As the 2010 Olympics quickly approaches the city is getting visibly busier: transit, businesses and yes: sex trade workers and escorts. With the Olympics comes the increase demand for sex trade workers and escorts both male and female.

The group REED (Resist Exploitation, Embrace Dignity) is running a campaign called "Buying Sex is not a Sport."

"Buying Sex Is Not a Sport is a grassroots campaign to raise awareness and effect change around sex trafficking and the 2010 Olympic games. The demand for sexual access to the bodies of women and children fuels human trafficking. Women and children in Metro Vancouver and Whistler are routinely coerced into the flesh trade to meet this demand, and a large sporting event such as the 2010 Olympics will only further exploitation through a rise in the demand for paid sex. Demand is an issue we have already flagged in Canada and have been working against for years.

The very workings of human trafficking are a market-based model of supply and demand. There is an uncontrolled male demand for sexual access to the bodies of women (and children) and the supply for this demand is met through violating the dignity of women. It is our conviction that in order to stem the tide of human trafficking we must end the demand for paid sex. Demand flourishes in an atmosphere of anonymity" from REED's website.

For a lot of people, the Olympics coming to Vancouver is a wonderful event. It is a chance for our Canadian athletes to shine, a way to showcase Vancouver, boost the economy and provide a fun and exciting time.

But not everyone feels this way; many people are angry with how our city is treating its poor and homeless. Some people feel that the mass amounts of money being spent on the games could have gone to better uses to help our city and its residents. Others are concerned that there is an attempt to hide the downtown Eastside and push its people out of the public eye.

There have been many stories about this as well as events, protests and discussions featuring opinions on both sides. We invite you to share your opinion about Vancouver, the Olympics and how you feel it is affecting our residents.

Here are some different stories and blogs on the topic:

Homelessness change
Seattle Times
Toronto Star
Vancouver Sun
VANOC

What are your thoughts?

 

 

As we leave 2009 behind and head into 2010 we are wondering what your goals or resolutions are for the year ahead? Or maybe you don't make any?

Our youth usually have many goals and aspirations for the New Year, anything from finding a home, getting a job or to quit using drugs. We make New Year's fun for our youth by staying up late, having lots of treats and playing games. Our staff model that you can have a great New Year's night without drugs or alcohol.

So with resolutions in mind we are hoping that you would share yours with us or send some well wishes to our youth to give them little extra strength to accomplish theirs.

Covenant House Vancouver thanks you all for your kindness and support in 2009 and hopes your 2010 is filled with love, joy and all you wish for.

Happy New Year!!

 

Please enjoy a Christmas poem from Brian & FASS ( Finance & Support Services) dedicated to our staff and youth.

It’s not the night before Christmas and anyway according to CSS(Community Support Services) creatures have been stirring!
 

It is best sung to “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire"

 

The Tyee is a Vancouver based blog that consistently reports on issues relating to homelessness, drawing much-needed attention to an issue that concerns most British Columbians.

Click here for today's article on a renovated SRO.  Thanks to Monte Paulsen for covering this topic near and dear to us.

 

There has been much bantering in Hollywood over the fate of film maker Roman Polanski who drugged and raped a 13 year old girl in 1977. Polanski has until now avoided prosecution, having fled the United States, but was recently arrested in Switzerland. It is remarkable to me that there are those who argue the assault was not a "rape rape" (Whoopi Goldberg). A 13 year old girl was drugged and raped by a grown man. What am I missing here?

At Covenant House, we see the wounds sexual assault/abuse leave on young women (and men) and it is devastating. To argue the legality or "fairness" of apprehending Polanski now leads us away from the real issue: children who are physically and sexually abused suffer, sometimes for the rest of their lives.

Supporters of Polanski and the (now) woman herself, who was the victim of Polanski's crime, argue that she is being re-victimized, as this "story" plays out again in the media, her wounds re-opened. So on one hand, the abuse is acknowledged while simultaneously its impact denounced.

The raping of a 13 year old girl is a horrific crime; that the rights of the criminal are of great concern to some is of great concern to me.

To those who think that leaving any form of prostitution legal is wise, moral or humane, we invite you to come to Covenant House.

To those who think that weakening the current anti-pimping laws in Rhode Island will accomplish anything but more human misery, we invite you to come to Covenant House.

Covenant House is the largest homeless shelter for trafficked and sexually exploited children and youth in the United States. We take care of more than 70,000 homeless youth each year across six countries and many of them have been muscled into the commercial sex trade during their adolescence, victimized by "johns" and pimps. Often, after law enforcement infiltrates a criminal sex ring, these are the youth left in the wake.

Each year thousands of homeless and runaway youth are swept up by human traffickers and subjected to vicious commercial sexual exploitation. They struggle in the shadows, away from the spotlight, out of the public eye, and without protection. So many of the victims are filled with such despair and self loathing, it takes years to rebuild their esteem and equip them to leave the past behind them. The chilling stories they recount sound a familiar refrain: as they struggled to survive on the margins of society, they found themselves alone, hidden from view, and cut off from any help.

Imagine you are a young person struggling to get off the streets. You take the right steps by getting help for your addictions, get counselling and learn job and life skills. You are staying in a shelter or maybe on a friend's couch, and you have been working hard to find a job and you do!

Your job pays minimum wage but you are just happy to be off the streets, working and starting over. Now imagine your weekly pay is $320.00 before taxes, your monthly pay is about $1280.00 before taxes. Now imagine trying to live off of that amount of money...think of rent, food and transportation. Even if you have a roommate and live in a cheaper place (pretty hard to find in Vancouver) you are probably spending around $450-$500 on rent, bus pass at least $100, food and basic necessities $200 and other bills at least $100.00.

So just to live you probably need at least a $1000.00 a month and that is bare bones.

That is what so many of your youth face every day. BC has so many young people and families that are the working poor. People working full time jobs but just barely getting by and hardly ever getting ahead. Having the lowest minimum wage in Canada is unacceptable - we live in one of the most high cost areas and our minimum wage has not gone up for years even though the cost of living continues to increase. This greatly affects all of us - please make a stand for a higher minimum wage to benefit all of us in BC.