Bill C-36 Media Watchlist - you can help!

[escapefromstress]

Reckless Endangerment

Co-written by Pivot Legal Society, Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, Stella, l'amie de Maimie, this updated document answers key questions about what changes Bill C-36 would make to the law if it were passed: What conduct related to sex work would be prohibited? In what circumstances? Who could be prosecuted?

Read the document here. French version is available here.

 

[escapefromstress]

In an effort to help everyone stay updated on the Political/Legal issues affecting the Canadian Escort Industry, we're asking for your help in listing Media Items.

Articles are often posted on BC/TO boards that are never mentioned on the QUE boards and vice versa, and people are more apt to notice media items pertaining to their local market, while not realizing that someone on the other side of the country could benefit from the information.

Please post links to any Industry-related items such as:

• Articles regarding Backpages, Craigslist Therapeutics and other Escort Advertising venues.
• Media items regarding Escort Review Boards.
• Updates regarding changes other Industry Forums have made in response to the new laws.
• Statements from Police Services in major cities regarding how they plan to interpret and enforce the new laws.
• Items regarding Police stings, arrests and court cases.

 

[escapefromstress]

Human trafficking charges laid against Winnipeg man

A 43-year-old Winnipeg man has been charged with the human trafficking of a 25-year-old woman.

According to the Winnipeg Police Service (WPS), the man and woman met in Winnipeg and later travelled together to Brandon, where she was forced to work as an escort from March 2014 until mid-October.

During that time the man would advertise, for a fee, sexual services of the woman, police said, adding he would threaten her with violence if she didn't perform.

On one occasion he did physically assault her, police said.

Members of the WPS's counter exploitation unit began an investigation in the summer. The man was arrested Nov. 6 in downtown Winnipeg.

He is charged with the following offences:

• Trafficking in persons.
• Material benefit resulting from trafficking in persons.
• Living on the avails of prostitution.
• Assault.
• Uttering Threats to cause death or bodily harm.
• Failure to comply with a probation order.
• Failure to comply with the conditions of an undertaking.

He remains in custody.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manito...-man-1.2827701

 

[Siocnarf]

http://www.straight.com/news/766261/new-prostitution-law-leaves-sex-workers-invisible-and-anonymous-advocate-says
New prostitution law leaves sex workers “invisible and anonymous”, advocate says
by Carlito Pablo on Nov 6, 2014 at 3:32 pm

The woman identified only as Jessica cares a lot about her clients. Her eyes glowed behind the mask she wore when she talked about them.

Two are in their 80s. “One of them, I have been seeing him for five years,” Jessica told the Georgia Straight after a news conference regarding the passage of a new prostitution law. “I started seeing him once a month or one every two months. Now I see him every two weeks.

“He’s single,” she continued. “His wife died many years ago. He had a second marriage. It didn’t work out. He lives alone. I’m his only kind of source of companionship. I see him for an hour-and-a-half once every two weeks.”

Jessica has been providing sexual services for almost 15 years. She is now over 50 years old.

“Every time he comes to see me, he tells me that he loves me about five times,” Jessica said of the aforementioned client. “We do massage, you know, whatever an 85-year-old man can do. He’s mostly there for hugs, companionship, friendship, and he talks. Sometimes he stays, and talks for an extra half an hour.”

There are also much younger men, in their 20s.

“The 25-year-olds, some of them are interested in…the older woman…and some of them…they have no clue what to do with a woman, so they come because they need to figure it out,” Jessica said with a giggle.

Some are husbands who are caring for a sick wife. In some case, their wives are sick with cancer.

Couples also avail themselves of her services. “They come because they want to do something to fix their marriage, and they don’t want to break up,” she said.

In some cases involving couples, Jessica brings along a male worker for the job.

“So they come as a couple either to see me alone or to see me with another man, and we both massage. He massages the woman. I massage the man in the same room, so they’re having a joint experience. I have a few people like that,” Jessica related.

She’s got all sorts of clients, from businessmen to plumbers to waiters.

“I have two clients that are also sex workers that come because they need some, you know, compassionate touch,” Jessica said.

