Safety One of the main concerns of contemporary urban sex workers, even in areas where prostitution is legal, is violence. Each sandal will have an audible alarm system, which emits a piercing noise to scare off attackers. The shoes are also outfitted with a built in GPS receiver and an emergency button that relays both the prostitute's location and a silent alarm signal to public emergency services. Where there are problematic relations with law enforcement, i.e. most places, the shoes will relay the signal to sex workers' rights groups, such as PONY in New York, COYOTE in Los Angeles, or SWEAT in South Africa. Because the shoes are specifically designed to help both sex workers and sex workers' rights organizations, I am speaking with sex workers and as many of their advocates as possible to assess the actual needs of these user groups in urban areas.

The use of position awareness and transmission systems to aid sex work communities was inspired by APRS (Automatic Position Reporting System) originally developed by Bob Bruninga of the US Naval Academy Satellite Lab in the late 1970s. APRS uses amateur radio to transmit position reports, weather reports, and messages between users. It is free and open to the public, and used by police officers, fire fighters, and other public service workers across the country to track their locations. The application of position and transmission technology to sex workers recognizes their function as public servants, and the dangers they face in their profession.

The shoes also use a technology gaining widespread acceptance on college campuses across the country. Rave Wireless's Rave Guardian, allows students that feel unsafe to use their mobile phone as a personal alarm device. Students initiate a timer on their mobile phone. If the timer expires before the student turns it off, Rave Guardian uses the e911 infrastructure to locate the phone and let local authorities know to check on the student. Learn more about Rave Wireless at www.ravewireless.com or email info@ravewireless.com.

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