About fifty people gathered on Friday evening at Place de la Paix in Montreal to denounce violence against sex workers. This event comes after one of them was murdered in a Mile End apartment last November.
“When murders like this happen, it reminds us that it could be any of us, at any time,” said Sandra Wesley, general manager of Stella Montreal, an organization promoting the development of solidarity and the appropriation of power by sex workers.
Stella organized the event on the occasion of the International Day to End Violence against Sex Workers. “We give each other a moment to remember the people we lost during the year, but also [pour] to remember that it is true all the violence that we live ”, declared Mme Wesley, in interview with Press.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, PRESS ARCHIVES
On November 5, a 25-year-old sex worker was found lifeless in an apartment on rue Saint-Urbain, in the Mile End.
On November 5, a 25-year-old sex worker was found lifeless in an apartment on rue Saint-Urbain, in the Mile End. In another room, the body of Daniel Shlafman, 31, was found. He was recognized in the world of sex workers as a violent client.
“Everyone is still reacting to this, and then [gère] grieving to see a co-worker die like this, ”says Sandra Wesley.
The director of Stella Montreal believes that the federal government has “the objective of eradicating the sex industry”. In Canada, it is not illegal to offer sexual services for payment, but purchasing these services is illegal.
In order to ensure greater safety for sex workers, Stella calls for the decriminalization of sex work. Sandra Wesley believes that in other areas, such as the manufacturing industry which benefits from standards, rights should be granted to sex workers. “In any other industry where there is a risk of violence, we always think about how we can improve working conditions,” she explained.
HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT PHOTO, THE PRESS
The director of Stella Montreal, Sandra Wesley
But that’s not all either. We know that the stigma towards sex workers contributes a lot to the creation of violence. As long as it’s shameful to be a sex worker, it will give people the opportunity [d’être violentes].
Sandra wesley
Recall that in January 2020, Marylène Lévesque, a 22-year-old sex worker, was stabbed by Eustachio Gallese in a hotel room in Sainte-Foy. The man was on day parole after serving a life sentence without the possibility of release for 15 years for the murder of his wife in 2004.