Our history
An encounter...
The birth of the EACP is the fruit of ameetchance between the founder of the association:
John Scellesand a pimp.
Jean Scelles was an associative activist close to left-wing progressive Catholic movements, engaged in resistance and later an activist in favor of the rapprochement of Algerian Muslims and the French.
In 1941, the Vichy regime condemned him to prison and the confiscation of his property for acts of resistance, Jean Scelles was imprisoned in Barberousse prison, in Algiers. He shares his cell with ten other people, political and common criminals;among them an Italian man attracts his attention by the abundance of parcels he receives.
In his memoirs, Jean Scelles writes that while discussing with his fellow prisoner, he discovers that this one ispimp; the latter even boasts of his prowess " in his own words, he "dress the girls" and "correct the stubborn ones".»
Jean Scelles then made a vow to fight against pimping in case he escaped death:
Listening to him, I made the decision to fight against this slavery if I survived it.
All his cellmates are dead. He is the sole survivor of the battle.
In 1956, at the heart of the Algerian war, Jean and Jeanne, his wife, left Algeria for good. On his return to Paris, Jean Scelles decided to respect his promise made in 1942 and created the "Action Teams against Trafficking in Women and Children", which then became the "Action Against Pimping Teams". He will assume the role of President of the EACP during27 years old.
During these 27 years, the activist for the defense of human rights led a fierce fight against the system of prostitution. By way of illustration, prevention campaigns were carried out with young people:warning against traps, hitchhiking, announcements in the press.
The EACP are even at the origin of the closure of more than400 hotels(out of 620). His benevolent action with regard to prostitutes, however marginalized, and his fight against a subject which was nevertheless taboo in the 1950s, paved the way for a series of legislative innovations which transformed the battle.
Important dates of the EACP
1956
John Scelles, resistant, was a prisoner of war. He shared his cell with a pimp.
This event is at the origin of the creation of the Association, inoctober 1956under the name ofAction Teams Against Trafficking in Women and Children.
1970
theMarch 4, 1970, the Association is recognized as being of public utility by the law of 1901.
On July 21, 1992, the Association was renamed “EACP”:Action Teams Against Pimping.
1975
Under the impetus of President Jean Scelles, the Association was the initiator of a fundamental law for the fight against procuring, law n°75-229* of April 9, 1975. This enabled associations fighting against pimping to become a civil party.
It is one of the only French associations to fight directly against pimping, by ensuring the two public service missions set by this law.
2016
The Action Teams also supported Bill 2016-444 of April 13, 2016, which introduced the criminalization of clients, the decriminalization of soliciting and the establishment of pathways out of prostitution.
Since this law, prostitutes have the status of victims.
The EACP are convinced that the fight against the purchase of sexual acts is an integral part of the fight against pimping.