October 8, 2019
Dear NOW leaders and activists,
STOP A BILL THAT WOULD MAKE DC A SEX TOURISM CAPITAL AND HARM MARGINALIZED GIRLS AND WOMEN IN OUR COMMUNITY
Please join us in supporting the President of NOW, Toni Van Pelt, as she testifies at a DC public hearing to defeat the full decriminalization legislation.
When: Thursday, October 17th at 10 a.m.
Where: The Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC) in Room 412.
The deceptively-titled Community Safety and Health Amendment Act of 2019 (B23-0318) has been introduced and is supported by several DC Council members, with the goal of decriminalizing all aspects of prostitution, removing criminal prohibitions and penalties for prostituted persons, pimps, recruiters, traffickers, operators of brothels and others who profit from the sale of sexual services.
NOW’s goal is to stop the sexual exploitation of girls, women and other vulnerable persons. Unfortunately, the consequences of the pending DC legislation would be to normalize the use of women for sexual exploitation, increase rates of sex trafficking and reduce protections for prostituted persons. This bill threatens the well-being of vulnerable women and children throughout DC and the surrounding area, especially those who live in poverty-impacted communities.
Click here to:
Help NOW stop this harmful bill in its tracks.
To protect prostituted persons, NOW advocates for partial decriminalization which is NOT part of the DC bill:
Partial Decriminalization is a legal model which protects persons who have been prostituted by removing criminal prohibitions and penalties against them, but maintaining the legal prohibitions and penalties against purchasing sexual services, pimping, brothel keeping, trafficking, etc. This approach offers greater protection for prostituted persons without providing legal protection to exploiters or expanding the overall market which promotes sex trafficking. Click here for more information on how to stop this bill in its tracks.
