Sex Worker and Violence Meeting Notes

Monday, March 28, 2016, 11:00am-12:00pm

DOSW, 25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 240, San Francisco, CA

 

Attendees: Stephany Ashley, St. James Infirmary; Christy Camp, AC/AC; Cristy Dierterich, DPH Newcomers; Alan Guttierez, LYRIC; Minouche Kandel, DOSW; Carol Leigh, BaySwan; Jessica Li, Safe House; Alix Lutnick, RTI International; Dee Michel, St. James Infirmary; Jazmine Mincey, Larkin St. Youth Services; Cyd Nova, St. James Infirmary; Ragnhild Schaap, Mayor’s Office; Rachel Web, US Phil Student’s Collective

 

Introductions/Check In     

Update on Bad Date Line                                                                                                                             Stephany

The Bad Date Line is a program funded by the Department on the Status of Women. It serves as a community notification system for sex workers as an alternative to filing a police report. Sex workers can access an online database to see a list of “bad dates” as reported by affected individuals to prevent future violence and danger to others. The List is up and running and is available in English and Spanish on the website. There is a link to fill out a “bad date report” as well. The mobile app is in the beta programming stage, as issues around legal responsibility and creating a brand image are still being worked through.

 

Update of SFPD Immunity Policy                                                                                                           Minouche

This policy has been called the Prioritizing Safety for Sex Workers Policy. Lt. Santos of the San Francisco Police Department Special Victims Unit has said the policy has been accepted, but has to be disseminated in a community bulletin publication throughout the police department. The committee agreed it would like to see this bulletin when it has been published.

 

Update on Review of SFPD Prostitution Cases                                                                                       Alix

Alix has been working on a content analysis of prostitution related arrests in San Francisco for the years 2008, 2009, 2014, and 2015. The project has been approved, but personnel from the San Francisco Police Department must redact identifying information before Alix can review it for research. Alix is currently waiting for this to be completed before data analysis can begin.

 

Follow up on comments to POST video                                                                                                 Alix

At the February Mayor’s Task Force on Human Trafficking Meeting, Alix presented the POST feedback that had been given by the subcommittee. The Mayor’s Task Force expressed that they would prefer to see the video before approving the feedback. Additionally, there was concern about the content of the feedback. The subcommittee discussed that it would be important for the Sex Work and Policy Impact Committee to have a broader discussion about their role in the Mayor’s Task Force. There are challenged that the subcommittee faces because of misrepresented information about sex workers, and the group decided to plan a meeting to address these concerns and strategize on how to more effectively engage with the Mayor’s Task Force as a whole. The group decided they will present at the meeting in April about the origins and purpose of the subcommittee, and help the Task Force recognize the nuances of different viewpoints and additional ranges of experience. The subcommittee does not intend to erase the experience of survivor-based frameworks, but to offer an additional framework and viewpoint. At the June Task Force Meeting, the subcommittee will revisit the POST video feedback with the hopes that more people will have been able to watch the training video to provide feedback.  

 

 

Follow up on letter to SFCAHT                                                                                                            Cyd

SFCAHT (San Francisco Collaborative Against Human Trafficking) put on a conference last year to discuss human trafficking policy. The flyer they put out held racialized and sex worker specific imagery. After the last meeting, Cyd collaborated with a couple of folks to write a letter about why the images were problematic, elaborating on the feelings that the pictures might evoke in a social context. The letter was well received and SFCAHT agreed to keep that feedback in mind when creating program flyers in the future.

 

 

Developing Training Curriculum

Once the San Francisco Police Department Immunity Policy is in place, it will be necessary to develop a training for police and the District Attorney’s office both on the policy specifically and more broadly about how to engage positively with sex workers. St. James Infirmary may be a good fit for developing this training. Stephany recommends a short 10 min “how to/how not to engage” video as a useful training mechanism.

 

Proposed state legislation to decriminalize prostitution and other trafficking related crimes for minors

The state is moving forward with the bill, but it is receiving a lot of pushback. The authors have decided they would rather pull the bill than make concessions for the dissenters.

 

Next Steps

The group scheduled a meeting to discuss the purpose of the committee and holding a press conference for Monday, April 11 at 1pm. Minouche is going to double check to see if the subcommittee can submit the POST feedback as a standalone if the Task Force does not approve it.