International
The Swedish Sex Purchase Act: Claimed success and documented effects
By Susanne Dodillet and Petra ÖstergrenConference paper presented at the International Workshop: Decriminalizing Prostitution and Beyond: Practical Experiences and Challenges. The Hague, March 3 and 4, 2011IntroductionSweden’s criminalization of the purchase of sexual services in 1999 is said to be a unique measure: to only punish those who buy sexual services, not those who sell them. […]
Statement: Decriminalisation of prostitution v legalisation
Since it was founded in 1975, the English Collective of Prostitutes has been campaigning for the abolition of the prostitution laws which criminalize sex workers and our families, and for economic alternatives and higher benefits and wages — no woman, child or man should be forced by poverty or violence into sex with anyone. Summary: Decriminalisation is […]
US sex workers’ groups oppose protest of Craigslist
Thursday July 8, 2010Contact: Rachel West (US PROS) 415-640-4250 Sex workers groups and others oppose protest of CraigslistUS PROStitutes Collective (US PROS) and others will be holding a counter protest at Craigslist today at 12 noon. We strongly oppose the false claims about trafficking and pimps made by fundamentalist feminists and others in order to […]
NY Times: Debating whether it’s a crime to rest on San Francisco’s sidewalks
SAN FRANCISCO — Starchild, a self-described sex worker and a candidate for San Francisco supervisor, says there is absolutely no reason that his beloved city needs any more rules.“I think that with a lot of laws, half of it is leftover morality from the Puritan days,” said Starchild, a male escort who goes by only one […]
US “Stand-In” to protest the arrests of sex workers
On a busy sidewalk in San Francisco’s Polk Street neighborhood on May 20, about 25 people took part in a “Stand-In” to protest the arrests of sex workers and “Sit/Lie” – a proposed bill to make it illegal to sit or lie on the sidewalk between 7am and 11pm under threat of a fine and jail. […]
US Fearing arrest and/or deportation will mean fewer women will report rape or other violence
BY RACHEL WESTTaking advantage of the recent turmoil over the huge city budget cuts, Mayor Gavin Newsom and Sup. Carmen Chu, have pushed though malicious legislation imposing criminal charges and restrictions on massage parlors. Many are outraged that this costly legislation was prioritized — we want to know why it was, and how much it […]
Action Alert: Stop the closure of massage parlors!
Protect workers’ safety! Stop the closure of massage parlors! Stop targeting immigrant sex workers!Under the pretence of stopping sex trafficking, Supervisor Carmen Chu and Mayor Newsom want to impose criminal charges and exorbitant fines on massage parlors despite workers’ concerns that it will push the industry underground making them more vulnerable to violence and exploitation. […]
Summary of the New Zealand Prostitution Reform Act
Catherine HealyNew Zealand Prostitutes Collectiveinfo@nzpc.org.nzDear ECP,I enclose below as requested information about the Prostitution Reform Act which decriminalised prostitution in New Zealand six years ago.In summary the law means that street based sex workers can operate without any legal restriction on their sex work, but are subject to public nuisance, noise, litter controls, etc., the […]
The Guardian: Norway ‘Sex ban puts us at greater risk’
As parliament makes it an offence to buy sex from women forced into prostitution, Gwladys Fouché talks to sex workers, police and support groups in Scandinavia, where similar bans have met with a mixed receptionNadia shivers in the cold night air while waiting for punters on the streets of Oslo. Until recently, the centre of […]