Search

The purpose of the paper is to explore social works practice response to sexual violence and the impact of victim blaming narratives for sex workers. Using a feminist standpoint epistemology, in keeping with an interpretivist/feminist qualitative framework, we critically explore the oppressive structures which impact on service users′ lives. Data collection consisted of interviews with 15 female sex workers in the Republic of Ireland. In locating sex workers experiences, we set out the argument that social work practice is complicit in victim blaming narratives in response to sexual violence. Themes emerging from the data to support this claim are (1) victim blaming perspectives for sex workers (2) reporting sexual violence to authorities, and (3) impact of the Law. By using the Irish standpoint, and the 2017 Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act, where sex work activities remain subject to penal measures our paper provides conclusive evidence which calls into question social works response to sexual violence. We argue for a revised social work response to sexual violence which includes a critical examination of ′victim blaming′ narratives and the current legislative process which inform their practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a union campaign that began in 1970 and ended in 1974, the University of California at Berkeley's American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1695's secretaries published a clerical workers' manifesto, participated in writing a formal affirmative action report with the librarian's union, and filed a mass grievance against sex discrimination signed by three hundred clerical workers. Significantly, they rallied against sex discrimination with the slogan "equal pay for equivalent work." Their campaign not only preceded the first comparable-worth campaign in 1978 in San Jose, California, but was linked directly to it through Local 1695 activists and their activism. This article complicates the origin story for the late-twentieth-century comparable-worth movement and highlights Local 1695's partnership with librarians in crafting what historian Katherine Turk has called an "expanded interpretation of sex equality law." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Jurnal Ilmiah Islam Futura is the property of Jurnal Ilmiah Islam Futura and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Online platforms shape and facilitate our social, economic, and political activities. Sex workers have long pioneered their use for advertising, providing services, screening clients, collecting payments, and peer-interaction, among other activities. To learn more about the platforms sex workers use and how they engage and resist platforms' power, we consider the following questions: How and to what extent do sex workers engage with online platforms? How do these platforms' policies and practices shape the conditions of their work? And, how do sex workers negotiate these platforms' power? Drawing on data from a national survey of 440 sex workers, developed in partnership with sex workers across the United States, we found that sex workers use a range of online platforms for their work. However, platform policies and practices often remove and/or limit sex workers' access, thereby restricting their ability to earn income and also compromising their safety, and these effects stratify along the lines of race, gender, and ability. Sex workers respond to and resist platforms' policies through various pre-emptive and pro-active actions. Our study expands the existing research on sex work and online platforms, particularly to illuminate the consequences of corporate-led platform policy development and implementation for marginalized workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the intersection of policing and politics in the United States, with a specific focus on New York City and Chicago. It introduces four books that explore the relationship between policing and politics, emphasizing how police practices are influenced by electoral politics and power dynamics within society. The books also delve into the role of police departments in shaping public perception and popular culture. The article concludes by discussing the activism and movements for police accountability that have emerged in response to these issues, highlighting successful efforts to abolish the death penalty and reach reparations for victims of police torture. It also explores the development of youth policing teams and the influence of policing and crime on contemporary political discourse. [Extracted from the article]

The participation of transgender athletes in sex-based sports has become one of the most politically and culturally fraught issues of our time. As of May 2024, twenty-five states have passed laws or regulations that categorically prohibit transgender women and girls in K-12 schools and/or college from playing sex-based sports with other women and girls. Like so many areas of transgender people's lives--from access to healthcare to use of public restrooms--participation in sex-based sports is now a legal issue that will be decided by courts. Debate over the proper legal response to the participation of transgender athletes in sex-based sports has focused almost exclusively on sex discrimination law. This Article offers a different but complementary way to address the categorical exclusion of transgender women and girls from sex-based sports based on a source