March 20, 2022
THIS WEEK IN HUMAN RIGHTS NEWS
Amsterdam sex workers speak out against Red Light District relocation proposal
Sources: Matador Network, Red Light United, Dazed, PIC-Amsterdam, The Globe and Mail
In February 2021, Amsterdam’s mayor Femke Halsema put forth a proposal to relocate the city’s Red Light District to an ‘erotic centre’ on the outskirts of the city. The new location has still not been chosen, and workers have spoken out about the proposal.
Amsterdam’s Red Light District has a global reputation for legal sex work, which is mostly conducted through workers attracting clients from windows.
Felicia Anna, the chairwoman for the sex workers union Red Light United, told Dazed that conducting business through windows provided a level of protection for workers.
“Windows make sex work easily visible from the street,” Anna told Dazed, “[it’s] therefore more visible to the police who can ensure our safety and fight human trafficking.” Pushing sex workers out of the city centre would make them less visible, and could lead to higher risk of violence or trafficking.
Sex work is a highly contested and sensitive subject. In most parts of the world, it is heavily criminalised. Even when it is decriminalised, there are still instances of little protection for workers themselves. Workers in the Red Light District have managed to secure more rights for their work. For example, workers have access to health care locations for free, anonymous STI testing.
The area also has the Prostitution Information Centre as an established place where sex workers, tourists, journalists, and anyone with questions can seek out informed and respectful answers. The Centre also offers community-based support through workshops that discuss topics like consent.
Overtourism is still an issue in Amsterdam, one that Mayor Halsema attributed to the District and to the legalisation of drugs like marijuana. But the issue of tourism should not be shunted to sex workers themselves. The Globe and Mail reported that the buildings in the Red Light District would be converted into high-end fashion boutiques and art galleries as part of a plan to “improve Amsterdam’s image and tourist demographic”. A survey from Red Light United found that 93% of workers in the District opposed the relocation.