‘Prostitution and Women’s Equality: Imagining More for Women’ — Part 1

This episode of Needs No Introduction is the first in a three-part series on prostitution and features a talk by Gunilla Ekberg. In the midst of heated debate around prostitution laws in Canada, this talk, entitled “Prostitution and Women’s Equality: Imagining More for Women,” was organized in an effort to debunk myths about the legalization of prostitution and explore alternatives. Gunilla Ekberg is a radical feminist, a lawyer and a human-rights consultant. She has spent much of her life fighting against prostitution, and and worked for 6 years as Special Advisor to the Swedish government on human trafficking. Ekberg advocates for what is referred to as the Nordic model (sometimes also known as the Swedish model), a unique approach to prostitution which includes de-criminalizing sex-workers, criminalizing their pimps and buyers, and funding strategies for workers trying to leave the industry. This talk was held on March 10, 2011 at the Vancouver Public Library in Vancouver, B.C. and was recorded by Laura Wood and produced by Meghan Murphy.