of civil rights that has been noticeably missing from the current debate: disability rights law. "Gender dysphoria" is the clinically significant distress a transgender person experiences if they are not allowed to live as who they are. For over thirty years, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act have excluded from their protection "gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments." In recent years, numerous federal courts and agencies have interpreted these laws to prohibit discrimination based on gender dysphoria, culminating in the Fourth Circuit's landmark decision in Williams v. Kincaid in 2022-the first circuit-level case to recognize gender dysphoria as a protected disability under disability rights laws. Accordingly, state laws that categorically ban transgender women and girls from playing sex-based sports discriminate based on gender dysphoria in violation of disability rights law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The case of gender change in Indonesia is quite common in society. This has legal implications in various aspects, especially regarding marriage. As in the Decision of the Sumber District Court No. 60/Pdt.P/2021/PN.Sbr, the judge granted the gender change. Following this decision, legal consequences related to the validity of the marriage arise. Based on this description, the formulated issues are how Islamic law views gender change and what the legal consequences are for marriage for those who have changed their gender. In discussing this topic, the author uses a normative juridical method by examining the Marriage Law and Islamic Law, particularly related to the marriage of people who have changed their gender. According to the perspective of Islamic law, gender change in Indonesia is considered haram (forbidden) because it contradicts the Quran, Hadith, and the views of scholars, including the MUI Fatwa No. 03/UMNas-VII/MUI/2010. However, surgery aimed at perfecting sexual organs is permissible and considered halal in Islam. For instance, the case of the applicant Hamidah is an effort to cure her genital organ defect and has no legal implications, so it is allowed by law. When Hamidah, also known as Muhammad Hamdan, wants to marry a woman, it should no longer be an issue because religiously Hamidah's actions are justified by religion, and the elements contained in Article 4 of the Compilation of Islamic Law (KHI) and Article 2 Paragraph 1 of the Marriage Law have been fulfilled. Overall, the legality of gender change through the District Court's decision becomes important to determine the legal consequences of marriage, particularly regarding gender status in inheritance distribution and the ability to have offspring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The text provides an overview of the historical context and ongoing challenges surrounding equal citizenship rights in the United States. It discusses the impact of various Supreme Court decisions, including the veto of a Reconstruction-era statute and rulings on discrimination cases. The text emphasizes the importance of social movements and public engagement in shaping constitutional meaning and encourages individuals to uphold the ideal of equal citizenship, despite potential limitations from the current Court majority. [Extracted from the article]

Although rape in South Africa today is commonly framed as a post-apartheid 'crisis', neither sexual violence nor public concern about it in the country is new. This article explores an earlier period of 'rape crisis' from the 1970s to early 1990s, when sexual violence became a key topic of discussion amongst apartheid politicians, Black community leaders, feminist activists, and ordinary men and women. Focusing on the township of Soweto, it examines why public concern about sexual violence emerged during this period and how rape was conceptualised and responded to. It demonstrates how multiple and often competing social and political agendas constrained attempts to understand and address sexual violence in the country's townships: the growth of feminist activism; the intensification of the liberation struggle and attempts to repress it; public panic about crime; and shifting gender power dynamics. These divergent responses to rape reveal the challenges of addressing sexual violence within the contexts of anti-racist movements and competing political struggles. Exploring these longer histories not only addresses a gap in South African historiography, but also helps to develop a more global and comparative understanding of how gender, race, and class intersect in producing conceptualisations of rape and responses to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the concept of non-collaborative sex, particularly in cases involving alcohol and young adults, and argues that current tort law fails to adequately address these situations. It proposes the use of the concept of collaborative sex to distinguish between consensual and non-consensual encounters and suggests that tort law should consider negligence or strict liability for cases of impaired, non-collaborative sex. The article also discusses the need for a new vocabulary to discuss sexual wrongdoing and challenges the transactional model of sex based on consent. It highlights the role of cognition and communication in sexual encounters and the influence of tort decision-makers on community norms. The article suggests that rules prioritizing individual freedom may perpetuate gender norms