Open letter: 300 researchers call for decriminalization of sex work in Canada

Originally published on Georgia Straight

March 27, 2014

Right Hon. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada,
Mr. Thomas Mulcair, MP, Leader of the Official Opposition, the New Democratic Party of Canada,
Mr. Justin Trudeau, MP, Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada,
Mr. Jean-François Fortin, MP, Interim Leader of the Bloc Québécois,
Ms. Elizabeth May, MP, Leader of the Green Party of Canada,

Dear Sirs
 and Madam,

Re: Evidence-Based Call for Decriminalization of Sex Work in Canada and Opposition to Criminalizing the Purchasing of Sex 

We, the undersigned, are profoundly concerned that the Government of Canada is considering the introduction of new legislation to criminalize the purchasing of sex. The proposed legislation is not scientifically grounded and evidence strongly suggests that it would recreate the same social and health-related harms of current criminalization. We join other sex worker, research, and legal experts across the country and urge the Government of Canada to follow the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision and support decriminalization of sex work as a critical evidence-based approach to ensuring the safety, health, and human rights of sex workers.

A large body of scientific evidence from Canada,[1] Sweden and Norway (where clients and third parties are criminalized), and globally[2] clearly demonstrates that criminal laws targeting the sex industry have overwhelmingly negative social, health, and human rights consequences to sex workers, including increased violence and abuse, stigma, HIV and inability to access critical social, health and legal protections. These harms disproportionately impact marginalized sex workers including female, Indigenous and street-involved sex workers, who face the highest rates of violence and murder in our country. In contrast, in New Zealand, since the passage of a law to decriminalize sex work in 2003, research and the government’s own evaluation have documented marked improvements in sex workers’ safety, health, and human rights.[3]

Therefore, we call on the Government of Canada to join with global leaders, community, researchers and legal experts in rejecting criminalization regimes, including those that criminalize the purchase of sexual services, and instead support the decriminalization of sex work in Canada as scientifically-grounded and necessary to ensuring the safety, health, and human rights of sex workers. Below, we briefly outline our key concerns.

1. Criminalization of any aspect of sex work undermines access to critical safety, health and legal protections: The science is unequivocal that where sex work operates within a criminalized and policed environment –whether targeting sex workers, their working conditions, or the people they work with, for, or hire (clients, managers, bodyguards, or other third parties)– sex workers are placed in an adversarial relationship with police and are unable to access critical social, health and legal protections. Both peer review research and the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry Report have shown that within criminalization environments, stigma and discrimination of sex workers are major barriers for sex workers to reporting violence and abuse to authorities and accessing other critical health and social supports both in Canada and globally [4] In the official evaluation of the ban on purchasing sex in Sweden, sex workers clearly reported that the law increased police scrutiny, stigma and discrimination, and deterred reporting to police.[5] In contrast, the New Zealand Prostitution Reform Act (2003) placed the human rights and occupational health and safety of sex workers as the central goal of their law reform; and government’s own evaluation showed sex workers were significantly more likely to report abuse to authorities following decriminalization.[6]

2. Enforcement prohibiting communication in public spaces between sex workers and their clients directly elevates risks for violence, abuse and other health and social harms. Since the Communication Law was enacted in 1985 to reduce “public nuisance”, the number of sex workers who have gone missing and been murdered in Canadian cities has escalated dramatically, with disproportionate numbers of Indigenous women. Evidence has consistently shown that in order for sex workers and their clients to avoid police detection, sex workers have to work alone, in isolated areas and rush into vehicles before they have the opportunity to screen prospective clients or negotiate the terms of transactions, severely limiting their ability to avoid dangerous clients or refuse unwanted services (e.g. unprotected sex).[7] The Supreme Court of Canada identified client screening as one of the most vital tools available to sex workers to protect their safety and health.[8] In Sweden and Norway where laws criminalize the purchasing of sex, research has shown that enforcement targeting clients still forces sex workers to operate in clandestine locations to avoid police, increases their insecurity,[9] and places them at continued and increased risk for violence, abuse and other health-related harms, including HIV infection.[10] A report commissioned by City of Oslo in Norway (2012) found that the rate of strangulation and threat with a deadly weapon of sex workers had increased substantially in the three years since the implementation of the criminalization of clients.[11]

