On the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers, we stand in solidarity with sex workers across British Columbia and honour those who have lost their lives to violence, neglect, and systemic failure.
Sex workers live and work in communities throughout BC, in urban centres, small towns, rural and remote regions, and along major transportation corridors. While public attention has often focused on Vancouver, violence against sex workers and sexual exploitation are province-wide realities, shaped by criminalization, stigma, poverty, racism, colonialism, and the absence of accessible, community-based safety supports.
Sex workers face elevated risks of physical and sexual violence, particularly Indigenous women, racialized women, trans and gender-diverse people, migrants, people who use substances, and those working in isolated or under-resourced regions. In many parts of the province, sex workers contend with limited or nonexistent peer supports, outreach services, safe spaces, or non-police safety mechanisms, increasing vulnerability and isolation.
Preventing violence against sex workers requires more than individual services carrying impossible burdens. It requires the Province of British Columbia to treat sex worker safety and dignity as a core public safety and human rights responsibility, one that is consistent across regions, informed by lived experience, and grounded in non-carceral, rights-based approaches.
On this day, we call for provincial leadership that recognizes sex workers as fully human and deserving of safety, dignity, and protection, regardless of where they live or work. We affirm the importance of sex worker-led and community-based responses, and the need for sustained, coordinated action that does not leave people behind based on geography, criminalization, or social exclusion.
We remember those lost, we stand with those living and we commit to advancing safety, dignity, and justice for sex workers across British Columbia.
Endorsed by:
Haida Gwaii Society for Community Peace
Trail FAIR Society
