Red Light Exposé's Voice for Equality Award honors courageous truth-tellers who tirelessly raise awareness about the harms of commercial sexual exploitation. Recipients are celebrated for their impactful efforts to spark meaningful positive social change, advocate for legal reforms, and elevate the voices of victims and survivors. This award shines a light on their steadfast commitment to fostering a more just and hopeful society for all.
Melanie Thompson is an internationally recognised educator, public speaker and advocate on commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking. With more than 16 years of advocacy experience, she has addressed legislatures, the United Nations, universities and international forums, bringing survivor perspectives into discussions about the exploitation of women and girls.
A vocal advocate for women and girls affected by sexual exploitation, Melanie draws on her own experience of being trafficked into prostitution at the age of 12 to challenge policies she believes fail to adequately address exploitation and demand. She has advocated for the Sex Trade Survivors Justice & Equality Act, among many other bills that fight the full decriminalisation of the sex industry. Through her speaking, education, and survivor-led advocacy, she has established herself as a courageous and prominent voice in conversations surrounding trafficking and sexual exploitation in New York and beyond.
The Sex Trade Survivors Justice & Equality Act (STSJEA), currently S2005/A1465 in New York, aims to decriminalise people in prostitution while increasing penalties and accountability for pimps, traffickers and sex purchasers. The bill also provides for the vacatur and expungement of certain prostitution-related convictions and establishes funding and services for survivors and people experiencing sexual exploitation, including housing, healthcare, legal and immigration services, employment, education and training. To find out more click here.
Ash Regan MSP, elected in 2016 for Edinburgh Eastern, resigned as Minister for Community Safety in 2022 over disagreements on how to best protect women’s rights and safety. She ran for SNP leader in 2023 and later left, citing the SNP’s continued inaction on Scottish independence and women’s rights matters. Since 2025 she's been an independent Member of the Scottish Parliament.
A vocal advocate for child safeguarding, she has called for the creation of a whistleblower commissioner, as well as a grooming gang task force, and defended lawful single-sex provisions. She has promoted the “Unbuyable Bill,” which criminalises the purchase of sex acts while decriminalising and supporting those in prostitution and exploitation survivors. She has established herself as a leading voice for women and children in Scottish politics.
The Prostitution Offences and Support Bill, also known as the Unbuyable Bill, aims to reduce commercial sexual exploitation by shifting the legal focus away from those in prostitution and onto those who pay for it. Under this bill, anyone paying to sexually exploit another person would be criminalised, while persons in prostitution are decriminalised and can have historic convictions overturned. It also establishes grounds for the state to invest in support services for currently and formerly exploited people, including aid to exit the industry. To find out more click here.
Amazon Music | Apple Podcasts | Facebook | iHeartMedia | Instagram | Spotify | Twitter | YouTube
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.