Sex Workers: Religion
In order to measure the extent to which sex workers value their religion, I asked the women to first state their religious affiliation and describe their religiosity. I then asked them to identify the number of times they attend religious services. The graphs below show the aggregate responses from the participants of the focus group discussions and the interviews.
Of the women who participated in this study, ten described themselves as “Catholic”, seven as “Anglican”, four as “Muslim” and one as “Adventist”. Given that religion plays a prominent role within Ugandan society, I expected that all women would follow some religion, and did not get surprised by the fact that no one described herself as an atheist or agnostic.
When describing their religiosity, sixteen out of the twenty two women identified themselves as “very religious” while the remaining six described themselves as “somewhat religious”. Not surprisingly, none of the women identified themselves as “not religious at all”, though I presented this description as an option.
Nineteen of the women stated that they attend religious services every week except in special circumstances such as when they suffer from illnesses. Though this number could be accurate, I suspect that some of the women in the focus group discussions did not give reliable answers due to the lack of anonymity inherent in group discussions and the ability of one person’s answer to influence another’s response. Interestingly, all of the women in both of the focus group discussions said they attended religious services weekly while only three of the six women who participated in the individual interviews said they attended religious services weekly. The other three women said they attended services three times per month, every other week and four times per year respectively.
Perceptions of Religion and Religious Communities
Despite the fact that the participants of the study practice a profession counter to the norms of Christianity and Islam, the women made it clear that they greatly value their faith and only continue with this work because of their dire circumstances. When I asked the question “To what extent did your religious affiliation influence your decision to join or stay in the profession?” all of the women responded that they feel very guilty, but have no choice because they have to earn income to pay for food, rent, school fees for their children, medicine etc. They described their lives as a continual process of repentance and beseeching God to help them find other jobs.
When discussing the ways in which religious leaders have assisted them, the women, for the most part, did not have positive responses. Five out of the six women who participated in individual interviews said that they received no assistance from religious leaders. In fact, one of these women even said that when she attends religious services she has to give an offering to the church but receives nothing in return. One of the women said that religious leaders have assisted her by praying for her, and that when they pray, she feels like a new person. The women in the focus group discussions highlighted the fact that religious leaders cannot and do not assist them because they don’t know about the work that the women do. Many said that they would want to tell their religious leaders about their situations, but feel uncomfortable because they think their religious leaders would chase them away.
When discussing the ways in which religious leaders have stigmatized them, the women gave more mixed responses. All of the women in the focus group discussions said that they ensure that religious leaders do not get to know of their profession, so they personally have not faced any stigma. Two of the women who participated in an interview echoed this idea. Another participant said she felt stigmatized by religious leaders because the job itself contradicts Christian values and norms. The remaining two women gave more personal examples of the stigma they faced. One woman who has children but no husband, stated that religious leaders repeatedly guilt trip her and nag her about her marital status. The last woman said that her religious leader shows no sensitivity to or compassion for her circumstances, but insists that it is a matter of her heart to continue or discontinue her work in the sex trade.
The overwhelming majority of participants believed that all religions and denominations treated sex workers the same way, and that no religion or denomination showed more sensitivity to their needs. In fact, five out of six interview participants said no religion or denomination shows more sensitivity to the needs of sex workers than another, while one responded that she didn’t know about religions other than her own. In both focus group discussions, most women agreed that no religion cares about sex workers and felt that religious people “look at [them] like devils”. A small minority argued that Born Agains show more compassion because they understand why the women participate in the sex trade, and even come to the street to preach to them or pray for them instead of just accusing them. Still, many disagreed and said that Born Agains just want to change them without actually helping them. They gave an example of a time when some Born Agains took them from the streets and put them in a room but did not provide them with any material assistance. As a result, the women returned to the streets and continued in the sex trade.
The women gave a variety of responses when asked to discuss the ways in which religious leaders should assist them. Two of the six women who participated in interviews said that religious leaders should pray so that they can leave the profession and find other ways of earning an income. Another two women said religious leaders cannot assist them in any way and the remaining two said they need capital to make a new life. Respondents from the focus group discussions had similar ideas. Many said religious leaders should find them something else to do, many others said the religious leaders should do nothing and one woman said they should make a church for spoiled people.