and argues for a model of mutual care and communication in sexual encounters. It also discusses the historical context of sexual injuries and the failure of tort law to address non-collaborative sex. The article emphasizes the importance of understanding cognitive failures and communication mismatches to address potentially harmful sexual encounters. It acknowledges that consensual and non-consensual encounters can occur when both partners are intoxicated and highlights the tendency to blame women for non-collaborative sex encounters while excusing men's responsibility. The article suggests that the legal and cultural understanding of non-collaborative sex needs to be reevaluated and proposes different categorizations for these encounters. It discusses the Restatement of Tort and its treatment of non-consensual sexual behavior, highlighting its limitations and suggesting negligence and strict liability as more appropriate frameworks. The [Extracted from the article]

This article explores the concept of consent in rape law and proposes a new approach based on human dignity. It argues that consent is a contested concept and that grounding rape law solely in sexual nonconsent is problematic. The article suggests that a focus on human dignity, as a moral imperative of respect for persons, could provide a more comprehensive and morally grounded framework for rape law. It discusses the limitations of consent-based approaches, examines the gendered dimensions of consent, and explores alternative frameworks for understanding and addressing sexual violence. The article concludes by advocating for a model rape statute grounded in human dignity. [Extracted from the article]

Legal sex in the United States is undergoing a dramatic transformation. By “legal sex” this Article refers to various instances in which legal authorities engage in defining an individual’s sex, either directly or indirectly. This Article begins by charting this transformation and then draws on this history to rethink the current political moment. Until around the mid-twentieth century, legal sex was mostly understood as immutable sexual difference between males and females that is biologically determined prior to birth. Groundbreaking scientific and medical theories in the 1950s introduced gender identity as a new way to describe an internal sense of being male or female. Since then, in slow steps, this concept has been integrated into various areas of law and policy. Today, the trend in U.S. law is toward viewing gender identity, defined as “an individual’s own internal sense of whether they are a man, a woman, or nonbinary,” as a central characteristic of legal sex. While there is not one coherent definition of sex across all areas of law, this Article observes that the trend across legal domains, including sex reclassification laws, antidiscrimination laws, and family laws, is clear: the legal system is shifting towards gender identity as the primary indicator of legal sex. This Article demonstrates why it is urgent to name and evaluate this transformation. As of 2023, lawmakers have introduced and passed hundreds of bills and policies that target transgender people by undermining the incorporation of gender identity into legal sex. They call instead for narrow notions of immutable “biological sex” that is fixed at birth. This Article situates the current backlash against transgender people as an attempt to roll back laws, policies, and societal norms that view gender identity as the primary indicator of legal sex. The Article proposes that advocates on behalf of transgender people engage current debates about gender identity by insisting on the moral desirability of future generations of transgender people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anti‐Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and/or Queer (LGBTQ+) education laws are defined as laws that prohibit or limit schools from discussing same‐sex relationships, broader sexuality, and gender issues in their sexual education curriculum. This study presents a historical context of anti‐LGBTQ+ sex education laws, examines the extant literature on the possible impact of these laws, and suggests recommendations for schools and school practitioners. Anti‐LGBTQ+ sex education laws may impact school climate and have been associated with poorer well‐being for LGBTQ+ students and cisgender heterosexual allies that encompass a range of sexual orientations and gender identities. With an Executive Order from the US president outlining the need to support LGBTQ+ youth in schools and the US Surgeon General's Advisory to highlight the urgent need to address the nation's youths' mental health, it is imperative to support LGBTQ+ students. We offer strategies that may be used to address anti‐LGBTQ+ sex education laws by school administrators and practitioners in a call for advocacy to make changes in sex education policy to improve the well‐being of students, particularly LGBTQ+ youth. Practitioner points: Anti‐LGBTQ+ sex education laws affect at least 10 million children nationwide.Sex education is essential for youth's well‐being and physical and mental health, specifically LGBTQ+ youth.Strategies to address anti‐LGBTQ+ sex education laws through advocacy on an individual level, community level, structural level, and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abortions are difficult both mentally and physically on women; abortions may be even more difficult when a woman decides to terminate