Capricorn
To Anyone Using our Daughter's Legacy,
It has come to our attention that there is a group of people who wish to legalize prostitution and set up a brothel in Vancouver. As the parents of Marnie Frey, who was murdered by Robert "Willie" Pickton, we believe that both these ideas are very dangerous recommendations.
Our daughter was forced into prostitution because of the need to feed her addiction to drugs. To think of prostitution as a ‘job’ and treat it as such is ridiculous. I am disgusted to think that anyone would think that prostitution is a job. It is not.
It is violence against women.
Neither legalizing prostitution nor having a brothel would have prevented the murder of our daughter. The women of the Downtown Eastside need meaningful solutions to their addictions.
We tried on numerous occasions to have Marnie admitted to drug rehabilitation facilities, but found that to be very difficult because of the chronic lack of beds and funding for such places. When an addict reaches out for help, the resources should be available immediately. To think the best we can do for these women is giving them a safe place to sell their bodies is a joke. There is no such thing as a "clean safe place" to be abused in.
For a man to think he can buy a woman's body is insane, and should show us the attitudes that women have to fight against in society. Marnie did not choose prostitution; her addictions did, and any man who bought her body for their sexual pleasure should go to jail for exploiting her desperation.
COMMENTS (4)
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Comments
Re: Not In My Daughter's Name
By Anonymous, November 16, 2008 at 17:06I can’t understand how they could even think to ask those parents to use theyr daughter’s name in such a purpose. I would have understood if they wanted to use it in funding drug rehab centers, but this???? Legalizing prostitution??? I can understand how hard was for them to find a drug rehab for their daughter. I struggle myself a lot to find for my son an opiate detox clinic that we could afford.
Re: Not In My Daughter's Name
By timada421, October 23, 2008 at 17:23All this was because of an addiction to drugs? That is terrible. Young people need to be encouraged more to get help and visit drug rehab. Not enough is being done to reach out to vulnerable people like Marnie. Drug addiction can only lead to even worse things.
Re: Not In My Daughter's Name
By johannabartley, October 17, 2008 at 08:22There's a real problem with the lack of beds in drug rehab clinics. So many young people could get clean and have a normal life if they were accepted into a program...Sadly, the only rehab the can get is the one they pay and that's not always an option.
Re: Not In My Daughter's Name
By Hazel8500, February 23, 2008 at 08:52I sure hope who ever is using Marnie's name without permission reads this and stops.
Personally I believe in brothels, but I am not convinced that brothels are the solution for survival sex workers. Women who are still selling sex to support their addictions and other socio-psychological needs, need a safe place to fight their demons as Mr and Mrs. Frey's letter illustrates - not a trick pad. Yes we desperately need beds in BC, rehab beds.
Thank you again Trisha for your excellent reporting.
Hazel.