Recently, Amnesty International joined many other large NGOs by voicing support for the full decriminalisation of sex work and the protection of sex workers’ human rights. In Sweden, however, policymakers, supported by the public, are very hostile to this development. This book, published in Sweden in 2006, was the first comprehensive publication to query the cultural mechanisms behind the strong and unified Swedish resistance against commercial sex, and place it in a larger context.

By translating this book, I hope to contribute to the wider debate on feminism, sex work and social justice in Sweden. I often find international debates on the “Swedish Model” lacking in contextual knowledge, and I hope that the research, cultural analysis and interviews with sex workers in this book will clarify the impacts of the anti-porn and prostitution discourse and serve as a guide for activists, academics and others interested in learning about the history of Swedish sex work policy.

Swedish readers can already download the book in its entirety on my website (http://www.petraostergren.com/pages.aspx?r_id=196898), and one chapter plus an extract from the book is available in English for download on my website – please feel free to have a look! Another chapter will be added shortly. Any progress will be updated to this campaign site. Please let me know if you wish to receive public acknowledgement for your donation. All contributions – big or small – are appreciated.

I have no interest in making any profits from this book. When translated, it will be made available free online as an Open Source project (like its Swedish counterpart). Out of £11,500, most will be spent on translation services, but creating a technical platform for free publication will also incur a cost. In this project, I have made a conscious effort to employ people from marginalised communities. Any surplus would go towards the translation of similar texts, written by myself or others.