P.E.E.R.S. to close 31 Mar 2012

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Robert Matas reports for the [I]Globe and Mail[/I], 14 Nov 2011:

[url]http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/bc-politics/for-prostitutes-seeking-to-leave-the-trade-a-little-less-help/article2236223/[/url]

[INDENT][B]The only agency in Vancouver dedicated to helping women leave prostitution will be forced to close its doors this spring as a result of the â??Wal-Martizationâ? of the B.C. governmentâ??s employment programs, says the executive director of PEERS Vancouver.[/B]

The provincial government is in the process of revamping its employment programs to provide accessible one-stop centres to move people from training to jobs as quickly as possible. The new centres are expected to replace numerous non-profit groups in communities across the province.

PEERS [Prostitutes Empowerment Education Resource Society] Vancouver has been urged to join a consortium that will bid for a government contract, Ty Mistry said in an interview Monday. But staff at the 10-year-old agency decided the governmentâ??s new system would not work for the community they serve.

Ms. Mistry characterized the changes as â??the Wal-Martization of employment service.â?

Once Wal-Mart moves in, all the unique, specialized stores that were doing really well disappear, Ms. Mistry said. â??But this will not help people who have special needs,â? she said.

â??The sex trade is a lifestyle,â? she added. A prostitute trying to quit the sex trade is not like a barista who hates their job, she said. â??It is not just a career change. â?¦ sex workers have to unlearn everything they learned and then relearn new ways of living.â?

The government defines success as immediate employment upon graduation from a training program, she said. â??For us, an outcome is someone exiting, so they do not have to, if they do not want to, engage in sex work to get their basic needs,â? she said. They may still be on disability payments or income assistance as they begin to work on a resume or start to figure out where they fit into the labour market, she said.

PEERS has been told that the new employment programs will focus on an individualâ??s strengths, rather than the barriers to employment. â??That is fine for people who have skills,â? Ms. Mistry said. â??But what about people who have been in the sex trade for 20 years? â?¦ Am I supposed to ask them what are your strengths?â?

The decision to close its doors comes as a government-appointed inquiry focuses on the police investigation of the serial killing of prostitutes from 1997 to 2002 in Vancouverâ??s Downtown Eastside. Also, Vancouver city staff earlier this fall drew attention to the inadequate resources to help individuals exit sex work.

A city report on preventing sexual exploitation included two proposals: Use city grants to leverage an increase in support from federal and provincial governments, and open up the cityâ??s employment program to those leaving prostitution.

Vancouver is concerned about PEERS closing its doors, Mary Clare Zak, the cityâ??s director of social policy, said in an interview. â??PEERS provides a critical service around exiting for people involved in sex work and want to exit. â?¦ Weâ??re monitoring changes to see what the impact will be,â? she said.

Stephanie Cadieux, B.C. Minister of Social Development, said she was not concerned about PEERS decision to close. If PEERS does not want to participate, another group will provide the services, she said.

â??The focus of the [employment] program is to help people, and provide the support and services they need, including specialized needs, to get back into the workforce, and to do that as quickly as possible,â? Ms. Cadieux said.

â??For women who want to change what they are doing and get assistance from the government in doing that, that service will be provided,â? she said, adding that the ministry will monitor the changes to ensure those who need the services will receive them.

Ms. Mistry said PEERS decided to close once its current six-month program concludes on March 31. The program provides courses on life skills, job-searching techniques and interview skills. The provincial government gave PEERS funding of $300,000 this year; the city of Vancouver provided $43,000. Around $100,000 was raised from other donors. About 250 women and men have been helped out by PEERS in the past year, Ms. Mistry estimated.[/INDENT]

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Robert Matas reports for the [I]Globe and Mail[/I], 15 Nov 2011:

[url]http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/bc-politics/second-prostitute-support-group-running-out-of-money/article2237563/[/url]

[INDENT]A support group for prostitutes that has been a fixture of Vancouverâ??s Downtown Eastside for 17 years will run out of money in three weeks.

Providing Alternatives Counselling and Education Society, also known as PACE, is the second well-established organization led by former prostitutes to reveal this week that programs for some of the most vulnerable people in the cityâ??s poorest neighbourhood may be discontinued this spring.

Earlier this week, PEERS Vancouver, a group that helps prostitutes who want to leave the trade, announced it would close its doors on March 31 as a result of changes in provincial government funding.

PACE has also come under increased financial pressure, as the number of street-level prostitutes involved with it has grown to the highest level ever while financial support from the provincial government and the private sector has dropped, said executive director Kerry Porth Tuesday in an interview.

Its number of clients ballooned to 196 this year from 50 in 2008. â??Itâ??s rapidly becoming more than we can handle,â? Ms. Porth said. However, only one of 20 grant applications over the past two years has been successful, she added, and it brought in only $2,490.

â??It is bitterly ironic, in the middle of [the Pickton] inquiry, the two organizations that provide direct support to help people in their lives and help people transition out of the trade are facing extinction,â? Ms. Porth said. The inquiry, which is holding public hearings, is looking into the police investigation of the killing of about 20 prostitutes from 1997 to 2002.

â??These individuals [the street prostitutes] need serious help and that help will not be there,â? she said. â??We do not want to see the loss of the only two sex-worker-led organizations in Vancouver.â?

Mary Clare Zak, Vancouverâ??s director of social policy, said PACE and PEERS are feeling the impact of recent government cutbacks and changes across the economy, similar to other social-service agencies. However, trying to raise funds to help prostitutes is especially difficult, she said. â??It is more of a challenge.â?

Vancouver City Council is looking to private foundations and federal and provincial governments to provide more support for the work that PACE and PEERS do, Ms. Zak said. â??These are the services that are needed to keep women safe,â? she said. â??The work that PACE does, in terms of life skills and support for women, is absolutely critical.â?

PACE is run by former prostitutes with a mission to support sex workers with harm-reduction programs. Staff help women find housing, medical care and counselling as well as provide violence-prevention workshops. PACE was one of several community groups that were refused funding to participate in the Missing Womenâ??s Inquiry.

According to its 2010 tax return, PACE received $66,650 from the city, $33,526 from the B.C. government and $14,148 from Ottawa. Donors contributed $95,000. The B.C. government cut its grant to PACE this year, Ms. Porth said. The organization hopes to restore and expand its funds through provincial gaming grants, which will be announced in February.

But without funding next month, the group may not be around next spring, Ms. Porth said. PACE will run out of money to pay its staff of six on Dec. 8.

The organization has asked the City of Vancouver to provide emergency funding to carry the organization until February. City council will consider the request in mid-December.

The funds would be an advance on the annual grant that PACE receives from city hall, Ms. Zak said. Typically, the funds would not be released until the spring. If council approves, the funds would be available earlier.

Ms. Porth questioned whether the request for funds would receive support from both the left-wing Vision Vancouver party and the right-wing Non-Partisan Association. However, NPA mayoral contender Suzanne Anton said she â??absolutelyâ? supported the work of PACE. The organization has received longstanding support from city councils of all political stripes, she said in an interview.[/INDENT]