Opposing Bill C-36: Things You Can Do

[AlannaJohnson]

Hi everybody

I finally had a chance to pen a letter to Conservative MPs. I've posted it on my blog, and emailed it to all Conservative MPs yesterday except for Joy Smith, Bob Dechert, and MacKay.

An Open Letter to Conservative MPs Re: Bill C36
PLEASE Oppose Bill C36! (an open letter from a sex worker)
http://sexydreamlife.blogspot.com/2014/07/an-open-letter-to-conservative-mps-re.html?spref=tw

 

[DigitallyYours]

Hi everybody

I finally had a chance to pen a letter to Conservative MPs. I've posted it on my blog, and emailed it to all Conservative MPs yesterday except for Joy Smith, Bob Dechert, and MacKay.

An Open Letter to Conservative MPs Re: Bill C36
PLEASE Oppose Bill C36! (an open letter from a sex worker)
http://sexydreamlife.blogspot.com/2014/07/an-open-letter-to-conservative-mps-re.html?spref=tw

Very well written! You should definitely be sending that to the Justice Committee as well.

 

[MPAsquared]

Hi everybody

I finally had a chance to pen a letter to Conservative MPs. I've posted it on my blog, and emailed it to all Conservative MPs yesterday except for Joy Smith, Bob Dechert, and MacKay.

An Open Letter to Conservative MPs Re: Bill C36
PLEASE Oppose Bill C36! (an open letter from a sex worker)
http://sexydreamlife.blogspot.com/2014/07/an-open-letter-to-conservative-mps-re.html?spref=tw

Alanna, this is excellent!

 

[bolt.upright]

Hi everybody

I finally had a chance to pen a letter to Conservative MPs. I've posted it on my blog, and emailed it to all Conservative MPs yesterday except for Joy Smith, Bob Dechert, and MacKay.

An Open Letter to Conservative MPs Re: Bill C36
PLEASE Oppose Bill C36! (an open letter from a sex worker)
http://sexydreamlife.blogspot.com/2014/07/an-open-letter-to-conservative-mps-re.html?spref=tw

That is brilliant Alanna! Should be required reading for all Canadians!

I'll be reading the rest of your blog this evening.

 

[Fallsguy]

Very well written! You should definitely be sending that to the Justice Committee as well.

Wow! Excellent letter. This certainly belies the view that sex-workers are drugged-out dregs forced into the proffession and in need of "help" and "rescue." I don't know you, although I wish I did, but you're clearly well educated.
My only concern is that the letter is a bit long and is probably beyond the attention span of most of the trained seals in the Conservative caucus.
This week's committee hearings are going to be a real eye opener for some of those MPs, let's hope it gives them cause for careful reflection.

 

[mmn]

It could take many years for the Bill to get to the SCC, but if the bill is sucessfully challenged in a lower court it could cause LE to relax its enforcement efforts pending the outcome of the case at the higher court. That's what happened in Ontario with the original Bedford decision - many LE (at least in Toronto) took a somewhat more lax view of enforcement once the Ontario court struck down the relevant provisions. That's not to say they did not go after the more egregious cases, but instances where it's clear there's no real victimization they were not as concerned about.

I personally think that once the initial shock of this law is over there will be a new normal. I know a couple of front-line officers, and their private view is that they don't really want to bother with stuff like this unless there's coercion, or underage involvement, or it's far too obvious and causing complaints. As a lot of posters have said before, if you go to incalls frequently, then really you are already putting yourself at risk of LE. The relevant point here is not that the penalty for being a john in the incall is heavier, it's that the incall itself has been illegal all along but most police do not tend to worry about it (again unless the incall is too indiscreet).

It may not take Bill C-36 years to get to the SCC - Could someone follow this process?

Toronto lawyer Rocco Galati is suing Gov. Gen. David Johnston, Immigration Minister Chris Alexander and Justice Minister Peter MacKay over changes to Canada's Citizenship Act.

In documents filed Wednesday morning in Federal Court, Galati asks the court to invalidate key provisions included in a new law that gives the government the power to revoke the citizenship of Canadian-born citizens convicted of "terrorism, high treason, or spying offences" or "who take up arms against Canada" if they hold dual citizenship.

The provisions passed into law last Thursday when Bill C-24, the government's Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, received royal assent.

​Galati has already successfully challenged Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s appointment of Marc Nadon to the Supreme Court of Canada.

In the court documents filed Wednesday, Galati argues it was beyond the Governor General's "constitutional authority" to pass Bill C-24.

The bill itself, Galati argues, goes well beyond Parliament's own reach.

The Toronto lawyer had asked parliamentarians and the Governor General to refer key provisions of Bill C-24 to the Supreme Court for a legal opinion.

In a phone interview with CBC News on Wednesday, Galati said he received a reply from the Governor General's office on June 16 simply acknowledging the content of his original letter.

Nevertheless, Bill C-24 passed into law three days later.

"It is unconstitutional," Galati said.

Marie-Êve Létourneau, a spokeswoman for the Governor General, said they could not comment as the matter is now before the courts.

The office for MacKay, who also serves as the attorney general, referred all comment to the minister of immigration.

A spokeswoman for Alexander would not comment directly on the lawsuit, saying only that "Canadians gave us a strong mandate to protect and strengthen the value of Canadian citizenship."

Galati filed the legal challenge on behalf of a group of lawyers including Manuel Azevedo and the Constitutional Rights Centre.

 

[mmn]

Not that I know how to get a list of of them, but I think another angle would be to write and lobby members of the Senate. It is Conservative and Liberal dominated, but in fact they have rejected legislation passed by the House of Commons and/or sent bills back to be redone (with Conservative senators often going against Harper). Either earlier this year or late last year the Conservative-dominated Senate rejected, of all things, a somewhat anti-union bill which you'd expect conservatives to be all supportive of, because they felt it was unfair to the unions.

So it's possible they will see the absurdity of this bill and not pass it, and we could help by lobbying them. In fact, I'd hold out more hope on that than the bill being rejected by the House of Commons. Conservative senators are not strictly beholden to Harper, while Conservative MPs are.

That is brilliant Alanna! Should be required reading for all Canadians!

I'll be reading the rest of your blog this evening.

 

[mmn]

Certainly not every member of the Senate will disagree wtih the bill, but I imagine quite a few would, even on principle (and not only because they're probably hobbyists themselves )...

I also tend to believe that when most police talk about johns, they really mean the ones who frequent street walkers, less so incall customers and very rarely outcall customers. I think it'll be quite a while, if ever, before LE attitudes change enough that outcalls will be targeted extensively.

Don't forget that even in the US, Elliot Spitzer just happened to be caught, not because investigators thought he was procuring, but because the money transfers he used to pay the agency were initially tracked in a corruption probe. Investigators thought he was being bought off politically and were actually quite surprised to find the money wires were going to a call girl ring.

It looks that the senate already supported the Nordic Model even before this bill: The former Ottawa police chief who is now a conservative senator already declared last January that he supported Nordic model

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...mer-ottawa-police-chief-says/article16246540/

 

[Mrs_Stiffler]

Very well written Alanna. Thank you for all your efforts!

 

[xix]

I decided to bump up this thread since it is approaching 10 years of posting.

Since this section has been created and cries and recommendations and passing votes.

Has anything happen?