: There is a general lack of services available to sex workers. Many organizations, including some faith-based ones, may turn away homeless sex workers entirely, leaving them with few options for support.
These challenges exacerbate chronic homelessness among sex workers and deepen systemic oppression.
Solutions and Advocacy: The Role of The Sidewalk Project
Invisible People featured The Sidewalk Project through a mini-doc series highlighting these issues and why organizations like these are needed. Founded by former sex workers, The Sidewalk Project provides a variety of services to homeless sex workers in Los Angeles’s Skid Row.
Their focus is mainly on recovery and the destigmatization of sex work, breaking down the many barriers homeless sex workers face in receiving care, assistance, and housing. While they hand out cannabis to help homeless people treat medical issues and trauma, they also use art and music in their public health initiatives to help homeless people in and around the Skid Row area.
The Sidewalk Project aims to fill a gap – one that many homeless sex workers fall into when seeking the help they need. While we know homeless people face so many challenges every day, these challenges can become even more significant for homeless sex workers. While sex workers are often turned away by government agencies, traditional nonprofits, as well as faith-based organizations, it is that much more critical that we support them and the organizations that step forward to provide services to sex workers when they otherwise would not receive them elsewhere.
Why Support Is Crucial
Sex workers and people with an addiction are real people who deserve dignity, respect, and care. Organizations like The Sidewalk Project fulfill a critical need often ignored by traditional nonprofits and government agencies. However, their work remains underfunded despite its life-saving impact.
By supporting harm reduction initiatives and advocating for systemic change, we can help rewrite the narrative for homeless sex workers and provide them with the stability they need to thrive.