If given the opportunity to speak openly with their religious leaders, the majority of participants in this study would ask them for spiritual or material assistance to leave sex work behind. Most of the women in the focus group discussions wanted prayer so that they could get out of their current situations and start their own businesses. One would ask her religious leader to get a sponsor to support her children and another mentioned that she would like to learn English so she can go abroad. Similarly, two of the six women who participated in the interviews would ask their religious leaders to pray for them to leave the trade. One would ask for startup capital so she could get something else to do and another would ask for help, though she said she knows they cannot help her. One woman said, even if she had the opportunity to speak openly with her religious leaders, she would not because she feels too ashamed. Another participant could not even entertain the idea of hypothetically speaking to her religious leaders because she feared getting stoned.
When discussing the ways in which religious leaders have assisted them, the women, for the most part, did not have positive responses. Five out of the six women who participated in individual interviews said that they received no assistance from religious leaders. In fact, one of these women even said that when she attends religious services she has to give an offering to the church but receives nothing in return. One of the women said that religious leaders have assisted her by praying for her, and that when they pray, she feels like a new person. The women in the focus group discussions highlighted the fact that religious leaders cannot and do not assist them because they don’t know about the work that the women do. Many said that they would want to tell their religious leaders about their situations, but feel uncomfortable because they think their religious leaders would chase them away.
When discussing the ways in which religious leaders have stigmatized them, the women gave more mixed responses. All of the women in the focus group discussions said that they ensure that religious leaders do not get to know of their profession, so they personally have not faced any stigma. Two of the women who participated in an interview echoed this idea. Another participant said she felt stigmatized by religious leaders because the job itself contradicts Christian values and norms. The remaining two women gave more personal examples of the stigma they faced. One woman who has children but no husband, stated that religious leaders repeatedly guilt trip her and nag her about her marital status. The last woman said that her religious leader shows no sensitivity to or compassion for her circumstances, but insists that it is a matter of her heart to continue or discontinue her work in the sex trade.
The overwhelming majority of participants believed that all religions and denominations treated sex workers the same way, and that no religion or denomination showed more sensitivity to their needs. In fact, five out of six interview participants said no religion or denomination shows more sensitivity to the needs of sex workers than another, while one responded that she didn’t know about religions other than her own. In both focus group discussions, most women agreed that no religion cares about sex workers and felt that religious people “look at [them] like devils”. A small minority argued that Born Agains show more compassion because they understand why the women participate in the sex trade, and even come to the street to preach to them or pray for them instead of just accusing them. Still, many disagreed and said that Born Agains just want to change them without actually helping them. They gave an example of a time when some Born Agains took them from the streets and put them in a room but did not provide them with any material assistance. As a result, the women returned to the streets and continued in the sex trade.
The women gave a variety of responses when asked to discuss the ways in which religious leaders should assist them. Two of the six women who participated in interviews said that religious leaders should pray so that they can leave the profession and find other ways of earning an income. Another two women said religious leaders cannot assist them in any way and the remaining two said they need capital to make a new life. Respondents from the focus group discussions had similar ideas. Many said religious leaders should find them something else to do, many others said the religious leaders should do nothing and one woman said they should make a church for spoiled people.
If given the opportunity to speak openly with their religious leaders, the majority of participants in this study would ask them for spiritual or material assistance to leave sex work behind. Most of the women in the focus group discussions wanted prayer so that they could get out of their current situations and start their own businesses. One would ask her religious leader to get a sponsor to support her children and another mentioned that she would like to learn English so she can go abroad. Similarly, two of the six women who participated in the interviews would ask their religious leaders to pray for them to leave the trade. One would ask for startup capital so she could get something else to do and another would ask for help, though she said she knows they cannot help her. One woman said, even if she had the opportunity to speak openly with her religious leaders, she would not because she feels too ashamed. Another participant could not even entertain the idea of hypothetically speaking to her religious leaders because she feared getting stoned.