- Comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health
- Family Planning
- HIV/AIDS and Other STIs
- Maternal Health
- U.S. Foreign Policy & Funding
- Why Women and Girls?
Anti-Prostitution Pledge
U.S. policy requires all organizations that receive HIV/AIDS funding to explicitly oppose prostitution. Requiring organizations to adopt policies like an anti-prostitution pledge makes it extremely difficult to establish trust necessary to provide services to these hard-to-reach men and women in prostitution, further driving them underground and away from life-saving services for themselves as well as others. Moreover, increasing condom use among sex workers requires direct engagement, training, demonstrations of correct use, training on negotiating with clients, and collective action among sex workers, all of which could potentially be considered under the policy as “promoting prostitution.”
In the field, the policy has not resulted in a single documented positive result. To the contrary, advocates have documented numerous examples of the harmful effects of the pledge, which can endanger the lives of sex workers, their clients, and their families. While some organizations sign the pledge and continue with their work as before, others have ended or curtailed their work with sex workers to avoid potential problems.
See CHANGE's Policy Brief Implications of U.S. Policy Restrictions for HIV Programs Aimed at Commercial Sex Workers
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Related Publications
- Trends in U.S. Support for Global Female Condom Procurement, Distribution, and Programming
Historically, the U.S. government has shown strong support for international female condom procurement and distribution. However, U.S. leadership for female condom commodities has not extended to programming. This poster was developed for the 2010 XVIII International AIDS Conference. - New Approaches to U.S. Foreign Policy and Global AIDS Strategy: What it Means for Women and Girls
The Obama administration has made key changes directly impact women and girls living with HIV/AIDS. However, problems with implementation and legislative barriers continue to impede progress towards a comprehensive approach to sexual and reproductive health and rights. This poster was developed for the 2010 XVIII International AIDS Conference. - HIV/AIDS and Women in the Sex Sector: Facing Challenges and Finding Solutions
What are some policy recommendations and effective models of engaging sex workers in HIV prevention? CHANGE developed this poster for the 2010 XVIII International AIDS Conference. - Fact Sheet: Global Sexual and Reproductive Health Act
The Global Sexual and Reproductive Health Act (H.R. 5121) establishes U.S. policy and authorizes assistance to support universal access to sexual and reproductive health care in developing countries, including contraception and safe abortion. - Fact Sheet: U.S. Global HEALTH Act of 2010
The U.S. Global HEALTH Act of 2010 (H.R. 4933) establishes a strategy to coordinate health-related U.S. foreign assistance and to assist developing countries in strengthening their indigenous health workforces and improving delivery of health services. - Fact Sheet: Global Democracy Promotion Act of 2010
The Global Democracy Promotion Act of 2010 provides that the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act cannot impose eligibility restrictions on international recipients of U.S. aid that would be illegal if imposed nationally. Would constitute a legislative repeal of the Mexico City Policy, also called the Global Gag Rule. - A Woman-Centered Approach to the U.S. Global Health Initiative
President Obama's GHI calls for a "woman-centered approach" to development policy and programming. This policy brief defines what that means by identifying the key elements of such an approach, and best practices. - Comments in Response to the Implementation of the Global Health Initiative: Consultation Document
Submitted by: Advocates for Youth, the Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE), Family Care International, and the International Women’s Health Coalition. These comments are tailored to specifically address issues within our particular expertise, though we also join with other comments from the advocacy community addressing larger frame issues related to the President’s Global Health Initiative (GHI).
Related Links
- Americans for UNFPA
- Center for Development and Population Activities (CEDPA)
- Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR)
- International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF)
- International Women’s Health Coalition (IWHC)
- Ipas
- PEPFAR Watch
- Population Action International (PAI)
- Prevention Now!
- Reproductive Health Matters
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