3. Criminalization of any aspect of sex work hinders sex worker’s ability to establish safer workspaces, to work collectively, and engage third parties who can increase their safety. Both the Supreme Court of Canada and the two lower courts in Bedford clearly highlighted access to indoor spaces as a critical safety measure, based on two decades of evidence from local and international sex workers, academics, and legal experts.[12] In Canada, an evaluation of safer indoor work spaces in 2012 within supportive low-income housing in Vancouver demonstrated that when sex workers have opportunities to move off-street, they can increase their control over their working conditions and are able to adopt safety and security measures that protect their health, safety and overall well-being.[13] Safer indoor spaces also provide a critical connection with social, health, and legal supports, including accessing police protections in cases of violence or abuse. However, in a law enforcement environment where clients remain targets for arrest, criminalization would continue to prevent sex workers from bringing clients indoors to safer indoor spaces; thereby reproducing the same harms as the current criminalized model. By contrast, in New Zealand and New South Wales, Australia, where sex work is fully decriminalized, sex workers have access to safer indoor work spaces and have increased control over the conditions of their work.[14]

4. Criminalizing the purchasing of sex does not reduce or eliminate prostitution. Following the ban on purchasing of sex, a number of evaluations of the criminalized regime from Sweden have found no evidence that the overall number of sex workers was reduced.[15] Of note, public health researchers in New Zealand have repeatedly estimated the size of the sex industry in 5 locations, and compared with 1999 (prior to decriminalization), the data show no increase in overall numbers of sex workers.[16] 

5. Criminalizing any aspect of sex work undermines efforts to address human trafficking. The conflation of sex trafficking and sexual exploitation with sex work (the exchange of sex for money among consenting adults) undermines efforts to address these critical human rights issues. In the US and increasingly in Canada, funds intended for use to address human trafficking have been misused on anti-prostitution enforcement efforts. In two separate governmental evaluations of the Swedish criminalization regime, police reported that it creates an obstacle to prosecuting “traffickers and coercive pimps”.[17] Furthermore, scientific evidence and the experience of anti-trafficking organizations suggest that criminalizing the purchase of sex renders it more difficult to assist individuals in situations of coercion and abuse.[18]

Canadian researchers and academics call for evidence-based policies that are consistent with safety, health and human rights for sex workers and communities.

We are calling on the federal government to demonstrate leadership when addressing these challenging issues by promoting evidence-based laws and policies that protect the safety, health and human rights of sex workers. We encourage Canada to adopt the decriminalization of sex work recommendations of the World Health Organization, UNFPA, UNAIDS Advisory Group on HIV and Sex Work, and the Global Commission on HIV and the Law.[19] We invite you to work together with sex workers, researchers and legal experts to develop evidence-based policy approaches that promote the safety, health, and human rights of sex workers.

We look forward to your response.

