Bill C36 Focus Group at Peers - July 24, 2014, 5-7pm

[Peers Victoria]

We are having a focus group at PEERS Victoria July 24, 5-7 for agency and independent SP's. We are talking about Bill C36, upcoming advocacy opportunities, and PEERS' services. Please join us.

Dinner, honorarium, childcare (contact us if needed) provided.

Peers is located at 1-744 Fairview.

Please email ed@peers.bc.ca or call 250.388.5325 ext. 104 if you have any questions.

 

[SeductiveCameronDEL]

I will be there! I know it's not always possible, but any ladies in the general area of Victoria (including Vancouver or all of the island!!) who are interested should really try to make it out for this! All sex workers welcome; agency, indies, massage, retired, intermittent, etc. It seems beyond ludicrous that the people who are directly involved with the outcome of this proposed bill are not only NOT being directly consulted, we are downright being ignored, by the people making the rules. Let's work together to have a say and MAKE Ottawa listen to our very valid opinions and experiences. I am SO TIRED of being marginalized and stigmatized and then having society confirm that it's ok.

PEERS is a safe and non-judgemental place for sex workers of all walks of life (supporting the health and safety of sex workers, not the intentions of law makers or LE), and the co-ordinators have a voice in the media as well as in Ottawa when it comes to this bill. Two of the wonderful board members have just returned from testifying on our behalf before the house of commons justice committee. Let's stand together when it comes to this. If we create a strong community where we all support each other, it will humanize the industry more, as well as be a mark against the 'pit of sin' the cons are leading the public to believe.

If you can't make it, or you can but you're worried about confidentiality, write down your thoughts/ideas/plans for a revolution etc and send them to Rachel! Or if you know women that would benefit, but don't use perb, please!! Pass the message along.

I hope to see new and familiar faces there on the 24th! It would be a great way to socialize/commiserate with more people regarding this and any issue/hilarity in the business.

And men! I know this meeting excludes you, but you can help with Peers too! There are a few options on the website if you click on donate. Anything is something, as it's a grass-roots and gov funded place.

Much love to everyone fighting the good fight. See you on the 24th!

 

[SeductiveCameronDEL]

 

[Peers Victoria]

Thank you Cameron!

 

[*emmanuelle]

Does PEERS have a preferred link/links to a reliable, unbiased description of exactly what bill C36 is - and more importantly, how it is different from current legislation? I would like to go to the focus groups as informed as possible, but it seems hard to get an easy-to-understand and objective idea of what's at stake.

 

[Peers Victoria]

This document "Reckless Endangerment" which was compiled by Pivot Legal, Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, and Stella offers a good summary https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.n...inal/1404320254/C36_Info_Sheet.pdf?1404320254 (if the link doesn't work it can be found under Pivot Legal, Publications). If you are on facebook, I would recommend joining the Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform for updates.

No one really knows how the new laws will be taken up in practise in terms of policing and court processing, and if previous laws are any indication, it is likely that they will be enforced differently in various places depending on local police inclinations/complaints - policing tends to be reactive where the industry is concerned. Looking forward to talking about it on Thursday as well as brainstorming ideas to mitigate any potential harmful impact.

 

[*emmanuelle]

Thanks for the link!

That definitely clarifies a lot, though I'm still trying to understand some things, i.e. exactly what C36 would mean for advertising.

For example, a posting on Pivot Legal's website from June states that "The bill proposes to ban any advertising of sexual services" but the Reckless Endangerment document (also published by Pivot Legal) says "Sex workers cannot be prosecuted for advertising their own sexual services". I'm wondering if we are still legally allowed to post the names of services (either explicitly or by acronym) on our personal websites. I guess this is something that we will talk about at the meeting.

I am excited to come share some of my ideas with you guys on Thursday!

Are there any specific topics that you think we should brainstorm for before the meeting?

 

[Peers Victoria]

We are just finalizing the questions for the Thursday meeting and I aim to post them tomorrow. One of the things we will for sure talk about is the potential impact on day to day activities and how we can work together to get some answers where it still remains unclear what the impact will be. Your question is a great example. Theoretically, you will be able to advertise through your own website as you like as it is clear that a seller of services is not to be charged for advertising, but there still may be reasons that it is not wise to be too explicit (i.e. your advertising practices may have implications for charges against clients, web providers, or any others who help with content). I am looking forward to generating a list of practical questions that need to be answered by legal experts going forward!

 

[Peers Victoria]

We haven't talked about publicly posting minutes (although I can see benefit) but in the meantime if you send your email to ed@peers.bc.ca, I can share a copy. We are also planning future meetings if you would like to kept up to date on that as well.
Cheers,
Rachel