Letter to the RCMP Commissioner
March 25, 2021
On March 25, the four APPG co-chairs and over 70 Senators and Members of Parliament from all eight political parties and groups sent a letter to RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki to support the 104 survivors and 525 NGOs calling for a full investigation into MindGeek and online exploitation. The RCMP Commissioner provided a comprehensive response to this letter on April 13, 2021 and indicated an investigation was under review.
Briefing from CCEHT on Human Trafficking Corridors
March 4, 2021
In March, the APPG co-chairs had a virtual briefing from The Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking about their new report on transportation corridors in Canada used to exploit and control their victims.
Human Trafficking Corridors in Canada, is a first-ever study of human trafficking transportation corridors in the country, notes that human traffickers benefit from primary transportation routes across the country to maximize profit within commercial sex markets and to avoid being caught by law enforcement and potentially imprisoned. These routes – identified by law enforcement, frontline service delivery agencies and the media – also allow human traffickers to exert control over victims and ensure that the victim has limited opportunities for escaping or evading their trafficker.
National Human Trafficking Awareness Day
February 22, 2021
For three years the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) to End Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking has tabled motions urging Parliament to recognize February 22 as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. This date commemorates February 22, 2007 when the House of Commons unanimously condemned human trafficking.
On February 15, the House of Commons adopted a motion from the Standing Committee on Status of Women that recognized February 22, 2021 as the first National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.
“I actually cried because of what this means to validate a victim-survivor experience, what families have gone through, to say Canada cares was the most important message I took away.”
Kelly Franklin, a survivor and founder of Courage for Freedom
Support for Victims of Pornhub
December 17, 2020
With the international coverage of the exploitation on MindGeek’s Pornhub site, co-chairs of the APPG recognized that many Canadian survivors of Pornhub or similar sites may not be aware of the assistance and resources available to them. As such, the co-chairs worked with NGOs to line up all forms of assistance to both French and English speaking survivors and sent out a press release to highlight these resources for survivors.
Virtual Human Trafficking Briefing
December 2, 2020
As part of the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery on December 2nd, the APPG to End Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking was pleased to host a virtual briefing on modern day slavery in Canada for Senators, MPs, and their staff. Presentations were provided by Canada’s Special Advisor to Combat Human Trafficking, Shirley Cuillierrier and RCMP Cpl Jennifer Botham and followed by a Q&A session. Over 80 Senators, MPs, and staff joined the virtual briefing.
Letter to Justice Minister on MindGeek
November 25, 2020
On November 25, many members of the APPG co-signed a letter with representation across four parties to the Minister of Justice asking why MindGeek/Pornhub continued to operate with impunity and profit off content featuring child sexual assault, rape, and other harmful acts. This letter preceded the December 4 New York Times expose on MindGeek by Nicolas Kristof and asked the Minister to review Canadian laws. Minister Lametti replied on January 21, 2021 and indicated that Canada had a ‘robust framework’
Meeting with Courage for Freedom
July 29, 2020
On July 29, the co-chairs met virtually with the founder and board of Courage for Freedom to learn about #ProjectMapleLeaf. The original Project OnRoute was Ontario’s first provincial human trafficking awareness campaign. The campaign was organized by Courage for Freedom and belongs to minor aged victim survivors who created media ads about the realities of human trafficking. These ads gained 2 million screen impressions at the 20 ONroute locations in Ontario over a 30-day period.
All Party parliamentary group to end modern slavery 