indigenous peoples: sex work, human trafficking, & colonialism€¦ · colonialism frantz fanon...

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Page 1: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

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Page 2: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Colonialism

Frantz Fanon

Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and

that colonialism “is the entire conquest of land and people…”

In other words, colonialism is the complete domination and exploitation of Indigenous lands and bodies, and the domination of the identities attached to those bodies

Page 3: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Sex Work

Sex Work(er) Carol Leigh, 1970s Liberation from negative and legalistic term

Prostitute Legal term Not defined in the CCC; defined by case law

Sex professional Legitimizes labour context Limiting in criminalized context (like Canada)

Page 4: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

History of Canada’s Anti-Prostitution Laws

Bedford v. Canada (2013) The bawdy house offence

(section 210 prohibits keeping and being an inmate of or found in a bawdy house);

The living on the avails offence (paragraph 212(1)(j), which prohibits living in whole or in

part on the earnings of prostitutes); and

The communicating offence (paragraph 213(1)(c), which prohibits communicating in a

public place for the purpose of engaging in prostitution or obtaining the sexual services of a prostitute).

Page 5: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

History of Canada’s Anti-Prostitution Laws

Indian Act, 1867 NWMP, 1873 (present-day, RCMP)

Social construction of the Indigenous woman as the prostitute Defined all Indigenous women as prostitutes

1879 – “Houses of prostitution” Explicitly included wigwams

Criminal Code of Canada, 1892

Page 6: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

History of Canada’s Anti-Prostitution Laws

Criminal Code of Canada (CCC), 1892 1915 – Living on avails

1972 – Communication law

Page 7: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Human Trafficking

Policed by two pieces of legislation Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA)

International human trafficking

Criminal Code of Canada Domestic human trafficking

Page 8: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Human Trafficking

Victims Uniquely Canadian Unique to “vulnerable, economically challenged and socially

dislocated sectors of the Canadian population”

Offenders Share the same ethnic background as the victim Potentially criminalizing personal and/or professional

relationships

Location Excessive resource development Northern First Nations

Page 9: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

“Victims don’t identify as victims”

“Victims don’t know they are victims until we tell them are victims”

Whether they gave consent or not does not matter

Age does not matter

“Indigenous women/girls are most vulnerable”

Page 10: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Human Trafficking

Operation Northern Spotlight National Initiative

Including London

What can we learn from this?

Page 11: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Human Trafficking

But really, what about the victims?

Page 12: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES: SEX WORK, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, & COLONIALISM€¦ · Colonialism Frantz Fanon Wretched of the Earth “[t]he colonized world is a world divided in two” and that

Thank you/Chi-Miigwetch

Naomi Sayers

@kwetoday

www.kwetoday.com

fierce. indigenous. feminism.