CC: Members of Parliament of Canada

Signed,

1. Gillian Abel, PhD | University of Otago | Christchurch, NZ
2. Barry Adam, PhD | University of Windsor | Windsor, ON
3. Anu Aggarwal, PhD
4. Laura Agustin, PhD | The Naked Anthropologist
5. Aziza Ahmed, MA, JD | Northeastern University School of Law | Boston, MA
6. Michel Alary, MD, PhD | Université Laval | Québec, QC
7. Sarah Allan, LLB/JD | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
8. Paul Amar, PhD | University of California | Santa Barbara, CA
9. Solanna Anderson, MA | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
10. Elena Argento, MPH | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
11. Robert Argue, PhD | Professor Emeritus, Ryerson University | Sudbury, ON
12. Chris Atchison, MA | University of Victoria | Vancouver, BC
13. Cheryl Auger, MA, PhD (c) | Political Science Department, University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
14. Jacenta Bahri, MA
15. Brook Baker, JD | Northeastern University School of Law | Boston, MA
16. Natasha Bakht, LLM | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
17. Gillian Balfour, PhD | Trent University | Peterborough, ON
18. Nandinee Bandyopadhyay, MA
19. Stefan Baral, MD | Centre for Public Health and Human Rights | Toronto, ON
20. Julie Bates, MSc | Urban Realists Planning & Occupational Health & Safety Consultants | Sydney, AU
21. Katharine Bausch, MA | Trent University | Toronto, ON
22. Ahmed Bayoumi, MD, FRCPC | Toronto, ON
23. Calum Bennachie, PhD | New Zealand Prostitute’s Collective | Wellington, NZ
24. Darcie Bennett, PhD | Pivot Legal Society | Vancouver, BC
25. Cecilia Benoit, PhD | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC
26. Benjamin Berger, JSD | Osgoode Hall Law School | Toronto, ON
27. Rachel Berger, PhD | Concordia University | Montreal, QC
28. Elizabeth Bernstein, PhD | Barnard College | New York, NY
29. Manjima Bhattacharjya, PhD | Mumbai, Maharashtra
30. Steven Bittle, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
31. Gary Bloch, MD | University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
32. John Boan, PhD | University of Regina | Regina, SK
33. Mandy Bonisteel, RN, OMC | George Brown College | Toronto, ON
34. Colin Bonnycastle, MSW | University of Manitoba | Thompson, ON
35. Suzanne Bouclin, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
36. Pierre Boulos, PhD | University of Windsor | Windsor, ON
37. Raven Bowen, MA | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
38. Jason Boyd, PhD | Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
39. Mark Boyd, MD | University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
40. Neil Boyd, LLM | Professor, School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
41. Borce Bozhinov, MD | STAR-STAR | Skopje, Macedonia
42. Ella Bradley, BSW | University of Windsor | Chatham, ON
43. Suzanne Brissette, MD | Centre hospitalier de l’université de Montréal | Montreal, QC
44. Deborah Brock, PhD | Associate Professor, York University | Toronto, ON
45. Chris Bruckert, PhD | Associate Professor, Department of Criminology, University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
46. Zabrina Brumme, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
47. Laurence Brunet, MSc | McGill University | Montreal, QC
48. Chloe Brushwood Rose, PhD | Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, York University | Toronto, ON
49. Licia Brussa, PhD | TAMPEP International Foundation | Amsterdam, Netherlands
50. Katherine Burress, RN | Casey House | Toronto, ON
51. Karen Busby, JD, LLM | Faculty of Law, University of Manitoba | Winnipeg, MB
52. Denton Callander, PhD | University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
53. Kenneth Camargo, MD, PhD | Rio de Janeiro State University | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
54. Thais Camargo, MSc
55. Deanna Campbell, MA, JD (c) | Vancouver, BC
56. Anna Carastathis, PhD | California State University Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA
57. John Carlsleym MD, CM, MSc, CCFP, FRCPC | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
58. Sarah Carlsley, MSc | Toronto, ON
59. Marie-Eve Carrier-Moisan, PhD | Carleton University | Ottawa, ON
60. Patrizia Carrieri, PhD | INSERM | Marseille, France
61. Claire Carter, PhD | University of Regina | Regina, SK