a pregnancy because she knows her baby will have a specific trait causing the baby to die shortly after birth. Trait-specific abortions occur, though not without controversy. In the states that still legally allow abortions, trait-specific abortions are not always permitted. Prior to Dobbs, a circuit split existed regarding the legality of trait-specific abortions. Some states permitted trait-specific abortions, while others did not. Since Dobbs, the circuit split no longer exists, though the opinions may still influence future state action regarding the legality of trait-specific abortions. The central issue--whether trait-specific abortions are immoral and should be prohibited--remains prevalent in society. This Note argues that at its core, trait-specific abortions are merely just a type of abortion; thus, if the state permits abortions generally, trait-specific abortions should be treated no differently. While this Note acknowledges Dobbs and its impact, it also analyzes the previous circuit split with a pre- Dobbs framework. Ultimately, this Note seeks to demonstrate that the issues regarding the ethics and legal considerations of trait-specific abortions are not necessarily black and white. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the impact that the sex of law enforcement officers might have on the way they intervene in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) situations, and if that is determined by prejudices related to traditional gender roles within intimate relationships. A questionnaire was applied to 1,872 law enforcement officers of GNR (Republican National Guard), Portugal. The results show differences in beliefs and perceptions and subsequent decisions to intervene, which reveal that women and men hold different views about gender roles and IPV. The data warns against the influence that prejudices might have on the decision to act in IPV situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the nineteenth century, a gendered reform movement – the Slander of Women Acts – swept through the British common law world, making it easier for women to sue for defamatory allegations of sexual immorality. By examining two slander cases brought by women in early New South Wales and radical reforms passed in 1847, this article locates the Australian colonies within this global campaign. Arguing that slander worked to reinscribe a woman's colonial category, police 'savage' speech and rectify respectability for economic purposes, it shows how ideas of reputation and its protection diverged across the UK, USA and Australia at this time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In the context of renewed debate about Canada's "end demand" sex work laws, we took an intersectional approach to characterize experiences with the criminal legal system and perceived access to justice among transgender (trans) and nonbinary sex workers in Canada. Methods: The Trans PULSE Canada community-based study collected multimode survey data in fall 2019. Data were cross-stratified by lifetime sex work and sex assigned at birth, ethnoracial group, or household income. Age adjustment did not meaningfully impact results. Results: Of 2012 included participants (median age = 30, 66.5% assigned female at birth, 48.9% non-binary), 280 (16.1%) had ever done sex work. While access to justice was limited for trans and non-binary people overall, sex workers were more likely to anticipate (72.1% vs. 50.5%) and experience (43.2% vs. 15.7%) police mistreatment. In the previous 5 years, sex workers were more likely to experience violence for any reason (61.4% vs. 27.4% of other participants) or due to being trans or non-binary (41.4% vs. 14.0%), and to have avoided calling 911 for police (51.4% vs. 18.1%). Few sex workers trusted that they would be treated fairly by police if they experienced physical (10.8% vs. 34.9%) or sexual (4.7% vs. 20.6%) violence. Intersectional inequalities included that sex workers assigned male at birth and street-based workers were most likely to have experienced gender-based violence, and that Indigenous and racialized sex workers reported higher levels of police mistreatment and 911 avoidance. Conclusions: Overall, trans and non-binary people in Canada reported high levels of violence and limited access to justice. Sex workers faced large inequities in these outcomes, which were exacerbated for transfeminine, Indigenous, racialized, and street-based workers. Policy Implications: These findings challenge the notion that Canadian sex work laws protect sex workers and highlight the limitations of formal legal protections for trans people. These inequities must be addressed in sex work legal reform efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims to identify the forms of sexual harassment experienced by the main female character, Vanessa Wye, then the data will be searched using reading and recording techniques. After successfully obtained, the collected data will be discussed using descriptive-qualitative methods. So that in the end, this research will produce forms of violence or sexual harassment experienced by Vanessa Wye. Cases of sexual violence and abuse of children and women are very alarming crimes. Every year many victims experience sexual abuse. This phenomenon is also illustrated in the novel My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell. The novel tells the story of a sexual relationship between a 15-year-old student named Vanessa Wye and Jacob Strane who is