Highlights

24Nov

Interview: From ‘social evil’ to policy influencer – building sex worker leadership in Vietnam

Former Red Umbrella Fund volunteer, Nathan Desvignes, backpacked through South-east Asia just before the Covid19 pandemic and interviewed two sex workers’ rights activists of the Vietnam Network of Sex Workers (VNSW), Hien and Van, in Hanoi. Below is his account of the encounter. Sex work in Vietnam Sex workers in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam... Read more »
29Sep

Master Thesis – Roles of Regional Sex Worker Networks

The 6 Roles of Regional Sex Worker Networks By Hester Scholma, Graduating Student, Master Thesis Sociology, Vrije Univeristeit Amsterdam  “Network means together and together makes stronger. We [regional networks] can make the Sex Worker Movement stronger at the country level, at the regional level and move together to get sex workers’ rights” Almost a third... Read more »
14Sep

Red Umbrella Fund 2020-2025 Strategic Plan

Today is International Sex Worker Pride Day which began in 2019, and is an opportunity to celebrate and share stories of sex workers’ self-determination and the achievements of the sex worker rights movement. Sex Worker Pride extends to all marginalised by criminalisation, discrimination and stigma across the sex worker movement and celebrates the diversity within... Read more »
More highlights

 

About us

The Red Umbrella Fund is the first global fund guided by and for sex workers. We believe that change will only be achieved through strong, collaborative movements of sex workers advocating for their rights, with the support of their allies. Sex workers themselves are the best positioned to know what is needed for them, and best placed to do something about it. The Red Umbrella Fund exists to mobilise resources to help strengthen and sustain the movement in achieving human rights for sex workers.

“It’s helpful having sex workers making funding decisions because we understand which projects or groups will really be effective towards positive change. Bottom line, it’s our bodies, our lives, and we should be at the forefront of all decisions affecting us”  (member of the Red Umbrella Fund’s Programme Advisory Committee)

Since its creation, the Red Umbrella Fund gave out 157 grants to 104 groups and networks in over 60 countries, spending over €4M ($4,6M) on grants and raising over €6.5M ($7,4M) since 2012. All our grantees are selected by our international Programme Advisory Committee (PAC) which is led by sex workers.

Learn more about how to apply for a grant here.