In all her time as a sex worker, Jessica said that she has never been hurt or harmed.

“I have never had any violence,” she said.

Clients all seek warmth. “They just need some affection,” Jessica said. “And of course for men, usually the affection will include a sexual release.”

The mask and her use of the name Jessica are symbolic.
Kerry Porth, chair of Pivot Legal Society, argues the new law pretends to protect sex workers but does the opposite.
Carlito Pablo

As Kerry Porth, chair of Pivot Legal Society, explained in a press conference, Canada’s new prostitution law has rendered sex workers “invisible and anonymous”.

Bill C-36, also known as the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, received royal assent today (November 6).

The new law criminalizes the purchase of sex, rendering as criminals the clients of Jessica and the other masked sex workers who appeared and spoke using first names only at the media event held at the Downtown Eastside office of Pivot.

Reading from a statement, Porth, a former sex worker, said: “They have told us over and over again that this bill is intended to protect sex workers but let me read you a quote from Conservative senator Donald Plett from this summer’s pre-hearings on the bill: ‘Of course, we don’t want to make life safe for prostitutes; we want to do away with prostitution. That’s the intent of the bill.’”

The new law also criminalizes the advertisement of sexual services. “Advertising is a critical form of communication for sex workers where they can set boundaries with potential clients...they will no longer be able to do so,” Porth said.

After the news conference, Jessica spoke to the Straight about Bill C-36.

“Isn’t that absurd?” Jessica asked. “I said to a friend of mine that automatically one million men in Canada will be considered criminals. And he said, ‘Oh no. It’s more like three million.’ I said, ‘Oh okay, maybe you know men better than I do.’”

 

[escapefromstress]

The City of Vancouver's response to C-36

The City is concerned with the passing of Bill C-36, Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, as research confirms that criminalization of sex workers puts people engaged in sex work at further risk of increased violence.

The passing of Bill C-36:

• Undermines the health and safety of sex workers
• Increases social exclusion and pushes sex workers to work in more isolated areas

What this decision means for the City going forward

Going forward, the collective focus needs to continue to be on the health and safety of sex workers and the communities that they live and work. The City remains committed to this, and in October 2014, Mayor and Council adopted Vancouver’s Healthy City Strategy, which identifies 13 goals, including:

• Safety and inclusion
• To promote health and well-being for all
• A target to make Vancouver the safest major city in Canada by reducing crimes, including sexual assault, year-over-year

The City will continue to work in partnership with community groups and the provincial government to minimize safety risks and harms for sex workers. This includes:

• Addressing all forms of exploitation and abuse
• Providing opportunities for education and awareness
• Enabling access to health and social service gaps
• Creating transitioning opportunities for those seeking to exit

City urged the federal government to refer the proposed legislation to the Supreme Court

In submissions to the Federal Government, the City urged that the proposed legislation be referred to the Supreme Court to ensure its compliance with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the spirit of the Bedford Decision: prioritizing the health, safety and dignity of those it’s declared to protect. The City also asked that there be consultation, which previously did not take place, with municipalities across the country on potential impacts.

In 2013 the City provided over $400,000 in grants to 11 community organizations to:

• Promote sex worker health and safety
• Address child and youth sexual exploitation

http://vancouver.ca/news-calendar/city-response-to-passing-of-bill-c-36.aspx

 

[escapefromstress]

Feds’ new prostitution law raises safety issues

Sex workers rights advocates start letter-writing campaign asking Premier Kathleen Wynne to test law’s constitutionality in Ontario Court of Appeal before “bodies piling up and violent incidents occurring”

by Andrea Houston November 8, 2014

Despite widespread objections from social justice activists and sex workers who say the legislation will make their lives more dangerous than ever, the federal government’s controversial prostitution Bill C-36 received Royal Assent Thursday, November 6.

The new law replaces the handful of prostitution-related laws that the Supreme Court of Canada struck down in 2013.

Terri-Jean Bedford, one of three sex workers who challenged the constitutionality of the laws, argued that they put sex workers’ lives at risks by preventing them from working out of their homes and putting in place certain safety measures to screen clients, like hiring security guards. The court agreed ordering Parliament to come up with new legislation within a year.