62. Connie Carter, PhD | Canadian Drug Policy Coalition | Victoria, BC
63. Sheila Cavanagh, PhD | York University | Toronto, ON
64. Helen Cerigo, MSc | Toronto, ON
65. Yao Chi Hang, MA | Chinese University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong, China
66. Alexandra Choby, PhD | University of Alberta | Edmonton, AB
67. Sandra Ko Hon Chu, LLM | Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network | Toronto, ON
68. Alison Clancey, MSW | Vancouver, BC
69. Deborah Clipperton, MA, CP | York University | Toronto, ON
70. Claudia Coeli, MD, PhD | Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
71. Marisa Collins, MD, MDSc, CCFP, FCFP | Pemberton, BC
72. Jason Congdon, MSc | School of Communication, Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
73. Sandra Connely, MSc | Niagara Falls, ON
74. Bruno Cornellier, PhD | University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
75. Sonia Correa, MSc | Abai/ SPW | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
76. Patrice Corriveau, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
77. Anna-Louise Crago, PhD (c) | Trudeau Scholar, University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
78. Marion Crook, PhD | Gibsons, BC
79. Joanne Csete, PhD, MPH | Columbia University | London, UK
80. Anne Dagenais Guertin, MD | Gatineau, QC
81. Isolde Daiski, Ed.D | Toronto, ON
82. Darcy Dalgaard, M.Ed | Victoria, BC
83. Amber Dean, PhD | McMaster University | Hamilton, ON
84. Kathleen Deering, PhD | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
85. Sonja Dolinsek, MA | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Berlin, Germany
86. Basil Donovan, MD | Sydney Hospital | Sydney, AU
87. Liza Doyle, MPH | University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
88. Putu Duff, MSc, PhD (c) | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
89. Richard Elliot, LLM | Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network | Toronto, ON
90. Deanna England, MA, BA (Hons.) | University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
91. Danya Fast, PhD | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
92. Maritza Felices-Luna, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
93. Shawna Ferris, PhD | University of Manitoba | Winnipeg, MB
94. Thomas Fleming, PhD | Professor of Criminology | Wilfred Laurier University | Toronto, ON
95. Anna Forbes, MSS | Kensington, MD
96. Juliana Francis, MSc | Movimiento de Mujeres Feministas | Managua, Nicaragua
97. Margot Francis, PhD | Brock University | Toronto, ON
98. Jennifer Fraser, PhD | Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
99. May Friendman, PhD | Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
100. Caspar Friesen, BSc, MD | University of British Columbia | Victoria, BC
101. Robert Gaucher, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
102. Mary Gavan, PhD | Vancouver, BC
103. Leah George, MD, MSc | Calgary, AB
104. Andree Germain, MSW | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
105. Mark Gilbert, MD, MHSc | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
106. Fiona Gold, RN | BC Centre for Disease Control | Vancouver, BC
107. Shira Goldenberg, PhD | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
108. Tonantzin Goncalves, PhD | UNISINOS | Porto Alegra, Brazil
109. Todd Gordon, PhD | Society, Culture and Environment, Laurier University Brantford | Toronto, ON
110. Kelly Gorkoff, PhD | University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
111. Andrew Gray, MD | McGill University | Montreal, QC
112. Devon Grayson, MLIS | Vancouver, BC
113. Pauline Greenhill, PhD | University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
114. Silvia Guillemi, MD | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
115. Gordon Guyatt, MD, MSc | McMaster University | Dundas, ON
116. Devon Haag, MSc | Vancouver, BC
117. Thomas Haig, PhD | Université du Québec à Montréal | Montreal, QC
118. Helga Hallgrimsdottir, PhD | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC
119. Julie Ham, MSW, PhD (c) | Monash University, Melbourne AU
120. Stacey Hannem, PhD | Department of Criminology, Wilfred Laurier University | Branford, ON
121. Ross Harvey, FMP | Mission, BC
122. Ashley Heaslip, MD
123. Robert Heynen, PhD | Department of Communications Studies, York University | Toronto, ON
