Google tramples sex workers' rights

[Miss*Bijou]

Google tramples sex workers' rights
By Jody Paterson, Times Colonist


Everybody's got an opinion on the sex industry. But when you're Google, what you think really matters.

So when Google yanks the online ads of a small group of Dublin sex workers trying to talk about human rights for people in the industry, it's a big statement. I'm going to have to rethink everything I thought I knew about Google.

Ten escorts launched "Turn Off the Blue Light" this year, responding to a major campaign in Ireland to outlaw the last legal vestiges of prostitution.

The anti-prostitution campaign is called "Turn off the Red Light." The escorts picked their name as an allusion to the blue lights on Ireland's police cars, and the impact of criminalization.

Ireland's prostitution laws are essentially the same as Canada's. The sale of sex is legal, but everything else to do with the industry is a crime. As in Canada, that has led to a thriving industry that operates almost completely in the shadows.

The Red Light campaign - a coalition of 39 religious groups, unions, non-profits, feminist organizations, political parties and so on - is pushing for Ireland to follow Sweden and make the sale of sex illegal. Sex workers in both countries contend that only increases the risk to workers.

Desperate to be heard on the subject, a few Dublin escorts and supporters struck up their own small rights campaign and bought a Google AdWord - those paid links that you've probably noticed at the top of some of your Google searches.

The ad linked to the Blue Light website. Here's what it said: "Turn off the Blue Light: Sex workers in Ireland need human rights, not legal wrongs."

It ran for several weeks without issue. But in May, Google yanked the ad, having suddenly decided the content was an "egregious violation" of company ad policy.

Google contends the ad is selling adult sexual services, a sector it bars from advertising (with an interesting exception for stripping or lap-dancing services).

But Blue Light isn't selling sexual services. It's campaigning for human rights. Unfortunately, Google won't budge.

As if to add insult, the company then sold an AdWord to a religious organization leading a campaign against sex trafficking in Ireland.

With "Turn Off the Blue Light" worked into the ad's keyword search, the anti-prostitution site is now the first to come up on Google's Irish search engine (google.ie) when anyone looks for information on the Blue Light campaign.

What does Google have to say about all this? Not much.

I got two very polite responses from the company's press department after a little prodding. But neither addressed the questions I'd asked - like why an ad for workers' rights is considered to be selling sexual services just because the workers happen to be escorts.

Blue Light knew its tiny Google ad wouldn't make much of a splash in the face of widespread and aggressive opposition. But it was better than no voice at all, says a campaign organizer I talked to this week.

The sex workers appealed Google's decision. They lost, or at least presume they did. Google said they'd get an email from the company within three days if the appeal was successful, and no notice if it was rejected.

The three days came and went a while ago, with no further word.

The sentiment in Ireland feels overwhelmingly against people in the industry, says the Blue Light organizer. Even the unions have joined the anti-prostitution campaign, as have a long list of women's organizations.

Google's rejection was one more blow.

How Google managed to find the tiny Blue Light ad amid the gamillion AdWords that generate almost $28 billion a year for the company - well, that's an intriguing question.

But as Google notes in its correndence with Blue Light, the comy acts when it gets complaints.

And it obviously feels little compunction to verify the accuracy of a complaint before it acts.

Responding to my interview request, Google first sent me an email detailing how it handles political ads, noting that it strives to be neutral and fair. I hope CEO Larry Page reads that policy with more intent sometime soon.

The company followed up half an hour later with a second email on its sexual-services policy, reiterating that escort services are prohibited from advertising.

As are legal workers who dare to speak up on their own behalf, it appears. That's a frightening development in a company that controls much of the world's information.

http://www.turnoffthebluelight.ie/

We are a sex worker led association campaigning against calls to criminalise the purchase of sex, and for the health, safety, human, civil and labour rights of sex workers in Ireland.

There is currently a “Turn Off the Red Light” (TORL) campaign being run by an alliance of organisations. They say they want to end prostitution and sex trafficking and ‘the solution’ is to criminalise the purchasers of sex. We believe the real agenda is to have their own ideology on sex work enacted as law. Further criminalisation would drive the sex industry deeper underground and make it more dangerous for everyone. Our priority is the well being of persons in sex work, not any moral agenda, thus we strongly oppose the TORL campaign.


At this current time the threat of further criminalisation is imminent, and we need sex workers to be included in this debate, not excluded, as is currently the case. Whatever your views on sex work are, it is not right that sex workers are being denied a voice in discussions on laws that will seriously impact our lives.

Criminalising the buying of sex on the grounds that all prostitution is violence towards women is radical feminist propaganda.

Their blog posts about Google/AdWords:

http://www.turnoffthebluelight.ie/2...p-people-seeing-what-sex-workers-have-to-say/

http://www.turnoffthebluelight.ie/2011/05/27/google-discrimination-against-sex-workers/

 

[Webster]

Thanks Bijou. Given the amount of porn you can glean from Google the adwords policy is worse than a joke.

 

[Miss*Bijou]

Just an update about this:


TOBL received an email from adwords-noreply@google.com stating:
‘We’ve re-reviewed your site and found that it no longer violates our Landing Page and Site policies.’

A Google Doodle for Sex Workers?

Posted on July 14, 2011 by admin


Our recent David and Goliath victory shows that the mighty Google really does listen to sex workers!

Google’s change of heart was an important decision for Turn Off the Blue Light, and indeed for sex workers all over the world campaigning for their rights. We sent Google a private thank you note at the time and we’d like to publicly thank Google here now. We’d also like to thank Jody Paterson for her support, notably her article in the Times Colonist, Google tramples sex workers’ rights.

The realisation that a small group of sex workers in Ireland can influence the mighty global search giant Google got us so excited in here that we had an idea: Wouldn’t it be great if Google recognised International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers with a Doodle?

(A Google Doodle is when Google replaces its standard logo with an artistic version of the Google logo in recognition of a holiday, event or anniversary. The official gallery of Google Doodles is here.)

However unlikely it may seem that Google will listen, we shall be asking Google to help raise awareness of International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers by marking December 17th with a Doodle. Before we do that we’d like to ask sex workers and allies all over the world for their feedback on some Doodle designs.


Which design idea, for a Google Doodle marking International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers, do you like best? (Vote HERE)

(Vote HERE)
​

 

[treveller]

Great news and the Doodles are all interesting.

I voted for the Doodle in the middle with just an umbrella. I think the street scenes would reinforce the stereotype while most sex work is indoors without violencs.

 

[Miss*Bijou]

Great news and the Doodles are all interesting.

I voted for the Doodle in the middle with just an umbrella. I think the street scenes would reinforce the stereotype while most sex work is indoors without violencs.

I voted for that one too and although it's also nice, I wasn't crazy about the street one for the same reason you mention! lol

 

[susi]

too cool!
love susieXXXO

 

[mimi]

that is my favourite too al...

 

[shockley]

Thanks Bijou. Given the amount of porn you can glean from Google the adwords policy is worse than a joke.

Absurd analogy. Self-serving to boot.

 

[FloridaGuy]

That website needs pictures.