Vancouver City Council: Safety Advocate

Painful History Dept: This complex public issue affects urban centres across the globe. Poverty, racism, inequality, and a lack of access to safe, stable housing are common issues. In Canada, communities have called for governments at all levels to do something; in the past, action has been sporadic and uncoordinated. Often times, new policies did little but push a problem from one neighbourhood to another, or drive sex work underground, forcing women and others into more risky situations where abuses can occur with impunity, according to Vancouver Sun. Cities can play a key role in prevention by directly supporting and advocating for child care and after-school programs for children that build their resilience, and "buddy programs" that teach kids to recognize luring and Internet safety. My own daughter participated in such a program a few years ago and can now recognize and avoid pimps, dealers and manipulation and vancouver has a long and painful history of sex workers, particularly women, being violently abused, exploited, and in the case of Pickton's victims, murdered. This Thursday, City Council will debate a report that charts a path forward that will help prevent youth from being recruited, better protect sex workers' health and safety, advocate for muchneeded support systems to assist individuals to exit the sex trade, and work with neighbourhoods to address the negative impacts of sex work. The report coming to Vancouver City Council on Thursday focuses on what specifically the City can do within the current federal legal context to address the range of issues, and what other levels of government can do. The overriding message of the report is that a comprehensive and coordinated approach among all levels of government, law enforcement agencies, communities and stakeholders is required. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.