124. Heidi Hoefinger, PhD | John Jay College, City University of New York | New York, NY
125. Robert Hogg, PhD | Simon Fraser University / BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
126. Kirby Huminuik, PhD (c) | Vancouver, BC
127. Sarah Hunt, PhD | Camosun College | Victoria, BC
128. Mary Ives, RN, MHS | Fraser Health Authority | Chilliwack, BC
129. Shahnaz Islamova, MSc | Tais Plus NGO | Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
130. Mikael Jansson, PhD | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC
131. Leslie Jeffrey, PhD | University of New Brunswick St. John | Saint John, NB
132. Bryan Jones, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
133. Darlene Juschka, PhD | University of Regina | Regina, SK
134. Angela Kaida, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
135. Lara Karaian, PhD | Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Carleton University | Pakenham, ON
136. Mohammad Karamouzian, MSc | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
137. Lisa Kelly, JD, JSD (c) | Harvard Law School | Vancouver, BC
138. Kamala Kempadoo, PhD | Professor, York University | Toronto, ON
139. Perry Kendall, MD | Victoria, BC
140. Lisa Kerr, JD, LLM, JSD (c) | New York University | Vancouver, BC
141. Thomas Kerr, PhD | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS/ University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
142. Ummni Khan, JD, MA, LLM, SJD | Carleton University | Ottawa, ON
143. Julie Kille, BScN, RN | Vancouver, BC
144. Alexandra King, MD | Vancouver, BC
145. Malcolm King, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
146. Gary Kinsman, PhD | Department of Sociology, Laurentian University | Sudbury, ON
147. Mieke Koehoorn, PhD | Vancouver, BC
148. Steven Kohm, PhD | University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
149. Kat Kolar, PhD (c) | University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
150. Rodney Knight, MSc, PhD (c) | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
151. Andrea Krusi, MSc | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
152. Marc Lafrance, PhD | Concordia University | Montreal, QC
153. Tammy Landau, PhD | Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
154. Jeffrey Langer, MA | Laurentian University | Sudbury, ON
155. Rosanna Langer, PhD | Laurentian University | Sudbury, ON
156. Jennifer Lavoie, PhD | Wilfred Laurier University | Brantford, ON
157. Stephanie Law, MJ | McGill University | Montreal, QC
158. Tuulia Law, MA | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
159. Robert Leckey, PhD | McGill University | Montreal, QC
160. Cory Legassic, MA | Dawson College | Montreal, QC
161. Lucie Lemonde, PhD | Université du Québec à Montréal | Montreal, QC
162. Annalee Lepp, PhD| Chair, Department of Women’s Studies, University of Victoria/ Director, GAATW Canada | Victoria, BC
163. Jacqueline Lewis, PhD | University of Windsor | Windsor, ON
164. Katherine Lippel, LLL, LLM | Canada Research Chair on Occupaional Health and Safety Law | Montreal, QC
165. Abby Lippman, PhD | McGill University | Montreal, QC
166. Mona Loufty, MD, FRCPC, MPH | Women’s College Research Institute; Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
167. John Lowman, PhD | Simon Fraser University | West Vancouver, BC
168. Tara Lyons, PhD | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
169. Gayle MacDonald, PhD | St. Thomas University | Fredericton, NB
170. Josephine MacIntosh, PhD | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC
171. Shoshana Magnet, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
172. Janet Maher, PhD | Toronto, ON
173. Lisa Maher, PhD | Kirby Institute for Infection and Immunity/ University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
174. Kristina Mahnicheva, MD | Tais Plus NGO | Dushanbe, Tajikistan
175. Olga Marques, PhD | University of Ontario Institute of Technology | Oshawa, ON
176. Stephanie Marsan, MD | Université de Montréal | Montreal, QC
177. Brandon Marshall, PhD | Brown University | Providence, RI
178. Jessica Martin, MA | York University | Toronto, ON
179. Corinne Mason, PhD | Brandon University | Brandon, MB
180. Bradley Mathers, MBChB, MD | Sydney, AU
181. Eleanor Maticka-Tyndale, PhD | University of Windsor | Windsor, ON
182. Jennifer Matthews, MSc | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