already her 42-year-old English teacher, presented from the perspective of an adult Vanessa Wye who is 30 years old. The researcher chose the novel because it was the research theme to be discussed. In this study, researchers used Kelly's theory which explains the forms of sexual harassment which are divided into 3 parts, namely Visual, Verbal, and Physical. Using the theory and mimetic approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether to criminalize or legalize the purchase of sex has given rise to heated discussions and different policy initiatives. Opponents of the criminalization of sex-buying argue that prohibition pushes the sector underground, increasing the harm for women in prostitution. Proponents instead view prostitution as violence against women, calling for prohibition. Despite these debates, few studies examine the effect of prostitution laws on the quantity of sex bought. By employing unique data on attitudes to, and experiences of sex-buying behaviour in different prostitution regimes in eight European countries, the paper examines the relationship between prostitution law and sex-buying. The results are robust to the inclusion of a list experiment, and the findings suggest that people living in countries where purchasing sex is criminalized buy less sex than people living in countries where sex-buying is legal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contemporary LGBTQ+ movement in the West is currently facing resistance and controversy for having adopted an ideology influenced by queer theory and transhumanism that deconstructs the category of sex and gender and prioritizes the concept of gender identity over that of sex in areas such as the law, medicine, sports, and culture. Using a discourse analysis of the Internet page of the influential U.S. organization Human Rights Campaign, this article seeks to understand this ideology, analyzing mainly the sections of the glossary of terms about sexuality and gender, the use of pronouns, and the banners of sexual identities and gender. The aim is to clarify the bases for the ideology and its use of language to be able to understand the roots of the current cultural battle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesia parliament passes new criminal code, bans sex outside marriage. Indonesia bans sex outside marriage as parliament passes sweeping new criminal code, CNN. Indonesia passes criminal code banning sex outside marriage. Indonesia bans sex outside marriage in new criminal code. [Extracted from the article]

This article examines a chapter on marital sexuality that appears in a work that, for many decades, has been an extremely popular Ashkenazi manual of Jewish law and practices, the Kitzur Shulhan Arukh of the Hungarian rabbi Salomon (Shlomo) Ganzfried (1804–1886). It shows the way the author used previous sources to create his own work, shedding light on his method as well as on an important example of the type of written rabbinic sex guidance that was available for countless traditional Jewish readers for centuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Title VII and Title IX use identical language that prohibits discrimination "on the basis of sex" in employment and school sports, respectively. Yet neither law defines sex, which is an essential term in these laws. Therefore, it remains with the courts and policy makers to define sex. Sex discrimination against transgenders in employment and sports are two contexts where disparate definitions of sex exist. Incongruent positions about the identification of the sex of an individual have resulted. Law and science share a commitment to defining terms applicable to an issue prior to analysis or conclusion of that issue. Defining terms is a prerequisite to the analysis that follows. This paper examines from both a legal and scientific perspective the definitions of sex. It concludes that the failure to agree on a common definition of sex will continue to produce incongruent analyses of discriminatory practices "on the basis of sex", especially with regard to the issue of whether transfemales can participate in cisgender female sports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commercial sex policies are often at the core of many anti-trafficking efforts, yet rigorous empirical evidence about the effectiveness of these policies in preventing sex trafficking is lacking. In response to ongoing debates about which commercial sex laws and policies would help prevent sex trafficking, we seek to contribute to more nuanced discussions on commercial sex policies in relation to sex trafficking victimizations. The purpose of this essay is to identify the pitfalls in the debate on how to govern commercial sex markets, emphasizing 1) the lack of recognition of the variation in laws and policies on commercial sex; 2) the moral instead of empirical underpinnings of the debate; 3) ambiguous and stigmatizing notions of vulnerability to sex trafficking victimizations; and 4) a continued reliance on a traditional criminal justice system response that may cause harm to victims. We conclude with five premises to promote more nuanced, inclusive, and collaborative debates and governance of commercial sex markets that allow countries and local jurisdictions to move away from response models for which harm-reducing effects are either unknown or refuted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 2000s, same sex partnership laws, new reproductive technologies, and legislation