But the Harper government’s response, the dubiously-named The Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, which now makes communication for the purposes of prostitution a criminal offense by criminalizing clients and restricting the advertising of sex services, actually makes sex work more precarious. Sex workers say the law will only drive the trade further underground putting them at more risk of violence.

Now Bedford is calling on Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne to intervene.

In an open letter published on her blog last month, Bedford asks Wynne to refer C-36 to the Ontario Court of Appeal to test its constitutionality when it officially becomes law in 30 days. (The Ontario Court of Appeal is the same court that originally struck down prostitution laws before it went to the Supremes.) Bedford is also asking Wynne to instruct provincial Crown Attorneys not to enforce the new law until the Ontario court has ruled on its constitutionality.

Wynne has been vocal on the topic of violence against women, publicly declaring her support last week for HeForShe, a global campaign against gender inequality started by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.

In her letter, Bedford makes a personal appeal to the premier, comparing the struggle of sex workers to samesex couples. “I know you realize the freedom that you are enjoying in your personal life was once at issue as well and were opposed by the same segments of society now behind C-36… And some people would make them illegal again if they thought they could get away with it.”

Lawyer Kyle Kirkup, who spoke to the House of Commons' Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights on Bill C-36 in Ottawa, says there is precedent for the province asking the courts to review a piece of criminal law legislation. The most notable being a polygamy decision in 2011 in British Columbia.

“Unlike the federal government, Wynne seems more interested in listening to stakeholders,” he says. “So there is some promise there. The fact she has already been in contact with Terri-Jean Bedford gives me hope.”

More importantly, asking the Ontario Court of Appeal may save some lives, says sex work advocate Nikki Thomas, who is part of a letter-writing campaign asking the premier to act .

“We won’t have to sit back and wait for an evidentiary record, which in laymen’s terms means bodies piling up and violent incidents occurring with greater frequency to prove that this law violates our rights under the Charter,” she says.

Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, prostitution itself was legal in Canada, but almost all activities surrounding the trade were not — including communicating in a public place, running a brothel or bawdyhouse, and living off the avails of prostitution, such as hiring a bodyguard or a driver.

When Justice Minister Peter MacKay introduced the bill, he said the goal was to “abolish sex work” entirely by criminalizing clients who seek out sex, which relies on the logic that all men who purchase sex are aggressors and all women in sex work are exploited victims of male violence.

As Sandra Ka Hon Chu and Rebecca Glass write in Sex Work Law Reform In Canada, this framing “conflates sex work with trafficking, [and] pathologizes male clients.” They note that sex trafficking, sexual violence and child exploitation are already offences under Canada’s Criminal Code.

http://nowtoronto.com/news/feds-new-...safety-issues/

 

[gugu]

The Unintended Consequences of Demand Side Reduction Strategies in the Market for Sex Work


http://charleswlhill.blogspot.ca/2014/11/the-unintended-consequences-of-demand_1.html

A simple economic model of demand reduction strategies.

 

[escapefromstress]

Ladies be prepared - they are announcing changes in advertising rules on terb, so watch for upcoming changes here.

http://terb.cc/vbulletin/showthread....please-READ%29

New Territory ( advertisers please READ)

Since we're now entering new territory please be advised that all old ads will be removed in the coming few days.

After that, any new ads that don't comply with new rules will be deleted.

If you want to save any text or images please do so immediately.

If you have any questions or comments please PM: fred zed

New terb rules: http://notepad.cc/share/gYzFa7ZNSf

1- No explicit offer of sexual services
2- No menu ( such as BBJ, CIM, etc)

Posted by MPAsquared on terb:

Under C-36 a sex worker can advertise her own sexual services, but a 3rd party cannot.

I received this yesterday from NOW Magazine, it's an example of how 3rd parties are adjusting to avoid criminal conviction.

