Sex workers will gather outside the Montreal courthouse early Friday evening to demand the repeal of the Exploited Communities and Persons Protection Act, which criminalizes certain aspects of sex work in Canada.
The protest marks the end of a week of hearings in the Ontario Superior Court in response to a constitutional challenge by the Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform, which brings together 25 community groups and organizations Across the country.
Stephen Harper’s government introduced new sex work regulations in 2014 to comply with a Supreme Court of Canada ruling that criminalized prostitution was unconstitutional.
The Canadian Alliance for Sex Work Law Reform says these new laws violate the rights of sex workers and force them to work underground, making them more vulnerable to sexual violence and preventing them from reporting dangerous situations related to their job.
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