Taina Bien-Aimé, executive director of the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW), is a central figure in the global SWERF (sex worker exclusionary radical feminist) movement, promoting a rigid, carceral vision of “feminist” anti-trafficking that conflates all sex work with sexual slavery. Under the guise of protecting women, Bien-Aimé has consistently advocated for policies that criminalize clients (the Nordic model) and third parties, while framing sex workers — even those who speak openly about agency, autonomy, and choice — as deluded or complicit victims. Her rhetoric is steeped in moral panic and essentialist views of womanhood, often presenting sex work as a cultural “harm” and positioning herself as the authoritative voice on behalf of marginalized women — without including them in the conversation. Despite claiming to center women’s dignity and liberation, her framework actively ignores and undermines the demands of sex worker-led organizations around the world, particularly from the Global South, who argue that her policies increase violence, police harassment, and vulnerability. Worse still, Bien-Aimé’s activism frequently leans on a carceral feminist approach that promotes state violence — the very systems that disproportionately target poor, racialized, queer, and migrant sex workers. Her leadership in CATW and collaboration with similarly aligned organizations reveals a deep contradiction: in purporting to end exploitation, she endorses policies that systematically harm the very people she claims to protect. Critics have rightly condemned her for refusing to engage with harm reduction, rejecting decriminalization even in the face of mounting global evidence, and weaponizing feminist language to push for laws that sex workers themselves overwhelmingly oppose.
Views all prostitution — both “forced” and “voluntary” — as inherently exploitative and a violation of women’s dignity. Rejects any distinction between consensual sex work and coercion
CATW explicitly does not differentiate between voluntary sex work and coerced exploitation.
Some critics, including scholars like Alison Murray, argue that CATW’s rhetoric reinforces stereotypes—especially of Asian or global South women as passive victims—feeding moral panic rather than structural analysis
Promotes the Nordic (Swedish) model: decriminalize sellers, criminalize buyers and third parties, and offer exit services to sex workers .
Bien‑Aimé has actively opposed Amnesty International’s shift toward supporting full decriminalization, calling it a “green light to pimps and sex buyers.” She argues it would reinforce “gender apartheid” .
Sex worker advocates such as members of the Asia Pacific Network of Sex Workers have criticized her approach for ignoring their experiences of criminalization, stigma, violence, and lack of legal recourse.
Believes illuminating the “demand” side of the sex trade is central — arguing that male demand fuels trafficking, and punishing buyers will reduce it .
Sees mainstream terms like “sex work” and “sex positivity” as euphemistic, sanitizing violence, and normalizing oppression within pornography and prostitution .
CATW’s neo‑abolitionist and carceral feminist framework is critiqued for promoting punitive laws that disproportionately harm marginalized and racialized individuals in sex work sectors
By emphasizing prosecution over harm reduction, CATW aligns with legislation that tends to penalize vulnerable groups more than protect them.
Actively helped stop South Africa’s prostitution decriminalisation bill in 2023. Described the proposed legislation as a “gift to sex traffickers” and a betrayal of Black women’s rights.
Has lobbied US and international institutions to adopt anti‑buyer laws — including the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and Palermo Protocol with a demand-reduction focus.