"ANY**WORD OR ACRONYM THAT INDICATES**“EXPLICIT SEX”:
Anal, Greek
Deep Throat, Oral Expert, etc
BJ, CIM, COF, D*T, B*W, CBT, MILF… etc… etc
Lips, Nipples, Tits, Cock, Tool, Ass, Pussy, 9”FF, Clit, etc, etc
Strap-on, Dildo Training, Prostate Massage
Horny,
Facials, Pearls
Sloppy
G & B Showers,
Etc, etc, etc
OR any acronym that refers to unprotected sex such as BBBJ, BBJ, CIM… etc

and we will continue to ban the following words for Adult Classifieds:
A
Abuse, Anything Goes, Anything Possible, Almost Anything, Arson, Assault, Attack
**
B
Babe, Baby, Bareback, Battered, Beating, Bestiality, Bitch, Blood, Bloodshed,
Boy, Branding, Brat, Break-in, Brother, Burn
**
C
Chicken-hawk, Cram it
**
D
Defile, Deform, Degrade, Dog, Dirty
**
F
Father, Forced
**
G
Gang Bang, Girl
**
H
High School, Humiliation, Hurt
**
I
Incest
**
J
Jailbait
**
K
Kill
**
L
Lolita
**
M
Man/Boy love, Molest, Mother, Mutilate
**
N
No Mercy, No Limits, Nymphette, Nymphomaniac
**
P
Pedophile, Pig
**
R
Raw
**
S
School, Sister, Slut, Stab, Suffer
**
T
Teenager, Torment
**
W
Whore, Worm, Wound
**

ALSO NOT PERMITTED:
-****************** **Obscene or lewd and lascivious graphics or photographs which depict genitalia, actual or simulated sexual acts or naked images
-****************** material that exploits minors in any way
-****************** material that in any way constitutes or assists in human trafficking
-****************** We can no longer use censorship stars on bare breasts or naked bottoms.
-****************** All photos of models must be wearing some article of clothing covering the breasts/nipples and nether parts.**In other words, a bikini.
-****************** We do not accept photos any longer with bars over eyes, blurred faces, images (like stars, flowers, dots, etc.) over eyes or faces, etc. Words (names) or masks over the eyes are okay.
-****************** All Photos MUST be supplied by the client via e-mail, we will be no longer able to pick them up from ANY website.
**

--**
Christian**416-364-1300, ext 377
NOW Magazine - Toronto -**nowtoronto.com

NOW MAGAZINE – ADULT CLASSIFIEDS DISCLAIMER & POLICIES:
-**This area of Now Magazine is for use solely by responsible adults over the age of 18 (or the age of consent in the jurisdiction from which it is being accessed). The materials which are available within these pages may NOT be accessed by anyone who is younger than 18 years old.
-**All advertisers are adults, at least 18 years of age, and have the legal rights to possess adult material and they are**voluntarily choosing**to advertise on this section.
-**We do not accept images of nude adults, adults engaged in sexual acts, or other sexual material to be offensive or objectionable or explicit language.
-**All advertisers understand and agree to abide by these standards and the laws of our community.
-**All advertisers agree they shall not hold the owners of this publication or its employees responsible for any violation of this agreement.
-**All advertisers who use these pages in violation of this agreement, understand they may be in violation of local and/or federal laws and they are solely responsible for their actions."

http://terb.cc/vbulletin/showthread....50#post5088950

 

[Siocnarf]

-****************** All photos of models must be wearing some article of clothing covering the breasts/nipples and nether parts.**In other words, a bikini.

What about Maxime Durocher and other male escorts? Do they have to wear a bikini?:eyebrows:

All advertisers who use these pages in violation of this agreement, understand they may be in violation of local and/or federal laws and they are solely responsible for their actions.

Isn't that the exact opposite of what the federal law says? Workers are not responsible for their actions; the publisher/website host is responsible.

