Craigslist allows exploitative adverts offering homeless women somewhere to sleep in exchange for sex. It’s sickening.
Hundreds of these ads could be online right now. They specifically target vulnerable women to extort them.
Craigslist could end this. But it needs to feel the heat first: if we can embarrass it with a big public outcry, it’ll be forced to take the ads down and ban them outright.
Sign our petition now to tell Craigslist to ban exploitative adverts.
“If any young female student is in need of free of charge accommodation & is prepared to act as a ‘resource’ in return, then please provide full personal details & a recent pic & reply from your own private e-mail address please. No pic, no reply. Thank you.” – Craigslist advert, July 2016
That’s just one of the vile ads uncovered by homelessness charity Shelter last year; and a recent BBC investigation found over 100 in just one day. This has to stop.
On average 3,596 people sleep on the streets every night in England alone, and the housing crisis is making it worse. Now a small number of men are trying to ruthlessly take advantage of that. Modern slavery is a criminal offence — there should be no place for these adverts on Craigslist.
Craigslist should know better, but it looks like SumOfUs members need to wake it up. Craigslist can stop this happening, but we just need to show how much it could hurt its brand. And we need to act now.
If enough of us sign the petition, then Craigslist will have to stop this scandal happening on its watch.
Add your name to our petition to get these disgusting adverts offline now.
More information
Landlord adverts posted online 'target young for sex'
The BBC. 13 April 2017.
The BBC. 13 April 2017.
The vile exploitation of 'free rent for sex' ads
Shelter UK. 12 August 2016.
Shelter UK. 12 August 2016.
'Sordid' adverts offer homeless women free accommodation in exchange for sex
The Independent. 15 August 2016.
The Independent. 15 August 2016.