Teachers and students can be exposed to human trafficking whether they know it or not, say experts who want school systems to bring in programs that would keep students safe.
The New Brunswick Department of Education is trying to create resources for anglophone school districts that would promote awareness and prevention of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
“These resources are meant to support teaching students about how to build healthy relationships,” Erika Jutras, spokesperson for the department, said in a statement. “We are working on a plan to share these resources with teachers.”
In February, the department will be offering sessions on human trafficking and sexual exploitation for schools, government departments and community agencies “to provide the best services possible to our children and youth,” Jutras said.
Shannon Waite, a professor of cyber violence and human trafficking at the University of New Brunswick, says by the time victims realize that they’re being exploited, they’re often too embarrassed to come forward. (Zoom/CBC)
Human trafficking is defined as the control over and exploitation of an individual, most often for sexual exploitation, according to an Ontario government policy. Sex trafficking can include luring, grooming, recruiting, harbouring, or providing a person for the purpose of sex, it says.
Shannon Waite, a University of New Brunswick professor of cyber violence and human trafficking, said human traffickers are predominantly targeting youth between the ages of 12 and 14, and Indigenous youth as young as eight, which she calls “shocking.”
WATCH | Education is key to fighting exploitation, experts say:
She said that when traffickers lure one victim, they often use them as a means of recruiting their classmates and peers, making it harder to spot.
“It’s not the predator by the school bus any longer, whispering, ‘Come here, come here.'”
She said by the time victims realize that they’re being exploited, it’s often too late because “they’ve already given intimate photos, intimate information, they’ve already taken payment,” and they’re too embarrassed to come forward.
Waite said traffickers look for vulnerable youth, and that’s why it’s important for schools to have a proper support system, without blame or judgment.
White Ribbon training educators across country
White Ribbon Canada is a not-for-profit organization that works with men and boys to promote gender equality, healthy masculinity and to end all forms of gender based violence and discrimination.
Humberto Carolo, White Ribbon CEO, said the group recently participated in a two-year national initiative that included the New Brunswick Teachers’ Association, to create tools and resources to use in the classroom. Those resources are geared toward middle and high school students to help them spot the signs of exploitation and reach out for help when needed.
Humberto Carolo, CEO of the group White Ribbon Canada, says schools are one key site where traffickers are recruiting young people. (Submitted by Humberto Carolo)
He said it’s important for students to “learn about consent, healthy relationships, healthy [masculinity] and allyship, so “they don’t end up being part of the problem … and know what they can do to change the culture.”
Carolo said traffickers often pose as friends, romantic partners or trusted peers. They gradually target youth in and around schools, at after-school hangouts, or online, making it more difficult for parents and school authorities to detect.
Ontario policy 1st of its kind
Ontario is at the forefront of bringing more awareness into the school system, thanks in part to advocates like Casandra Diamond.
Diamond, the founder of Bridge North Women’s Mentorship and Advocacy Services, was instrumental in the push for a human trafficking strategy in Ontario schools.
Casandra Diamond is pushing for school strategies to address human trafficking, similar to the one she lobbied for in Ontario. (Allyson McCormack/CBC)
“We had teachers that were coming to us saying, ‘I see this happening to kids all the time, but I don’t know what to do,'” she said.
Those conversations with teachers eventually led the Ontario Government to roll out an anti-sex trafficking policy framework in 2021 — the first of its kind in Canada. It directs every school board to develop a protocol to protect students, which includes mandatory training for all kindergarten to Grade 12 teachers.
Jill Dunlop, Ontario’s minister of education, said in a statement that the provincial curriculum includes in-depth education about healthy relationships, consent and personal autonomy.
“Students are taught about the signs of unhealthy or abusive relationships and explore issues such as dating violence, controlling behaviours, and how to identify manipulation or coercion,” she said.
Diamond said the success of that training and education was almost immediately felt. “As soon as we talked about it, as soon as we trained the teachers, every single district school board got disclosures from teachers and students.”
N.B. framework already exists
John Sharpe is the executive director of Partners for Youth in Fredericton, a provincial not-for-profit that provides support for young people, focusing on youth mental health, and children and youth involved in the care system.
In 2017, the group released the New Brunswick Information Guide on Human Trafficking, in partnership with Women and Gender Equality Canada.
John Sharpe, executive director of Partners for Youth in Fredericton, was part of the effort behind the New Brunswick Information Guide on Human Trafficking, released in 2017. He would like to see the report’s recommendations implemented. (Submitted by John Sharpe)
Sharpe said the report recommended looking at the “school curriculum at all grade levels, if appropriate, to determine where information should lie, and how it should be disseminated.”
Sharpe said he’s not sure what was done in terms of “actually implementing the strategy as presented,” but he’d like to see it revisited.
“We’ve done a lot of work. There’s been a lot of organizations for a long time focused on this issue here in New Brunswick, a lot of very confident and bright folks around those tables,” he said.