Much more needs to be done to help victims
TORONTO — Decades have passed since the 1980s. At the time, Kelly Tallon Franklin was caught against her will in the world of human trafficking. Even though she has made it, she still has to live with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- *Disclaimer: This article contains testimonials and information that may shock some people.
She argues that the experiences of those she supports today continue to reflect her own struggles, particularly with regard to "debt, forced financial responsibility and fraud."
"I can tell you that it's very difficult to live with this. But I survived it. I shouldn't have had to survi
ve it. It almost ruined my life, since I was on a post-secondary trajectory. When I started this safety and security process, I had someone break into my home, took my money, violently threatening to take my son and ruin my life, which prevented me from continuing my education. But that's why I say it to everyone who wants to hear it. It shouldn't happen. But there are a lot
of things before this event that shouldn't have happened."
Not just in the viewsOn Thursday, Ottawa-Vanier MP Lucille Collard introduced legislation at Queen's Park to amend Ontario's Prevention of Human Trafficking Act.
The member would like to see a part added to the act that introduces the concept of debt incurred under duress.
Lucille Collard, Member of Parliament for Ottawa-Vanier
This new provision would ensure that a person who has survived human trafficking and is trying to rebuild his or her life does not have to bear the financial burden of being trafficked while he or she was a victim.
For example, a person who has been forced to pay for a hotel room or transportation to it should not have to reimburse these costs since they were contracted under duress, justice Lucille Collard.
She admits to having tears in her eyes as she recalls the discussions she had with survivors. "I have three daughters, and to know that it's happening in our schools right now, and that it's been going on for a long time and that we allow it to continue to happen, for me, it's absurd. [...] We think it exists just in the views, that it's just fiction, but we realize that it's real, that it's close to us."
United States: the example to follow?In Washington DC, the U.S. Congress approved the Debt Bondage Repair Act last December.
This young law, initiated by a survivor, is very similar to the one that Ms. Collard presented to the elected members
of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario this week.
Pansy Watson, legal counsel at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, believes that this type of regulation should be implemented throughout North America, and around the world.
"When a person is a victim of sex trafficking, they are exploited in multiple ways, not only because they are treated as objects and bought and sold, but also because their name is exploited financially. By creating this law, we recognize that the exploitation of a person should not continue to haunt them after he has tried to get out of this life. The law also recognizes the importance of having good credit in our society, both for the purchase of real estate, but also for obtaining a job."
Watson says that while this idea is a simple solution, it offers survivors a "huge" impact.
A first law in 2017"I agree that we need to consider an additional measure in terms of debt relief," says Kelly Tallon Franklin. Personally, it wasn't until I was almost 50 that I was able to pay off in full that forced student debt that followed me for decades. I was never able to go back to school because the money I received initially paid for part of my schooling, but the rest went to someone who controlled me and forced me to create a student loan agreement that, for all intents and purposes, was fraudulently coerced by a trafficker."
But before looking at debt, we need to make sure that the most essential and urgent services are put in place
for survivors, and according to their needs, she believes.
That's what Progressive Conservative MP Laurie Scott had in mind in 2016, then a member of the opposition,
when she introduced her bill, entitled Saving the Girl Next Door.
This bill made it a crime for the first time in Ontario's history to make it a crime.
"Basically, it was designed to signal the beginning of a long series of discussions that were to take place about human sex trafficking, which is, you know, modern-day slavery. And it was to start the discussion to raise awareness."
Laurie Scott learned from the survivors consulted that education is essential, both within the public
and among law enforcement and within the government itself.
In 2017, his initiative became Ontario's Prevention of Human Trafficking Act.
The Ford government is very proactive about supporting survivors of human trafficking, Franklin said.
In 2020, the province announced that it was injecting hundreds of millions of dollars as part of its
"comprehensive strategy to combat human trafficking."
This funding has supported victim support services across the province, strengthened information gathering within the correctional system, and funded specialized response teams including police and child protection services.
***
If you are in danger, call 911 or if someone you know needs support or wants to report a potential case, call the Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-833-900-1010. It is a confidential service, free and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
For example, a person who has been forced to pay for a hotel room or transportation to it should not have to reimburse these costs since they were contracted under duress, justice Lucille Collard.
She admits to having tears in her eyes as she recalls the discussions she had with survivors. "I have three daughters, and to know that it's happening in our schools right now, and that it's been going on for a long time and that we allow it to continue to happen, for me, it's absurd. [...] We think it exists just in the views, that it's just fiction, but we realize that it's real, that it's close to us."
United States: the example to follow?In Washington DC, the U.S. Congress approved the Debt Bondage Repair Act last December.
This young law, initiated by a survivor, is very similar to the one that Ms. Collard presented to the elected members
of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario this week.
Pansy Watson, legal counsel at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, believes that this type of regulation should be implemented throughout North America, and around the world.
"When a person is a victim of sex trafficking, they are exploited in multiple ways, not only because they are treated as objects and bought and sold, but also because their name is exploited financially. By creating this law, we recognize that the exploitation of a person should not continue to haunt them after he has tried to get out of this life. The law also recognizes the importance of having good credit in our society, both for the purchase of real estate, but also for obtaining a job."
Watson says that while this idea is a simple solution, it offers survivors a "huge" impact.
A first law in 2017"I agree that we need to consider an additional measure in terms of debt relief," says Kelly Tallon Franklin. Personally, it wasn't until I was almost 50 that I was able to pay off in full that forced student debt that followed me for decades. I was never able to go back to school because the money I received initially paid for part of my schooling, but the rest went to someone who controlled me and forced me to create a student loan agreement that, for all intents and purposes, was fraudulently coerced by a trafficker."
But before looking at debt, we need to make sure that the most essential and urgent services are put in place
for survivors, and according to their needs, she believes.
That's what Progressive Conservative MP Laurie Scott had in mind in 2016, then a member of the opposition,
when she introduced her bill, entitled Saving the Girl Next Door.
This bill made it a crime for the first time in Ontario's history to make it a crime.
"Basically, it was designed to signal the beginning of a long series of discussions that were to take place about human sex trafficking, which is, you know, modern-day slavery. And it was to start the discussion to raise awareness."
Laurie Scott learned from the survivors consulted that education is essential, both within the public
and among law enforcement and within the government itself.
In 2017, his initiative became Ontario's Prevention of Human Trafficking Act.
The Ford government is very proactive about supporting survivors of human trafficking, Franklin said.
In 2020, the province announced that it was injecting hundreds of millions of dollars as part of its
"comprehensive strategy to combat human trafficking."
This funding has supported victim support services across the province, strengthened information gathering within the correctional system, and funded specialized response teams including police and child protection services.
***
If you are in danger, call 911 or if someone you know needs support or wants to report a potential case, call the Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-833-900-1010. It is a confidential service, free and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
ÉMILIE PELLETIER
Local Journalism Initiative — The Law
Much more needs to be done to help victims| News | The Law - Gatineau, Ottawa (ledroit.com)
Local Journalism Initiative — The Law
Much more needs to be done to help victims| News | The Law - Gatineau, Ottawa (ledroit.com)