 

[escapefromstress]

Dominatrix Terri-Jean Bedford to Receive 2014 Ontario Civil Liberties Association Award in Ottawa this Friday

(Ottawa, November 10, 2014) – Recent developments have underlined a strong societal need to protect the freedoms of consenting adults in all spheres of personal, work, and professional activities. Miss Terri-Jean Bedford will receive the previously-announced 2014 OCLA Civil Liberties Award at a public event in Ottawa this Friday, November 14:

Time: 7pm, November 14, 2014
Place: Alumni Auditorium, University of Ottawa (The Alumni Auditorium is in the Jock-Turcot University Centre building, 85 University Private)

Miss Bedford has fought for the freedom, dignity, and safety of sex workers in Canada. She has joined many prominent Canadians and dedicated activists to this end. She has opposed the unjust laws affecting her profession in court, in the streets, in the Senate, in the press, and in her writings. She has even been to jail under these laws.

Miss Bedford has been an inspiration to those who work to correct society’s moral and legal hypocrisy, and to secure a human right of adult individuals to provide and buy or exchange personal services by informed consent without the state’s interference.

The event is co-sponsored by CUPE 2626 (Union of Student Workers at the University of Ottawa).

About the Ontario Civil Liberties Association (OCLA)
The OCLA vigorously advocates for authentic and unqualified freedom of expression of individuals, on all topics and in every form, in accordance with the right to free expression enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The OCLA also advocates for unimpeded civil liberties and civil rights of all persons, in dealings with public and private institutions and corporations.

Contact:

Joseph Hickey
Executive Director
Ontario Civil Liberties Association (OCLA) http://ocla.ca
613-252-6148 (c)
[email protected]

http://blog.terrijeanbedford.com/201...berties-award/

 

[Canada-man]

TERB is currently down so i will read about Bill-C36 here

 

[D-Fens]

any reason why it's down?

 

[Canada-man]

http://merb.cc/vbulletin/showthread.php?121763-Terb-cc-server-is-down-for-maintenance

 

[escapefromstress]

TERB is currently down so i will read about Bill-C36 here

Welcome to merb guys. There's terbie's in withdrawal posting on perb today too. :smile:

 

[gugu]

Speaking of “dead prostitutes”: how CATW promotes survivors to silence sex workers

Sex worker is no good for CATW. Prostitute is no good either because it is stigmatizing. Among their suggested substitutes for "unbiased and independent reporting" you'll find "commercially sexually exploited person". At last a non stigmatizing denomination!

 

[nounours_]

RNC: Royal Newfoundland Constabulary

 

[daydreamer41]

Opinion: 'Prostitutes Are People, Not Criminals' by Belle Knox

Opinion: 'Prostitutes Are People, Not Criminals' by Belle Knox

"The time has come for the world's oldest profession to be legalized for public health, safety and opportunity"

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture...e-people-not-criminals-by-belle-knox-20141105

By Miriam Weeks | November 5, 2014
As a porn actress, one of the perverse tragedies of public policy I often contemplate is the fact that people can pay to watch me have sex on camera but are considered criminals if they pay to have sex behind closed doors. I'm talking about prostitution, a practice that continues to be shunned in the United States, pushing countless Americans trying to make an honest living onto the streets despite centuries of human history proving that governments cannot eliminate market demand for sex. The time has come for the world's oldest profession to be legalized in the so-called Land of the Free for public health, safety and opportunity.

First and foremost, I'd like to clear up a myth that remains pervasive in any discussion about sex work. Prostitution opponents love to promote images of abused hookers and human traffickers to trump up hostility towards sex work. While it's true ill-intentioned criminals do exist and should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, these conditions do not apply to the vast majority of sex workers. We should especially not conflate the sex industry with the abuses of human trafficking because it delegitimizes the workers and creates a moral panic that manifests itself in harmful legislation. The fact of the matter is that most sex workers enter the industry via their own consent and genuinely enjoy their work.

That's certainly the case for me. While it's true that paying my tuition at Duke was my initial motivation for entering the porn industry, I've grown to appreciate the empowerment opportunities that sex work has provided me. In porn, I can speak openly about my experiences without fear of punishment, work in a safe and professional environment and play a vital role in the creative process. Of course, not everyone can be a porn star, but more sex workers could enjoy this same level of autonomy and fulfillment if prostitution was legalized.