183. Sergio Maulen, MD | Buenos Aires, Argentina
184. Ruth McCarrell, RN | Providence Health Care | North Vancouver, BC
185. Bill McCarthy, PhD | Professor, Department Chair, Department of Sociology, University of California Davis | Davis, CA
186. William McCready, MD | Thunder Bay, ON
187. Drew McDowell, MA, PhD (c) | University of Calgary | Calgary, AB
188. Nicole McFadyen, PhD (c) | Toronto, ON
189. Helen Meekosha, MA | University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
190. Nengeh Maria Mensah, PhD | Professeure, École de travail social, Université du Québec à Montréal | Montreal, QC
191. Emily van der Meulen, PhD | Department of Criminology, Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
192. Erin Michalak, PhD | Vancouver, BC
193. Esther Miedema, PhD | Amsterdam, Netherlands
194. Robin Milhausen, PhD | University of Guelph | Guelph, ON
195. Cari Miller, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
196. M-J Milloy, PhD | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
197. Julio Montaner, MD, FRCPC | Professor, Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia; Director, BC Centre of Excellence in HIV/AIDS; Past President, International AIDS Society | Vancouver, BC
198. Melissa Munn, PhD | Coldstream, BC
199. Michelle Munro, MSc | Agrteam Canada | Ottawa, ON
200. Laura Murray, MHS | Columbia University | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
201. Viviane Namaste, PhD | Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Concordia University | Montreal, QC
202. Vrinda Narain, DCL | McGill University | Montreal, QC
203. Ariel Nesbitt, MPH | Oak Tree Clinic Research | Vancouver, BC
204. Ruth Neustifter, PhD, RMFT | University of Guelph | Guelph, ON
205. Zoe Newman, PhD | Toronto, ON
206. Trent Newmeyer, PhD | Brock University | Toronto, ON
207. N. Nicole Nussbaum, LLB | London, ON
208. Nadia O’Brien, MPH | Université de Montréal | Montreal, QC
209. Tamara O’Doherty, MA, JD | Simon Fraser University | Langley, BC
210. Marcia Oliver, PhD | Wilfred Laurier University | Toronto, ON
211. Maggie O’Neill, PhD | Professor, Durham University | Durham, UK
212. Treena Orchard, PhD | University of Western Ontario | London, ON
213. Michelle Owen, PhD
214. Katrina Pacey, LLB, MA | Pivot Legal Society | Vancouver, BC
215. Charles-Maxime Panaccio, SJD | Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
216. Colette Parent, PhD | Université d’Ottawa | Gatineau, QC
217. San Patten, MSc | Mount Allison University | Halifax, NS
218. Kathryn Payne, MA | George Brown College | Toronto, ON
219. Monika Penner, M.Ed | Edmonton, AB
220. Isabelle Perreault, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
221. Heather Peters, PhD | Quesnel, BC
222. Justin Piché PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
223. Phillip Pilon, MA | York University | Toronto, ON
224. Catherine Pirkle, PhD | Université Laval | Québec, QC
225. Nancy Pollak, MALS | Langara College | Vancouver, BC
226. Susan Price, RSW
227. Rebecca Raby, PhD | Brock University | St. Catharines, ON
228. Momin Rahman, PhD | Department of Sociology, Trent University | Peterborough, ON
229. Genevieve Rail, PhD | Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Concordia University | Montreal, QC
230. Rajive Rajan, MD
231. Frances Ravensbergen, PhD | QC
232. Cheryl Reed-Elder, PhD
233. Alexandra Regier, MA | Vancouver, BC
234. William Reimer, PhD | Concordia University | Laval, QC
235. Dan Reist, MTh | University of Victoria | Mission, BC
236. Jamie Reschny, PhD (c) | University of Northern British Columbia | Prince George, BC
237. Lindsey Richardson, D.Phil | BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
238. Megan Rivers-Moore, PhD | Carleton University | Ottawa, ON
239. Dominique Robert, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
240. Pascale Robitaille, MA | Monteal, QC
241. Annika W. Rodriguez, M.Phil | International Community Health| Oslo, Norway
242. Becki Ross, PhD | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
243. Eric Roth, PhD | University of Victoria | Victoria, BC
244. Sean Rourke, PhD | University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
245. Perrine Roux, PhD | INSERM | Marseille, France
246. Melanie Rusch, PhD | Island Health | Victoria, BC
247. Trish Salah, PhD | Assistant Professor, Department of Women’s and Gender Studies, University of Winnipeg | Winnipeg, MB
