It just got harder for foreigners to take their clothes off in Canada.
In an effort it says is aimed at cracking down on human trafficking, the Canadian government announced it will kick out hundreds of foreign strippers when their immigration permits expire, according to the Globe and Mail.
Not to be out-dueled, Canada’s strip-club industry says it will recruit international students to replace the exotic dancers who will leave under the new ban, the paper reports.
"The government cannot in good conscience continue to admit temporary foreign workers to work in businesses in sectors where there are reasonable grounds to suspect a risk of sexual exploitation,” Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said.
The head of the Adult Entertainment Association of Canada disagrees.
"What the government is doing is destroying an industry, creating a labour shortage and driving those women into more precarious situations,” executive director Tim Lambrinos said, according to The Star. “Strip clubs are a very safe environment.”
Lambrinos also said banning foreign strippers could actually make them more vulnerable, becuase it will force many of them into illegal forms of employment, like prostitution.
Timea Nagy, founder of the anti-trafficking group, Walk with Me, agrees with the policy.
"I think it's a really good start," Nagy told the London Free Press. "We just have to make sure other avenues are tightened as well, such as more strict monitoring of student visas and visitors visas."