The Editor,
Canadian Federation of Women (CFUW) Richmond applauds BC Association of Chiefs of Police (BCACP) for a February resolution adopting "Truth in Language" as part of the fight against child sexual abuse.
"Legal pornography is images of consenting adults engaged in sexual activity. Children can't consent to sexual activity. So what is commonly referred to as child pornography is actually images of child sexual abuse," said Catherine Dawson from CFUW Abbotsford when presenting this resolution at CFUW BC Council's 2012 AGM. "By calling it what it is, we acknowledge the inherent violence and criminality of these images and the terrible impact they have on victims, families and communities."
At the AGM, the CFUW BC Council passed a resolution calling on the provincial government to discontinue the use of the term "child pornography" in all official communications and replace it with the term "images of child sexual abuse".
In the coming months the BCACP and CFUW will continue their work to gain support for implementing "Truth in Language" among local and provincial government offices as well as law enforcement agencies.
Sue Burford, CFUW Richmond president
