Resource Guide

Sex tourism is an industry that has many complications and is filled with a variety of diverse perspective. People are affected at different levels within the industry and these various perspectives are seen in online resources about sex tourism and trafficking.

Some sites are clearly made from the perspective of the customers and the pimps. For example, this site is targeted toward "first world" consumers. Examining the information given to consumers can give valuable information about the ways in which dominant culture views sex tourism. Sites in this style show many degrees of professionalism. While the first site was well maintained, cheaper sites such as this one (...or this one) are usually created by the pimps or mistresses.

Many web resources are targeted toward ending sex tourism and the affects it has on women and girls. The United Nations has several projects dedicated to ending sex trafficking, tourism and slavery. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has a resource that explains human trafficking at a basic level. Human trafficking is not necessarily related to sex work and sex trafficking, but it can be. The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking is a more specific guide that covers what the UN is doing to combat human trafficking around the world and covers issues of sex and child trafficking more in-depth.

Other countries and governments have also produced sites that discuss the problems around sex tourism and trafficking. The US government uses this site to promote discussion and information about sex tourism, and uses this site to discuss issues of human trafficking. The latter site answers frequently asked questions around the legality of sex tourism.

Many non-profit organizations have also taken a stance on sex tourism and trafficking. Equality Now has created a campaign against sex tourism and trafficking that attempts to understand how these two issues are interconnected.

Other non-profits, such as the Global Policy Forum, provide articles and information related to current sex tourism and trafficking disparities around the world.

Some of the sites are specific to certain types of sex tourism, trafficking or slavery. This document was created by a non-profit aimed at eliminating global child sex tourism. While quite a few sites focus specifically on children in the sex trade, there are very few that focus on the involvement of transwomen in the sex trade. This blog gives some interesting statistics on how the global sex trade affects transwomen.

Video resources can often be more powerful than articles. ABC News has ran several specials about child slavery in "third world" nations. There are also several accurate and informative videos up on YouTube such as this in-flight commercial to educate "first world" passengers about child sex tourism.

Purely academic resources are very hard to find online. This book, however, is extraordinarily informative about trafficking and how sex work and global inequalities affect women and girls.

Last, but most certainly not least, is a guide about making sex work safer for those involved. This is probably the most interesting and informative resource and is targeted toward sex workers and pimps rather than "first world" consumers or scholars. * Please note this guide has a long loading time - but is entirely worth the wait.