248. Anne Salomon, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
249. Joan Sangster, PhD | Trent University | Peterborough, ON
250. Ginetta Salvalaggio, MD, MSc
251. Alejandra Sarda-Chandiramani, MD | Mama Cash | Buenos Aires, Argentina
252. Cristine Sardina, MSJ | Desiree Alliance | Tucson, AZ
253. Michael Schwandt, MD, MPH | University of Saskatchewan | Saskatoon, SK
254. Jamie Scott, MD, PhD | Simon Fraser University | Port Moody, BC
255. Javier Segura del Pozo, MD | Madrid City Council | Madrid, Spain
256. Kate Shannon, PhD, MPH | Associate Professor of Medicine, University of British Columbia; Director, Gender and Sexual Health Initiative, BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS | Vancouver, BC
257. Frances Shaver, PhD | Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Concordia University | Montreal, QC
258. Alexis Shotwell, PhD | Carleton University | Ottawa, ON
259. Jean Shoveller, PhD | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
260. Eric Shragge, PhD | Concordia University (retired) | Montreal, QC
261. Jacob Siegel, MPH | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
262. Reed Siemieniuk, MD | Medical Reform Group | Toronto, ON
263. Joel Simpson, PMP, LLM | Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD) | Georgetown, Guyana
264. Paul Simpson, PhD | Kirby Institute for Infection and Immunity/ University of New South Wales | Sydney, AU
265. Bruno Spire, MD, PhD | INSERM & AIDES | Marseille, France
266. Malcolm Steinberg, MD | Simon Fraser University | Vancouver, BC
267. Kyle Stevens, MD | Kelly Ave Medical Cllinic | Summerland, BC
268. Steffanie Strathdee, PhD | Carlsbad, CA
269. Marie-Eve Sylvestre, PhD | Faculté de droit, Université d’Ottawa| Ottawa, ON
270. Alison Symington, LLM | Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network | Toronto, ON
271. Jason T., MSc | Toronto, ON
272. Marliss Taylor, RN | Streetworks | Tofield, AB
273. Sophie Thériault, PhD | Faculté de droit – Université d’Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
274. Athena Thiessen, MFA | Winnipeg, MB
275. Gerald Thomas, PhD | Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia | Summerland, BC
276. Heidi Thomas, RN, BScN | H’ulh-etun Health Society | Duncan, BC
277. Sarah Thompson, PhD | Department of Criminology, Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
278. Kimberly Thomson, MA | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, BC
279. Ryan Thoreson, D.Phil | Yale Law School | New Haven, CT
280. Jim Thorsteinson, MD | North Vancouver, BC
281. Meaghan Thumath, RN, MPH | University of British Columbia School of Nursing | Vancouver, BC
282. Louise Toupin, PhD | Université du Québec à Montréal | Montreal, QC
283. Steven Tufts, PhD | Toronto, ON
284. Laura Track, LLB | Vancouver, BC
285. Francine Tremblay, PhD | Concordia University | Deux-Montagnes, QC
286. Kathryn Trevenen, PhD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
287. Mark Tyndall, MD | University of Ottawa | Ottawa, ON
288. Mariana Valverde, PhD | University of Toronto | Toronto, ON
289. Kim Varma, PhD | Ryerson University | Toronto, ON
290. Tamara Vukov, PhD | Université de Montréal | Montreal, QC
291. Stephanie Wahab, PhD | Best Practices Policy Project | Portland, OR
292. Pamela Walker, PhD | Carleton University | Ottawa, ON
293. Kai Wang, MD | Toronto, ON
294. Grant Wardell-Johnson, BEc, LLB, CTA | Sydney, AU
295. Thomas Waugh, PhD | Program in Sexuality, Concordia University | Montreal, QC
296. Kevin Wilson, BA (Hons.), MSc. (c) | Dalhousie University | Halifax, NS
297. Yasmin Winsor, MScN | BC Centre for Disease Control | Vancouver, BC
298. Teresa Whitaker, PhD | Sex Workers’ Alliance Ireland | Dublin, Ireland
299. Melissa Autumn White, PhD | UBC Okanagan | Kelowna, BC
300. Stephen Whittle, LLB, MA, PhD | Manchester Metropolitan University | Stockport, England
301. Robert Winston, MD, FRCPC, FACP | BC Cancer Agency | Surrey, BC
302. Peter Woods | Emeritus Mayor | Patron Local Government New South Wales | Sydney, AU
303. Kristopher Woofter, PhD (c) | Concordia University/ Dawson College | Montreal, QC
304. Sean Yaphe, MPH | McGill University | Montreal, QC
305. Alan Young, LLM | Associate Professor, Osgoode Hall Law School | Toronto, ON
306. Kate Zinszer, MSc | Montreal, QC

