Disappointment, joy after Ontario court dismisses sex workers' Charter challenge

Justice Robert Goldstein's decision says the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act, brought in by the former Conservative government, balances prohibition of 'the most exploitative aspects of the sex trade' while protecting sex workers from legal prosecution. (Tijana Martin/The Canadian Press)

The most exploitative aspects of the sex trade are enabled by it's prohibition. Any idiot knows the market for sex work doesn't simply disappear because you want it so. Just now the sex workers involved can't easily appeal to authorities when they're being exploited.

This is the best summary I could come up with:

There were expressions of disappointment and joy Monday after Ontario's Superior Court dismissed a Charter challenge launched by an alliance of groups advocating for the rights of sex workers.

Robert Valle said his group provided testimonials and affidavits from victims during the court hearings to clearly indicate that sex work is "a violent industry" that is "extremely exploitative."

The Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act was passed in 2014, about a year after the Supreme Court of Canada struck down previous anti-prostitution laws after lawyers argued existing provisions were disproportionate, overbroad and put sex workers at risk of harm.

The federal government maintained those new statutes do not prevent people selling sex from taking safety measures and says they are meant to reduce both the purchase and the sale of sexual services.

Ellie Ade Kur, executive director of Maggie's Toronto Sex Worker Action Project, was a fact witness in the case.

"A lot of these things prevent us from being able to work in groups, to implement safety mechanisms, to be able to engage third parties who are able to support with screening around personal protection and security and shape the relationship between our communities and the police more broadly."

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