rendering lesbian couples and single women eligible for state-funded assisted reproduction with donated gametes in the Scandinavian nations has resulted in significant changes in family formation. Drawing on two separate qualitative studies, this paper scrutinizes Scandinavia's alleged progressive LGBTQ politics by critically examining how ideas of kinship, race and nation shape ideas of 'donor matching' amongst queer parents in Sweden and Denmark. Through empirical analysis, we explore how the conditional invitation of queers into family making via state regulated assisted reproduction is entangled with racialised medical and commercial choices of donors that reflect historically specific ideas of race. In particular, we show how whiteness is framed as desirable and how being 'racialised non-white' is framed as a risk that ought to be minimised for children who are already considered 'disadvantaged' by being born into 'queer' families. Thus, we argue that contemporary queer reproduction is not only central to homonationalism, it can also be seen as a continuation of eugenic and biopolitical initiatives that have been central to the emergence of Scandinavian welfare states. We conclude by proposing further scrutiny of contemporary queer reproduction as a potential 'white-washing' technique to manage populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the repeal of Singapore's Section 377A, the anti-gay sex law, which was announced by Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong during the 2022 National Day Rally. I contend that the declaration by PM Lee demonstrates the possibilities and limits of advocacy coalition-building in Singapore. Utilizing the concept of calibrated social liberalization, I postulate that the repeal of Section 377A was the government's response to shifting societal attitudes and years of strategic and adroit advocacy coalitionbuilding. However, predicated upon this success is that LGBT issues are not critical to the People's Action Party's (PAP) legitimacy, which is why it is willing to allow for contestations in this sphere. The PAP engages in social liberalization, without significant political liberalization; even then, the cultural liberalization is not absolute, as the government attempts to strike a political-electoral compromise with conservatives. Ultimately, calibrated social liberalization occurs in areas where there is significant public support, and on issues regarding which the government has no clear ideological predispositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ISBN: 9789966082237 K.shs.500.00 Nsemia 2017 KE SWA Omae, E.N., Mwinzi, E.W., Nyakundi, D.M. Manati ya Kiswahili toleo la KCSE lugha. ISBN: 9789966082299 K.shs.500.00 Nsemia 2017 KE Omwocha, V., Nyongesa, A. The English catapult KCSE revision paper 2. ISBN: 9781926906836 K.shs.500.00 ($ 10.00) Nsemia 2018 KE Okemwa, C. Oral poetry: the Abagusii of Kenya. ISBN: 9789966082268 K.shs.500.00 ($ 10.00) Nsemia 2016 KE Okemwa, C. Riddles of Abagusii of Kenya. ISBN: 9789966082305 K.shs.500.00 Nsemia 2017 KE Omwocha, V., Nyongesa, A. The English catapult KCSE revision paper 3. [Extracted from the article]

The revised Paragraph 176 came into force in August 1993, and the revised Paragraph 182 replaced Paragraph 175 and Paragraph 149 the following year. The group argued that "this form of sexual abuse is to be seen also in relation to other forms of sexual exploitation, especially trafficking in children and women as well as sex tourism to countries in the Third World."[63] When the proposals were brought to the Bundestag for debate that October, Alliance '90 / Green Party representative and women's speaker Christian Schenk argued that expanding criminal provisions against child pornography and sex tourism was necessary because "60 percent of all German tourists in Thailand are sex tourists. The ruling Christian Democrats and Free Democrats had established in their 1990 coalition agreement that they would abolish Paragraph 175 while leaving the East German Paragraph 149 in force for the former East German states in the interim, but they made no promises about changes to Paragraph 176. While many women representatives in the Bundestag sought to prevent abuse of women and girls at home and abroad, gay activists and Bundestag representatives in favor of the abolition of Paragraph 175 sought both to prevent exploitation and to end discrimination against gays and lesbians in German law. [Extracted from the article]

A research project aiming to measure, describe, and monitor sex offender recidivism (SOR) rates across two waves of sex offender laws is briefly described and contextualized. A methodology was designed to examine the evolution of sexual recidivism rates since the 1940s. The findings of the study showed that, in Canada, sexual recidivism rates have dropped almost 70%. This historic recidivism drop appeared to have started during the 1970s, several decades before the enactment of the national non-public sex offender registration law. While the factors responsible for the sexual recidivism drop remain unclear, it is hypothesized that improved training, evidence-based practices, and university-corrections collaborations might have played a key role. The study points toward the importance of examining period effects on risk, risk management, and sexual offending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the late 1930s, laws and policies based on assumptions about high rates of sexual recidivism