Community-Vision Partners

“I always say community is the best defense against trafficking, but I want to make it concrete for people who aren't in the s*x trade and don't know just how vital community is to preventing trafficking,” Lola, a community organizer with Survivors Against SESTA, told me in an email.

According to Lola, online communities provide all sorts of supports to s*x workers. They help them address any immediate survival needs, such as finding shelter or food. They can provide warnings that a potential client is violent, or check in on their well-being, or help them find access to know-your-rights training.

“SESTA has wiped clean essential spaces for all of that community, because it took away the online platforms and tools s*x workers use to communicate,” Lola said. Even aside from making it harder for them to work, she said, it’s made workers an easier target for traffickers.

Pimps Are Preying on S*x Workers Pushed Off the Web Because of FOSTA-SESTA "S*x workers are terrified:" Less than three weeks after the so-called anti-s*x trafficking bill became law, the consequences are dire.