Supporting vulnerable women in the sex industry

Cherished is an outreach and support group for women working in the sex industry. We help women who are sexually exploited and have experienced sexual abuse and intense trauma. Our aim is to reach, restore and equip women to live fulfilling lives.

At Cherished, we long for a world where women know their true value, free from sexual exploitation with the opportunity to live fulfilling lives. There are more women employed in the sex industry today than at any other time in history. Women’s vulnerabilities are being exploited on every level. Our goal is to bring healing and restoration to women in great need.

We run monthly outreaches, support groups and events, and meet with women one-on-one, to build relationships and to see how we can assist them. Our heart is to journey with women on their road to restoration, if they so choose.

Many believe it's a woman's personal decision to work in the sex industry… But it's not so simple. 89% of women working in the sex industry want to escape, but see no other means for survival. 73% of women in prostitution have been raped more than 5 times and up to 90% of women in the sex industry were sexually abused as children. Many experience extreme levels of trauma, abuse and PTSD, often leading them to indulge in substance abuse or other escapism techniques. In turn their dreams of living restored, normal lives are gone forever.

Women exiting the industry are in a unique position. Because of the trauma and addiction they've experienced, as well as, a glaring lack of employable skills on their CV's, they need to go through a full rehabilitation, restoration and upskilling process in order to be properly equipped to go into the workforce.

Our mission is to help ladies out of oppressive circumstances and seeing them take their next steps on their road to restoration is, for us, a key indicator of our impact. However, the numbers below and more importantly, the people they represent, speak for themselves.

Since inception:

We have assisted 43 ladies in leaving the industry, who are now on a journey to a new life. This impact will not only change the course of their lives, but the generations to follow.
Our teams visit an average of 46 venues (brothels, strip clubs) each month, as well as, 3 street areas.
We reach approximately 620 women per month.
We run outreaches in 7 major areas across Gauteng with 45 committed volunteers and are expanding internationally.
During the Covid lockdown period, we fed 421 women and 305 children.
We have given out approximately 15,000 gifts since 2017 (small gifts and a contact card are used as a first point-of-contact in reaching out to vulnerable women).

Our Ongoing Project

The Need

A Unique Situation

Women exiting the industry are in a unique position. Because of the trauma and addiction they’ve experienced, as well as, a glaring lack of employable skills on their CV's, they need to go through a full rehabilitation, restoration and upskilling process in order to be properly equipped to go into the workforce.

The Process

Journeying to a New Life

If a lady is ready to begin a new life altogether or is in a life-threatening situation and needs to make a rapid exit, we will walk side by side with her on her journey to wholeness. This is an intense process that needs our full support and includes two distinct processes namely, Rehabilitation & Reintegration.

Rehabilitation involves a period at drug and alcohol detox (including the AA & NA's 12-step programme), entering a restoration home or safe home programme and in-depth counselling.

Reintegration follows the rehabilitation process, helping women to prepare for a new life and includes life coaching, furthering their education, skills training, assessing job readiness, assisting them in securing a job (or opening up business opportunities for them) and setting them up to live independently.