Save for a few counties in Nevada, prostitution is criminalized in every state and locality across the country. As a result, sex workers are pushed onto the street, leaving too many at the whims of pimps and dangerous johns without access to police protection and labor representation. If only the practice was brought indoors, sex workers could have more freedom to perform on their own terms in a safe, legal environment like I do.

This is not just theory, but hard fact. Barbara G. Brents of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, studied the Silver State's legal brothels for more than 15 years and found that "employees report that they feel safe, are free to come and go and are bound only by their contract." In fact, 84 percent of the brothel workers her team surveyed said their job "felt safe," and no evidence of trafficking could be found.

Legal prostitution wouldn't simply result in greater safety, but improved health as well. While it's not well-known, Rhode Island unintentionally legalized prostitution in 1980 as the result of a legal loophole. Between the time a criminal case brought the loophole to public attention in 2003 and when it was recriminalized in 2009, gonorrhea infection among women plummeted by 39 percent, according to a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Similarly, reports of rape declined by 31 per cent.

Prostitution opponents love to point to the so-called "Swedish model" as a halfway measure of dealing with sex work by criminalizing the demand (clients) while decriminalizing the supply (sex workers). However, this approach only punishes decent clients patronizing sex workers in an honest way. Clients are not just the creepy old men that prostitution opponents make them out to be. Most have a story that explains why they seek companionship. Perhaps they've watched their partner's sex drive wane after years of relationship. Perhaps they're physically impaired, socially awkward or physically unattractive and have trouble finding a body to hold and satisfy humans' most natural and intimate desires. Or, perhaps they simply enjoy indulging their fantasies in a safe environment. Every client and sex worker has a story to tell, and the current regime of criminalization over compassion only mutes their voices and pushes them to the fringes of society where danger may lurk.

Although porn is legal, I am nonetheless proud to classify myself a sex worker and call on my colleagues to stand up for our right to make a living, access the same protections as everyone else and not feel ashamed for doing honest work. We are nobody's rescue project, and we deserve rights, not handcuffs.

Miriam Weeks is a Young Voices Advocate best known for her porn acting under the name Belle Knox (@belle_knox). Weeks is a sophomore studying Women's Studies at Duke University.

 

[RedRooster]

25 COUNCILLORS ASK WYNNE TO TEST CONSTITUTIONALITY OF NEW SEX LAW]

Letter to be presented on the National Day for Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women this Friday

......
The councillors who signed the letter are: Kristyn Wong-Tam, Mike Layton, Sarah Doucette, Maria Augimeri, Gord Perks, Janet Davis, Mary Fragedakis, Jaye Robinson, Joe Cressy, Joe Mihevc, Mary Margaret McMahon, James Pasternak, Gary Crawford, Paula Fletcher, Ana Bailão, Pam McConnell, Paul Ainslie, Chin Lee, Jon Burnside, Raymond Cho, Frank DiGiorgio, Michelle Berardinetti, Josh Matlow, Mark Grimes and Justin DiCiano.
..,..

Interesting that the letter is signed not only by "lefties" like Wong-Tam (a major gay rights advocate and, like Premier Wynne, an "L" in the LGBT mix) and Layton (son of Jack Layton, RIP), but also by "righties" like Jaye Robinson and Jon Burnside. Robinson, as Chair of the Public Works Committee, has a lout of clout on council. Burnside was a City of Toronto cop for ten years.

 

[gugu]

