The far-left Women’s March on Saturday came out in support of a website that was recently seized by the U.S. government for its involvement in sex-trafficking and underage prostitution.
A federal grand jury in Phoenix returned a 93-count indictment against seven people associated with Backpage.com on Friday for their alleged involvement in knowingly facilitating illegal prostitution and money laundering. Politico reports:
Backpage and its founders have been the subject of intense investigation by the Senate Homeland Security Committee in recent years. Critics said the site not only promoted illegal prostitution but facilitated sex trafficking and sexual abuse of children.
Despite this win against sex trafficking, the Women’s March came out against the government’s decision to shut down the website and openly advocated for the rights of sex workers.
The Women’s March tweeted: “The shutting down of #Backpage is an absolute crisis for sex workers who rely on the site to safely get in touch with clients. Sex workers rights are women’s rights.”
The Women’s March added: “In the coming days, we will be sharing more about sex workers rights to uplift this critical issue. We’re all still learning and as always, we have to listen to the voices of those most impacted. #SexWorkIsWork”
In 2016, then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris tried to prosecute Backpage operators, saying that they were “raking in millions of dollars from the trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable victims,” and that they “designed Backpage to be the world’s top online brothel.”