Advocacy and Activism Addressing Sex and Gender-Based Health Inequities: Reflections on the SANGRAM Experience in India

This chapter recounts the efforts of Sampada Grameen Mahila Sanstha (SANGRAM) and Veshya Anyay Mukti Parishad (VAMP) in building collectives to bring about transformative change in the lives and work of sex workers and other marginalized groups in South Maharashtra and North Karnataka, India. Closely associated with SANGRAM and its work since its inception in 1992, the authors provide a glimpse into the process behind collectivization and trace the shift from HIV/AIDS prevention to the building of collectives with a rights approach to health and violence against the marginalized. The women-centered, rights-based, process-oriented intervention on HIV/AIDS from the outset focused on empowerment rather than service delivery. The process of politicization through building collectives and solidarity among women and gradually with men and trans persons in sex work is described. The strategies used to facilitate collectivization amid a challenging environment are analyzed. The contentious issues in the women’s movement relating to sex work and trafficking and VAMP’s unique role in the feminist movement are described. A critique of the legally sanctioned “raid and rescue” strategy is presented against the backdrop of the violence experienced by sex workers during this process. The efforts by the collectives to combat trafficking are contrasted with the violent and ineffective raid-and-rescue method sanctioned by law. Building alliances with other movements and pushing for shifts in positions regarding sex work is described with all its challenges. Combining ground-level mobilization with research skills, legal awareness and advocacy, this paper documents how SANGRAM, VAMP and its other collectives have established themselves as a formidable force.