October 14, 2019
Dear NOW leaders and activists,
This is a reminder, to please RSVP if you are planning to attend the DC public hearing this Thursday and HELP STOP A BILL THAT WOULD MAKE DC A SEX TOURISM CAPITAL AND HARM MARGINALIZED GIRLS AND WOMEN IN OUR COMMUNITY. Opponents of the legislation are asked to show up to the hearing room early, and wear black.
Please join us in supporting the President and Vice President of NOW, Toni Van Pelt and Christian F. Nunes, as they testify at a DC public hearing to defeat full decriminalization of sexploitation legislation.
When: Thursday, October 17th at 10 a.m.
Where: The Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC) in Room 412.
NOW Activists from New York City, can travel to DC to attend the hearing on a bus organized by NOW NYC. The bus will leave midtown at 7 a.m. Thursday Oct. 17 and depart from DC at 4 p.m. RSVP for the bus from NYC NOW!!
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 those who demand and buy sex, pimps, recruiters, traffickers, operators of brothels and others who profit from the sale of sexual acts.
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 the number of sex trafficked individuals 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, also known as the Equality model, 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 sex, 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.
