If I can draw a parallel to the old bawdy house laws, we know that in Canada there were relatively few bawdy house convictions, but in Bedford, the Supreme Court found the fact that the law prevented us from having safe, stable places to work was a violation of our right to security of person. Sometimes simply the fear of the law is just as powerful as the actual enforcement of that law.
I can tell you that since the criminalization of purchase came into play, clients are much less likely to communicate with us. We have a harder time negotiating what we're going to do, how we're going to do it, safe sex practices, and what sexual services we will or won't provide. Clients are no longer willing to give their real names or any identifying information. It makes screening for our safety much harder, but what I was really referring to in relation to this consultation around human trafficking is that I have worked for almost 30 years, not just as a sex worker, but doing advocacy, and I can tell you there was a time when I could pick up the phone at an organization like Maggie's and speak to a fellow who would say, “I just wanted to let you know I was down at such and such parlour. I'm really concerned that something bad is happening with those girls, because I saw and heard this or that.” There's now radio silence, because these men know that if they step forward, they themselves could be facing prosecution. I'm concerned that we are missing a significant tool in our battle.