There have been sex worker 'zines in the United States, but Red Light Despatch is a new prostitution monthly published in Mumbai, India. Edited by sex workers, health officials, and two former journalists, the Despatch runs personal stories about life as a prostitute, poetry and essays, reviews, and advocacy articles. The newsroom is inside a brothel. From Reuters:
With a little help from a voluntary group, the magazine prints about 1,000 copies in Hindi and English and is distributed free among prostitutes and residents of red light districts…
"We have little money, but we still pay our writers small amounts so that they realize they can earn a respectable living as well," said editor (Anurag) Chaturvedi.
For its reporters, getting stories from brothels is not a problem because "we are accepted as one of them".
"When we go to people's homes they are comfortable and they talk," said (health volunteer and magazine contributor Anita) Khude. "In the next issue we will write about how a 'normal' man — a poor roadside snacks seller — fought prejudices and married a prostitute he fell in love with."