Toronto's Now newspaper will defy publicity ban

Stephanie Levitz, The Canadian Press
Published Saturday, December 6, 2014 7:44AM EST
OTTAWA -- A ban on advertising sexual services takes effect Saturday as part of the federal government's new prostitution laws -- but at least one of Canada's leading independent newspapers says it plans to defy it.
The prohibition is one of several sweeping new changes to the way prostitution is now regulated in Canada in the wake of a Supreme Court decision last year that found the old laws violated the rights of prostitutes.
But Toronto's Now Magazine, which has long published ads promoting sexual services in the back pages of its weekly tabloid, has no plans to stop, said Alice Klein, the alternative newspaper's editor and chief executive officer
RELATED STORIES
Prostitution law comes into force on day of action on violence against women
"Now Magazine started taking sex ads because we take ads, that's how we support ourselves and we have always refused to discriminate against sex work and sex workers," she said in an interview.
"We are committed to free expression and we don't believe it's our right to say which advertisers are allowed to advertise and which advertisers aren't."
The Supreme Court struck down Canada's old prostitution laws last year, ruling they deprived sex workers of the right to a safe and secure environment.
In response, the government introduced Bill C-36, which upended prostitution legislation in Canada by criminalizing the purchase of sex -- but not its sale.
Through the law, the government is also cracking down on all those who profit from the sale of sex.
"We will hold those who are advertising -- not the prostitute themselves, but those who are advertising these services either through papers or online -- also to criminal account," Justice Minister Peter MacKay said last July.
Klein said Now has sought advice from one of the lawyers behind the Supreme Court challenge.
"This is another area of the law which just makes the lives of sex workers really difficult and of course attacks their ability to earn a living," she said.
"But the law does say that sex workers themselves are allowed to advertise, and our legal advisers understand that to include the publication of their ads in our publication."
In Vancouver, sex workers are already reporting that some online advertising services are refusing to take ads for explicit sexual services, said Kerry Porth, a board member of Pivot Legal Aid Society in Vancouver and a former prostitute.
"It makes it harder to work indoors if you can't actually advertise where you are and what you're doing," she said.
Not everyone is opposed to the ban.
"We support the section of the bill that criminalizes advertising of sexual services because of the role that advertising plays in normalizing and entrenching racist and sexist stereotypes," Suzanne Jay of the group Asian Women Coalition Ending Prostitution told a House of Commons committee.
In the course of its studies of the bill, the House of Commons and Senate heard a wide-ranging variety of opinions and perspectives from more than 100 witnesses.
Their testimony exposed a divide between those who see prostitutes as victims and others who consider prostitution a career choice.
Though the government considers prostitution a crime against women that must be eradicated, they seem sensitive to the distinction.
The bill was accompanied by $20 million in funding over five years for exit strategies, a measure that was supposed to be emphasized on the bill came into force.
But when the government realized that day was Dec. 6, which happened to be the National Day for Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, they quietly announced the funding a few days earlier.
Some say it's entirely appropriate for the bill to come into force on Saturday.
"I think it's tremendous it becomes law on Dec. 6," said Megan Walker, the executive director of the London Abused Women's Centre, which works with prostitutes among other women.
"We believe that prostitution is men's violence against women so we're happy to see this action that's been taken."
Walker was among the dozens of witnesses who told the government the $20 million wasn't enough, though she said her agency sill hopes to get some of the funding to hire an additional staff worker.
"Even if the government had announced $50 million across the country or whatever amount they determined, likely people would complain, including us, its not enough," she said.
The only way to solve prostitution is to address what leads to it, said Kate Gibson, the executive director of the Wish Drop-in Centre Society in Vancouver, which works with survival sex workers.
Divided evenly amongst the provinces and then amongst sex workers themselves, $20 million would amount to $47.02 a year per sex worker, Gibson said -- a paltry sum.
"They think they are going to end something that is rooted in economics and historical trauma," she said of the government's efforts.
"They don't want to address any of that."


Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/toront...new-prostitution-bill-1.2135855#ixzz3L8B9nA4X

 

[Siocnarf]

If Cupid’s were to not explicitly prohibit sexual contact between our employees and clients, then we would be raided, all assets seized, I would arrested, all staff arrested, ...
Companions who work for Cupid’s, as of midnight, are required by their employment contract to turn down all requests for sexual services. By law, it is illegal for clients to ask.

This doesn't make sense. They could have been arrested for pimping with the old law. How is she going to define sexual contact anyway?

Divided evenly amongst the provinces and then amongst sex workers themselves, $20 million would amount to $47.02 a year per sex worker, Gibson said -- a paltry sum.

Given that this money will not help sex workers in any way, I'm rather happy that Harper is not giving more than that to evangelical and rescue groups.