ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the collaboration between a sex workers’ network in India and an international feminist human rights organization based in Delhi that works on sexuality and reproductive rights. The network and its feminist partner share a commitment to the rights of sex workers in human rights discourse. The chapter illustrates how feminist collaborations among diverse organizations create space for a dialogue within this sex workers’ network, building complementarities that shape policy advocacy. Such collaboration strengthened the network’s understanding of sex work as a choice that should be treated with respect and dignity. A feminist lens in the partnership narrowed the power differentials between the sex workers’ network and the other involved organizations. The feminist organization’s principles and practices related to intersectionality, positionality, and acknowledging marginalized people’s voices allowed the sex workers to take the lead in determining their advocacy goals and methods, make key decisions, and connect with other organizations’ capacities. The chapter’s conclusion charts the main lessons from this case for other collaborations, considering the significance of taking a feminist approach to collaborative practice.
