NOVEMBER 3, 2010
VANCOUVER – Benjamin Perrin, a law professor at the University of British Columbia and author of Invisible Chains: Canada’s Underground World of Human Trafficking, eight leading Canadian organizations committed to the issue, five provincial governments and almost 10,000 members of the public have called on Craigslist to immediately shut down its erotic/adult services section in Canada as recently done in the U.S. They are joined today by the federal government. Minister of Justice and Attorney General Rob Nicholson announced today he has written to the Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster demanding the website shut down its erotic services ads in Canada, just as done in the U.S. in September 2010.
“It’s time for this American Internet giant to shut down its online flesh market in Canada,” said Professor Perrin. “While Craigslist waits, traffickers do not, and continue to exploit our country’s daughters and newcomers. What more are they waiting for?”
Provincial Attorneys General in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario have all made the same request of Craigslist as was made today by Minister Nicholson. Victim services organizations that help survivors of sex trafficking are adding their voices calling on Craigslist to shut down their erotic/adult services as well.
“Craigslist operates as a modern day slave block, selling vulnerable women and girls to the highest male bidder. For too long we have allowed this internet giant to dehumanize and commodify women, further entrenching the sex industry by normalizing the buying and selling of women,” said Michelle Miller, Executive Director of Resist Exploitation, Embrace Dignity. “By calling on Craigslist to shut down the erotic/adult services, the government and the citizens of Canada send a strong message that exploitation is not tolerated here”, reinforces Sherilyn Trompetter, Director of ACT Alberta (Action Coalition on Human Trafficking).
Craigslist shut down its erotic/adult services sections completely across the U.S. in September, but to date has refused to do so in Canada. During a hearing on September 15th of the US House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, Craigslist counsel recognized that the site had been consulting with the RCMP, but implied that no action had been taken as no one in a position of authority had asked for the removal of erotic/adult services ads. Now the website no longer has that excuse.
On a global scale, almost 10,000 people have also signed an online petition calling on Craigslist to shut down its erotic services sections in Canada and other countries outside the U.S. Cash-strapped non-profits have even refused funding from the Craigslist Foundation until something changes.
Craigslist has become an integral part of the technology of trafficking and has been used to sell victims as young as 14. “As a global leader, Canada must set a strong example and send a message to any individual who exploits another for personal or financial gain.”, says Faytene Kryskow, Director of For My Canada.
“This is not something Canada should have to ask for. Craigslist should take immediate action to shut down the assistance it is affording to traffickers and those who sell children for sex”, Perrin said, pointing to numerous cases in Canada where the site has been the “medium of choice” for sex traffickers to advertise victims for sale.
A national action plan to combat human trafficking is needed to more effectively prosecute the traffickers, protect and assist victims, prevent the crime and combat the demand that fuels human trafficking. The case for such a plan was put forward strongly in Ottawa last week by representatives from the Canadian Police Association, First Nations leaders, non-governmental organizations, survivors, political leaders and researchers. It is time to end this exploitation that has taken root in our province and our country.
“Anything we can do to push this behaviour away from the mainstream . . . is good for us,” said Calgary Police Sgt. Mark Schwartz in a recent article in the Calgary Herald. While police have used the website on occasion as an investigative tool, its value to traffickers has vastly outweighed any benefit to law enforcement. Concerns about content moving to other sites is also overblown as they too are shutting doors to such ads – as Kajiji recently announced.
“The federal government must implement a national prevention strategy against human trafficking just as a federal task force on our missing and murdered women is necessary,” said Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Ron Evans, who received an award last weekend for his leadership to combat human trafficking. “A federal appeal to stop Craigslist erotic ads would be a step in the right direction.”
Benjamin Perrin is an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law, a faculty fellow at the Liu Institute for Global Issues, and a leading expert on human trafficking. As a senior policy advisor and a witness before several Parliamentary committees, he has advised the federal government on this issue. He has also worked overseas with victims and assisted in the prosecution of child sex offenders as executive director of The Future Group, a non-governmental organization that he founded in 2000 to combat human trafficking. In 2009, Perrin was honoured by Hillary Clinton and the U.S. State Department as a “hero acting to end modern-day slavery” – the first Canadian to be recognized by this award. His new book Invisible Chains: Canada’s Underground World of Human Trafficking identifies Craigslist as part of the “new technology of trafficking”.
Canadian organizations publicly supporting the call to ban Craigslist sex ads that have been used to sell minors and adult trafficking victims, include:
- ACT Alberta – The Action Coalition on Human Trafficking
- Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs
- Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres
- For My Canada
- Not for Sale Canada
- Resist Exploitation, Embrace Dignity (REED)
- The Future Group
- Vancouver Rape Relief
For more information, please contact:
Benjamin Perrin
778-928-9327
perrin@law.ubc.ca
ACT Alberta
Sherilyn, Director
780-710-5511
sherilyn.trompetter@gmail.com
www.actalberta.org
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs
Doug Thomas, Director of Communications
204-781-5862
dthomas@manitobachiefs.com
www.manitobachiefs.com
Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres / Vancouver Rape Relief
Hilla Kerner
casac02@shaw.ca or hillak@rapereliefshelter.bc.ca
For My Canada
Faytene Kryskow, Director
613-695-3186
faytene@4mycanada.ca
www.4mycanada.ca
Not for Sale Canada
Erin Thomas, Alberta Regional Co-Director
erint@notforsalecampaign.org
www.notforsalecampaign.org
Resist Exploitation, Embrace Dignity (REED)
Michelle Miller, Executive Director
604-725-3838
michelle@embracedignity.org
www.embracedignity.org
The Future Group
Rebecca Whittaker
214-298-9671
rebecca.whittaker@gmail.com
www.thefuturegroup.org
Petition to Ask Craigslist to Stop Advertising Human Trafficking Outside the U.S.
