title: "What makes you think you have special privileges because you are a police officer?" A qualitative exploration of police's role in the risk environment of female sex workers.
abstract: Worldwide, female sex workers (FSWs) have high rates of HIV. Many factors that escalate their risk lay outside of their control, primarily in the environments in which they practice sex. An understudied yet powerful risk environment is that of police. We qualitatively explored sex workers' interactions with police in their personal and professional lives. Thirty-five FSWs were purposively sampled in Baltimore, MD, in 2012. Women discussed experiences of police verbal harassment, sexual exploitation, extortion, and a lack of police responsiveness to 911 calls in emergencies, largely partner violence. Women's mistrust of police was often developed at an early age and further reinforced by interactions in their personal and professional lives. The study underscores the need for targeting police in reducing sex workers' HIV and other risks. The case for police's role in generating risk is evident, which could be addressed through structural interventions targeting both police practices and policies.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Epidemiology , Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health , Baltimore , MD , USA.
authors.forename: Susan G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Sherman
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Footer
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Illangasekare
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pearson
authors.forename: Michele R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Decker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D015142:Baltimore / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations / Q000941:ethics; D016495:Police; D036301:Qualitative Research; D060386:Sex Workers / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012747:Sexual Partners; D012926:Social Control, Formal / Q000379:methods*; D057545:Social Stigma; D012944:Social Support; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014754:Violence; D014933:Women's Rights
keywords: HIV; female sex workers; police; qualitative