Fall is kicking off, and we wanted to slow down for a moment to share more about what we've been up to. A few questions keep coming up from you all — so here they are, answered.
1. How does the Tryst donation matching program work?
Okay, this one's genuinely exciting: if you advertise on Tryst, their TLC Donation Matching Program means Tryst will match your donation to BAWS — dollar for dollar. Your ad spend turns into double the support for Bay Area sex workers. That's real money going straight to our community, matched by a platform that's putting its resources where its mouth is.
The catch: it takes a little advance planning. A few steps and one screenshot, taken before you hit donate, make the difference between an easy match and a receipt scramble. (Yes, we've asked Tryst if this process could be simpler — the answer is no.) We know this has been tricky for some folks, but we have been able to smooth out the bumps.
Here's exactly what to do:
Head to our website, open the dropdown menu in the top right corner, and select "Donate" 🙌
Type in the total amount you want to donate! 💰
Stop 🛑 Snap a pic BEFORE making your donation. Tryst will accept screenshots as a receipt 📸 . Now take ANOTHER screenshot after you donate to show confirmation (you need two screenshots and yes, we know this is annoying). Now Donate! 🎉
Head to Tryst and follow their steps for submitting a matching request. Remember to attach your donation screenshot! 📎
If you encounter any issues or need more help, email us at bawshelp@gmail.com. If you forgot to screenshot your donation, please include the name and email you donated under, the date you donated, and the amount and payment method you used
Please see our IG for step-by-step visual instructions.
2. How do I join (or leave) the listserv — and what's on it?
Our SW-verified listserv connects about 300 local Bay Area workers — it's a group chat for support, collabs, questions (and answers), tips, offers, work opportunities, ideas, meetups, community news, upcoming programs, selling/seeking, and mutual aid. We moderate to keep things respectful and productive, but otherwise this listserv is what you all make of it.
To Join: bayareaworkerssupport.org/baws-community
To unsubscribe: email baws-unsubscribe@lists.riseup.net from the address you signed up with. No subject or body text needed. You'll get a confirmation email once you're removed.
3. What is the Bad Date List, and how does it work?
The Bad Date List is a community safety tool — sex workers can submit anonymous reports about dangerous or violent clients, and those reports get shared to help others avoid the same harm. We run it in collaboration with the Naughty Nurse Mobile, San Francisco’s first and only sex worker-led mobile clinic.
If you've experienced a threat, intimidation, robbery, or assault from a client, you can file a report through our confidential intake form — accessible from the Bad Date List page on our website: bayareaworkerssupport.org/bad-date-list
Reports are encrypted and only seen by the BAWS team; you can report anonymously if you'd like. If multiple people were involved in one incident, include them all in a single form.
A redacted version of reports will get compiled into the published Bad Date List, which we will update periodically throughout the year.
One important note: please don't share the intake form link or the published list on social media or other public spaces. Instead, share the Bad Date List page on our website directly with folks in our community — that keeps the reporting process safe and protected.
4. Are Emergency Grants coming back?
Short answer: we don't have plans to bring them back in their previous form.
Here's why: as amazing as the impact was, the grants program wasn't reaching who we most wanted to center — outdoor, BIPOC workers. Scammers made it hard to verify funds were reaching intended members of our community, and the labor required to manage applications, vetting, and distribution on an ongoing basis wasn't sustainable for our small team that volunteered their time. Need has also grown faster than what we could offer, and the one-off structure didn't let us build real relationships with the people we were trying to support.
We're redirecting that energy into mutual aid that's built to last: strengthening community partnerships, expanding skill-shares and education, creating more spaces for social connection, and centering direct, intentional support — cash and supplies in the hands of outdoor workers in the Bay every winter.
5. Why is BAWS raising $150,000?
It's a lot of money, and it's also what it costs to run the last peer-led sex worker organization serving the entire Bay Area — about $10,000/month for programming and operations, including paying our team fair wages, our fiscal sponsor fees (6% of all revenue) and payment processing fees (even PayPal and Visa take a cut), event and organization insurance, and the website, Zoom, and ProtonMail accounts that keep us online and live.
This year alone, that's included the production of: Cyber Spring's digital security workshops, Pleasure4Ever (our IWD celebration at The Stud), a new community mural with Decrim Sex Work CA and hosted speakers at the SF LGBT Center, SW Parent Picnics, weekly Art Club sessions, ongoing community partner relationships, behind-the-scenes crisis support, and an ongoing digital communications — creating shareable, informative content to build greater understanding of Bay Area sex worker politics, circumstances, and culture.
Coming up in person: our Resource Fair on Saturday 10/3/26 at 7th West from 1-5 pm, offering material resources — STI screening, harm reduction supplies, take-home groceries, hot meals, and a full spread of SW-affirming service providers — plus hands-on wellness care like nail and hair services, massage, acupuncture, a clothing swap, and skill-share workshops.
Resources and info are a lifeline, so separate from the fair, we'll be launching an interactive digital tool connecting our community to housing, health, crisis, trans-specific, and mental health resources.
We'll close the year honoring International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers with direct mutual aid for outdoor workers.
This is also the first year we're paying all of our peer-led team — six part-time staff — a livable wage to plan, curate, and execute all of this programming.
$150K keeps all of it running through 2027.
Keep your eyes out for our BAWS Impact Report that we will be publishing this Fall, for even more info.
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We truly appreciate every request for transparency and hope you can get excited with us about the ongoing shifts in our mission and scope! If you have any other questions or want more clarity on anything we're doing, don't hesitate to reach out: bawsorg@gmail.com
In Solidarity,
- BAWS