have been enacted to respond to individuals who perpetrated sexual offenses. The first sex offender laws in the United States and Canada were quite similar. Since then, the two countries have diverged. More recent American policies have included the enactment of public registration and notification laws and postsentence civil commitment laws. Canadian policies reaffirming rehabilitation were criticized by various groups for being too lenient. Little has been done to monitor the evolution of sexual recidivism rates, including effects, if any, of significant policy changes. The lack of centralized databases in Canada and the United States for monitoring recidivism rates over time is a major reason. In lieu of that, a systematic review and meta-analysis were used to examine 227 Canadian and 399 American estimations of sexual recidivism among 388,994 perpetrators of sexual offenses. Weighted pooled estimates of sexual recidivism rates were investigated between 1940 and 2019. Sexual recidivism rates reported in American studies have been low and dropping since the 1970s, well before enactment of public registration and notification laws. A more pronounced drop was observed in Canadian studies despite the absence of public registration and notification laws. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most Ghanaians conveniently ignore or vehemently deny the existence of homosexual relationships in precolonial Ghanaian cultures. The denial of these relationships in precolonial Ghanaian cultures has gained attention due to section 104 of the Criminal Offences Act of Ghana which criminalises 'unnatural carnal knowledge' and the 'promotion of proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values bill, 2021' (anti-LGBTQI+ bill), currently being debated in Ghana's Parliament. Historical evidence suggests, however, that Western European researchers who first visited Africa and Ghana suppressed evidence of homosexuality, while indigenous people unwittingly concealed homosexual relationships because of a 'culture of silence' surrounding sex and sexuality in precolonial Ghana. From a decolonial theoretical perspective, this article argues that the non-appreciation of precolonial Ghanaian (homo)sexual history partly accounts for the criminalisation of same-sex sexual relationships, homophobia, violence, and violations of the rights of sexual minorities in contemporary Ghana. The paper connects the presence of same-sex sexual intimacies in the Gold Coast (now Ghana), and the absence of criminal sanctions as a basis for rethinking current attempts in Parliament to recriminalise homosexual relationships, in order to chart a path of the equal legal protection of every person, regardless of their sexual orientation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For certain incarcerated individuals who commit sex offenses, Washington State's determinate-plus sentencing structure requires a showing of rehabilitation before release. This highly subjective "releasability" determination occurs after an individual has already served a standard sentence. A review of recent releasability determinations reveals sentences are often extended on arbitrary and inconsistent grounds--especially for individuals who face systemic challenges in prison due to their identity or condition. This Comment shows that the criteria to determine whether individuals are releasable is an incomplete picture of their actual experience in the carceral setting, using the distinct example of incarcerated individuals with mental illness. While mental illness and the likelihood of recidivism are not connected, mental illness negatively impacts individual release decisions, directly and indirectly. While a legal appeal exists for these determinations, that legal remedy is insufficient to provide true relief. This Comment argues that the state's determinate-plus sentencing structure should be abolished to end the cycle of vulnerable incarcerated individuals receiving disparate and biased denials of release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex offender laws were designed to decrease sexual violence. The current mixed methods study examined attitudes and opinions of parole and probation officers who have supervised individuals convicted of sexual offenses (n = 361) regarding sex offender legislation and how these policies can be most effective in preventing recidivism. About half of the officers reported that registration and notification, sexually violent predator and Halloween laws were largely effective in preventing sexual victimization. Conversely, they perceived residence restriction laws and the tier system to be largely ineffective. A consistent theme that emerged from the qualitative responses was a movement away from blanket approaches towards a case-specific approach, tailoring the laws to individuals based upon their needs and risk level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout the 1990s, PFC also supported further challenges to the European Court of Human Rights on the same and similar human rights violations claimed by Mark Rees a decade earlier. The answer came in the mid-1980s when a quietly spoken trans man called Mark Rees took the UK government to the European Court of Human Rights over the refusal to recognise his preferred gender in law. In 1989 there had been an almost identical case to Mark's brought by model and television hostess Caroline Cossey, even before PFC had been founded. [Extracted from the article]