Instead of a speaker, for this month’s Café Inquiry, we will watch the National Film Board documentary about prostitution laws in Canada, Buying Sex, and then chat afterwards.
“Following the recent acts of violence and murder of street prostitutes across Canada, the Ontario Superior Court struck down the laws regulating prostitution, sparking legal appeals and contentious debate. Buying Sex brilliantly zeroes in on two radically different visions at the heart of these debates through the stories of those who have most at stake: the buyers and sellers of sex. Sex workers who successfully challenged the laws argue for a model of decriminalization, a capitalist free market of consensual sellers and buyers. Another group calls for zero tolerance that would criminalize the buyers, arguing that street prostitutes are overwhelmingly poor, gendered and racialized. As an appeal wends its way through the courts, the film travels to New Zealand and Sweden, two countries that have adopted these models, and uncovers some surprising and unexpected results. Ultimately, the film asks the viewer to decide which vision would lead to a more just society.”
Lynne Fernie
http://www.hotdocs.ca/film/title/buying_sex
See the trailer of this 2013 film here: http://www.nfb.ca/film/buying_sex/
This screening is free for paid up CFI members; by donation to the general public.
The film will start at 7pm at the Rotary Centre for the Arts on Saturday 31st August.