[1] Lowman J. (2000) Violence and the outlaw status of (street) prostitution. Violence Against Women, 6(9), pp. 987-1011; Shannon K (2010) The hypocrisy of Canada’s prostitution legislation, Canadian Medical Association Journal, 182(12), p.1388.

[2] WHO (2012) Prevention and treatment of HIV and other STIs for sex workers in low and middle Income countries: Recommendations for a public health approach; Shannon K & Csete J (2010) Violence, condom negotiation and HIV/STI risk among sex workers. Journal of the American Medical Association, 304(5) pp. 573-4; Csete J. & Cohen J., (2010) Health benefits of legal services for criminalised populations: The case of people who use drugs, sex workers and sexual and gender minorities. The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 38(4), pp. 816–831.

[3] Abel G., Fitzgerald L., & Brunton C. (2009) The impact of decriminalisation on the number of sex workers in New Zealand. Journal of Social Policy, 38(3), pp. 515-531; Abel G., Fitzgerald L, & Brunton C. (2007) The impact of the Prostitution Reform Act on the health and safety practices of sex workers’, Report to the Prostitution Law Review Committee, University of Otago, Christchurch.

[4] Supra note 2; See also Oppal WT., (2012) Forsaken: The Report of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry; Shannon K. et al. (2008) Social and structural violence and power relations in mitigating HIV risk of drug-using women in survival sex work. Social Science & Medicine, 66(4), pp. 911-921; Lazarus L. et al. (2012) Occupational stigma as a primary barrier to health care for street-based sex workers in Canada. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 14(2), pp. 139-150.

[5] Skarhed A. (2010) Selected extracts of the Swedish Government Report SOU 2010:49, The ban against the purchase of sexual services: An evaluation 1999-2008, Swedish Institute.

[6] Supra note 3.

[7] Supra note 1, 2 and 4; See also Shannon K. et al. (2009) Structural and environmental barriers to condom use negotiation with clients among female sex workers: Implications for HIV-prevention strategies and policy. American Journal of Public Health, 99(4), pp. 659-665.

[8] Canada (Attorney General) v. Bedford, 2013 SCC 72

[9] Gerdts AH. (2010) Lokale Konsekvenser av Sexkjøpsloven i Bergen. En kartleggingsrapport om kvinnene, markedet og samfunnet. Bergen: Utekontakten i Bergen; Skilbrei ML. & Holmström C. (2013) Prostitution policy in the Nordic region: Ambiguous sympathies, Ashgate Publishing Company, Burlington.

[10] Chu S & Glass R. (2013) Sex work law reform in Canada: Considering problems with the Nordic model, Alberta Law Review, 51(1), pp. 101-124; Dodillet S. & Östergren P. (2011) The Swedish Sex Purchase Act: Claimed success and documented effects; Norwegian Ministry of Justice and the Police, Working Group on the Legal Regulation of the Purchase of Sexual Services (2004) Purchasing sexual services in Sweden and the Netherlands: legal regulation and experiences. Oslo, Norway; Östergren P. (2004) Sex workers critique of Swedish prostitution policy; Levy J. (2013) Swedish Abolitionism as violence against women, Sex Worker Open University (SWOU) Sex Worker’s Rights Festival, Glasgow, April 6, 2013.

[11] Bjorndahl, AU. (2012) Farlige Forbindelser: En rapport om volden kvinner i prostitutusjon i Oslo utsettes for.

[12] Supra note 7.

[13] Krusi A. et al. (2012) Negotiating safety and sexual risk reduction with clients in unsanctioned safer indoor sex work environments: A qualitative evaluation, American Journal of Public Health, 102(6), pp. 1154-1159.

[14] Supra note 3.

[15] Supra note 5; See also The National Board for Health and Welfare of Sweden, Socialstyrelsen (2007) Prostitution in Sweden; National Council for Crime Prevention, Regeringskansliet (2000) Förbud mot köp av sexuella tjänster Tillämpningen av lagen under första året BRÅ-rapport, Stockholm.

[16] Supra note 3.

[17] Supra note 11.

[18] Global Alliance Against Trafficking in Women (GAATW). (2011) Moving beyond ‘supply and demand’ catchphrases: Assessing the uses and limitations of demand-based approaches to anti-trafficking; La Strada International et al. (2014) NGO Platform Statement ahead of the vote in the European Parliament on the Report of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality on sexual exploitation and prostitution and its impact on gender equality (2013/2103(INI)). (Accessed March 8, 2014).

[19] Global Commission on HIV and Law (2012), Risks, rights and health; Supra note 2.

Click here to read the ACPD (now Action Canada) Press Release, welcoming the SCC’s decision to strike down laws regarding sex work in Canada.