Many of the elements that contributed to the poor communication and cooperation cited in Wally Oppal’s missing women’s report have already been rectified. The attitude toward sex trade workers and drug users is systemic and shared by police, ambulance services and the media. Equally tragic are the attitudes and various addictions that forced those women from their communities and found them on the streets of Vancouver. Once there, they were extremely vulnerable to predators and media condemnation.
It is a shared responsibility. Money can be better spent supporting persons who are struggling to survive rather than on a regional police force, which will only redirect funding to misguided police initiatives and toys.
William Perry