Human Trafficking Awareness Day, February 22, 2025 

Submitted by Katie Sills, Manager, Student Rights & Responsibilities

SLC demonstrated its commitment to Human Trafficking education and awareness in December 2024, as we hosted a training day on campus for our staff and community partners, with support from the Campus Safety Grant. The focus of this day was learning related to supporting Indigenous survivors of human trafficking. The group left with increased knowledge of approaches to cultural safety and tools to support Indigenous survivors, including medicine bags to keep on hand in our offices.  

We look forward to more opportunities to bring these training opportunities to our campuses. Please contact the Student Rights & Responsibilities Office for more information and training opportunities.  

What is Human Trafficking?  

The Government of Canada defines human trafficking as the “recruitment, transportation or harbouring of a person, including controlling or influencing their movements, with the goal of exploiting, or facilitating the exploitation of, a person.” This can take many forms, including sex trafficking, forced labour, and domestic servitude.   
  
It is important to understand that trafficking does not necessarily involve moving an individual from one place to another; it can occur within city limits. Human trafficking is therefore difficult to detect due to its complex nature, as well as the coercion or shame involved that prevents survivors from coming forward. Traffickers often target a person who may already be vulnerable through exploitation of their race, ability, immigration status, age, and sexuality.   
   
Traffickers are known to use manipulation as a means of maintaining control over their victims. This can include beginning a relationship through gifting expensive items or compliments, but can quickly turn to emotional abuse, addiction dependency, threats, or violence. Though a large majority of traffickers are male, they may use past female victims as a method of luring or recruiting new victims. 

In 2023, Statistics Canada reported: 
  
-Ontario accounted for 67% of human trafficking cases  
-One third of victims were trafficked by an intimate partner  
-82% of cases were reported in census metropolitan areas (CMAs)  
-The number of police-reported human trafficking cases increased by 7% since 2020 
-43% of victims were between the ages of 18-24, from 2012-2022  
-82% of accused traffickers are male 
  
According to the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline, some signs that a person may be being trafficked include:   
  
-Withdrawing from friends and family, or frequent absences from home, school, and work  
-Being secretive about a new friend or boyfriend 
-Having unexplained gifts or expensive items, and/or drastic changes to their appearance  
-Not having money even when they say they are working constantly 
-Not having possession of their identification documents 
-Visible signs of abuse (cuts, bruises, burns, etc.) and fatigue  
-Substance abuse  
  
For more information on human trafficking and resources, please see the links below:   
  
Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline  
Government of Canada - Human Trafficking  
Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking  
  
Tri-Campus Supports:  
  
SLC Student Rights and Responsibilities Office: srro@sl.on.ca  
SLC Wellness and Accessibility:  wellness@sl.on.ca