On Kiddie Porn: Sexual Representation, Free Speech and the Robin Sharpe Case Book

In On Kiddie Porn, political commentator Stan Persky and John Dixon, former policy aide to Justice Minister Kim Campbell, follow the course of Robin Sharpe's challenge of Canada's kiddie porn law as it makes its way through the various levels of hearings and appeals that have ended up with a Supreme Court of Canada verdict. Persky and Dixon recount the story of Robin Sharpe, as well as other cases which put the issue on the country's front pages, and look at the behind-the-scenes political horse-trading that forged the controversial statute. A nuanced discussion of the various and sometimes contradictory values that must find a balance in our law, On Kiddie Porn is also a fascinating look at the way Canada's laws are drafted in parliament, and tested in the courts. Stan Persky teaches philosophy at Capilano College in North Vancouver. A columnist for the Vancouver Sun, he is the author of a dozen books, including Autobiography of a Tattoo, Buddy's, and Then We Take Berlin. John Dixon was senior advisor to Justice Minister Kim Campbell from 1991-93, immediately prior to the passing of Canada's embattled child pornography law under Campbell's successor Pierre Blais. The author of Catastrophic Rights: Experimental Drugs and AIDS, he lives on one of BC's Gulf Islands and teaches in the philosophy department at Capilano College in North Vancouver.Read More