Abstract:
Since Immemorial society has always perceived sex work as immoral
even though it is a source of income to the sex workers. Sex work breeds
stigma to those who practice it. Studies on stigma among sex workers
have been documented worldwide, but very few have looked at it from
the sex workers' perspective, especially in Kenya. Using stigma
narratives from 28 respondents practicing sex work, selected using
purposive, snowball, and direct sampling techniques, this paper shows
sex work being a livelihood to many sex workers they use various means
to sustain it despite the stigma they face in their everyday life. This
paper then argues that stigma remains a major social problem among
sex workers despite the various constructions on sex work. This is
portrayed through narratives by the interviewed sex workers who have
experienced stigma from family, neighbors, religious institutions, law
enforcers, and health providers. The stigma is manifested either
physically or through verbal abuse. Due to the stigma experienced as a
result of their work, sex workers have devised personal and collective
ways of dealing with it. In the quest to develop strategies and
interventions that may help curb the stigma faced by sex workers, there
is a need to identify the sources of the stigma and how it is manifested.
