Fund Workshops to End Trafficking in Canada

Dear Friends, 

I hope you are well, healthy, and enjoying the holiday season. At Aura Freedom, we have so much to be grateful for: our health, our dedicated team members, and you - our amazing supporters!

Since we last checked in, we have been busy creating new resources and learning opportunities for people in our community. These resources are important because when people are educated on what human trafficking is and what it looks like, they can be empowered to prevent trafficking in their own lives. 

During COVID-19, we have pivoted from in-person awareness presentations and have moved these presentations online. In order to ensure virtual presentations are just as engaging and informative as they are in person, we use break out rooms, group activities, discussions, and have a trained trauma counsellor on every call who is available for one-on-one support through the private chat function or in a private break out room. By doing this, we have been able to provide awareness and education presentations to many frontline workers, teachers, and youth in a way that is COVID-19 safe while still preventing human trafficking. 

By making this change, we have been able to provide crucial anti-human trafficking information as guest presenters for organizations like The Learning Network’s webinar on Human Trafficking: Innovative Responses Created By and For Youth and Indigenous Communities, the Freedom Collaborative's event Preventing Human Trafficking by Advancing Equity and Unpacking Root Causes, and MCIS Language Solutions' event Aura Freedom's New Human Trafficking Info Hub. 

These events have allowed us to inform viewers about the root causes of exploitation and human trafficking and how to address them. We examined the systemic oppression of marginalized groups, including women and girls, Indigenous and Black women/youth, 2SLGBTQ+ youth, newcomers, and youth in foster care, among others. We also looked at definitions, trends, statistics, the luring and grooming process, risk and protective factors, myths, and much more.

You can view these recorded presentations below:

The Learning Network:

https://www.vawlearningnetwork.ca/webinars/recorded_resource_spotlights/RS_9.html. 

Freedom Collaborative:

https://freedomcollaborative.org/webinar-library/preventing-human-trafficking-by-advancing-equity-and-unpacking-root-causes. 

MCIS Language Solutions:

http://helpingtraffickedpersons.org/

We have also written analyses of important documents relating to human trafficking. Our analysis of the 2021 U.S. Trafficking in Persons Report compares how Canada stands up to other countries in the fight to eliminate human trafficking. We also analysed Ontario’s new mandate for schools to address human trafficking and discuss the importance of utilizing a gender lens, since human trafficking thrives in situations of inequity. 

You can read the Trafficking in Persons analysis at https://aurafreedom.org/aura-freedoms-analysis-of-the-2021-tip-report/, read our analysis of the school mandate at https://aurafreedom.org/ontario-mandates-anti-sex-trafficking-in-schools/, or take a look at some of our other work at https://aurafreedom.org/news/. 

We have amazing news! At the end of November, we launched a brand new educational resource that we have been working on for months. We could not be more excited that our Human Trafficking Info Hub is live! 

This Hub is so important to us at Aura Freedom. The Info Hub houses information on human trafficking, definitions, statistics, warning signs, risk and protective factors, myth busters, and so much more. The Hub incorporates principles of our anti-human trafficking training to provide in-depth resources that are easily accessible for everyone. The Info Hub can be used by educators, parents, youth, frontline workers, healthcare professionals, and anyone else who wants to understand more about human trafficking in a way that is user friendly, engaging, and informative.

We are so proud of this Info Hub and know that it will positively impact the lives of countless individuals. You can explore the Info Hub and learn more about how we address human trafficking by visting https://aurafreedom.org/relentless-resilience/human-trafficking-info-hub/. 

We could not have done this work without your support! You have made it possible for us to create resources that will be available for years to come. Your impact will be felt by the countless youth who are empowered to prevent trafficking in their lives and who are educated to recognize warning signs in themselves and others. The impact of your support truly goes beyond the resources we have created. Thank you.

No matter how small your contribution may seem, the impacts it has are immeasurable and will impact the lives of youth for years to come. 

We are so grateful for you and we cannot wait to see where your support takes us next. 

In solidarity, 

Olivia Allen

Development Manager

olivia@aurafreedom.org

Dear friends,

Time has certainly flown by since we last spoke! During this time, there have been many changes in the world and at Aura Freedom. As the country begins to open up more, everyone seems to be filled with hope, excitement, and new life but we will begin to see the effects of the pandemic on our youth if we haven't already. The isolation, exploitation, and fear everyone has experienced - especially youth - will have an impact on the years to come. 

As you know, the Peer Prevention Project is unfunded and your support could not be more appreciated! Your continued support for this project has meant we can continue educating youth on human trafficking and empower them to prevent exploitation in their own lives. It has meant we can provide survivors with support and resources to live better lives of health and inclusiveness. Your support has meant we can continue to demonstrate what healthy relationships look like, how to identify red flags, and educate youth on what true consent is. This is especially important as 29% of people are trafficked by an intimate partner and 31% by a friend. When we educate youth, we are saving lives one presentation at a time.

Becuase of your gifts, we are able to continue providing life saving support to youth who are experiencing, or are at risk of experiencing, human trafficking. Because of your support we have provided anti-human trafficking workshops to frontline workers to identify and support survivors of human trafficking in their line of work. Because of you, we have been able to provide virtual presentations at Elizabeth Fry, Roden Public School, Halton Catholic School, Youth Rising Above, Women's Support Network, Women's Habitat, and more.

It is amazing what we have been able to accomplish because of your support! In a time when resources are scarce and youth are more at risk than ever, we have been able to provide life-saving education to those who need it. All thanks to you!

We have more exciting news - our online booking forum is live! This means that teachers, community support workers, leaders, etc who want to host an anti-human trafficking presentation can easily book, all with one click of a button! Having this forum means booking is easier, faster, and more accessible for everyone. As September quickly approaches and school resumes, we look forward to using the forum to schedule presentations and impact the lives of countless people in our community. We can't wait to see where this year takes us!

You can click here to view our selection of workshops, here to book a youth anti-human trafficking presentation, and here to learn more about our youth presentation. As always, please contact asha@aurafreedom.org if you have any questions about scheduling a presentation. 

As we look forward to the coming months, we are very grateful for your continued support. We know the last year and a half has not been easy for anyone and we are grateful to have you by our side. We could not do the work that we do without support from people like you.

Remember, no matter how small the contribution may seem, it has major effects on those it reaches. 

And we are so grateful for you.

As always, yours in solidarity.