Yes, very much. Going to the stories that I spoke about earlier even, there are spaces where people who aren't experiencing criminalization would be able to seek some kind of help, whereas in these situations....
I tell stories to get my points across. For me, there was an experience of stalking that I experienced because of anti-trafficking laws that make me have to publish my address where I keep my records. That's available to the public, so of course people have shown up trying to find my office and that sort of thing. I reached out to the police at one point when it got really spooky and they replied to me months later. They said that of course this guy was interested. They said, “What did you expect? You work in a dangerous field”. There was no follow-up. There was nothing else.
It really limits our ability to seek help.
With wellness checks, we've had members of SWWAC share their stories with us about having police check in. I understand that in Halifax and with ride-alongs, the red carpet is rolled out for you, but realistically, these wellness checks have ended up with sex workers finding out via information and privacy act requests that they have had notes of prostitution written on their records. Now they can't go to the states. They can't travel. They have committed no crime, but this is somehow on their record permanently.