Judy Creighton
CP family editor

p. 113.

Prostitutes to oppose government oppression

TORONTO - A former stripper and prostitute says a Canadian organization has been formed to fight government attempts to take way prostitutes' rights to earn money on the streets.

Baba Yaga, a founder of Better End All Vicious Erotic Repression (BEAVER), said the licensing of body rub parlours "amounts to de facto legalization and corporate pimping."

"Parlour owners and government "legally" take a large percentage of the women's wages and protect and profit themselves while leaving the laws against prostitution intact," she said.

She said the prostitute "can be busted, particularly if she should attempt to work independently on the street."

"Right now in Toronto, independent street walkers are an endangered species.

"Wiping out sexploitative work means wiping out potential jobs for women," she said.