0:00:10.847,0:00:13.290
[You might] notice I'm holding cue cards.

0:00:13.419,0:00:14.702
I'm holding cue cards

0:00:14.702,0:00:17.435
because they are going to help me[br]to focus on my message

0:00:17.435,0:00:19.288
while at the same time

0:00:19.688,0:00:23.990
shielding me from painful memories[br]and intrusive thoughts.

0:00:25.300,0:00:28.106
Because my story[br]isn't an easy one to tell.

0:00:28.966,0:00:32.549
In fact, every time I tell my story,

0:00:32.549,0:00:34.298
I'm retraumatized.

0:00:34.698,0:00:36.673
But if sharing my story

0:00:36.673,0:00:41.163
means that one more girl[br]has a chance at freedom,

0:00:41.163,0:00:43.200
then it's worth it for me.

0:00:44.130,0:00:46.808
Growing up in my family wasn't easy.

0:00:47.678,0:00:50.584
Mental health problems and abuse

0:00:51.594,0:00:53.603
can destabilize a family.

0:00:53.893,0:00:57.129
But abuse doesn't just exist in a vacuum.

0:00:57.289,0:01:01.345
It doesn't just start or stop[br]in one individual's life.

0:01:01.565,0:01:06.248
It permeates every action[br]and activity of their being.

0:01:07.050,0:01:09.486
Mental health problems and abuse

0:01:09.486,0:01:10.876
led to neglect,

0:01:11.206,0:01:14.356
and neglect left me[br]on the streets of Scarborough

0:01:14.356,0:01:16.170
a very young girl.

0:01:18.470,0:01:21.770
I distinctly recall going back to school.

0:01:21.770,0:01:24.453
I remember each year,[br]the teacher would ask us,

0:01:24.453,0:01:26.687
"Write down what you did that summer."

0:01:27.767,0:01:32.393
I was so ashamed; I was paralyzed.

0:01:33.233,0:01:35.400
I didn't go to summer camp.

0:01:35.750,0:01:37.689
No, I didn't go to the cottage.

0:01:37.689,0:01:41.535
I was the kid that played[br]outside all day long.

0:01:42.665,0:01:44.465
There was no regular structure.

0:01:44.465,0:01:47.370
There was no routine for most anything.

0:01:47.747,0:01:51.246
One summer, I was raped by a stranger;

0:01:51.796,0:01:56.465
another, abused and degraded[br]by the neighborhood boys.

0:01:56.865,0:01:59.965
I was always in fight-or-flight mode.

0:01:59.965,0:02:04.867
It seemed like danger[br]was lurking around every corner.

0:02:06.197,0:02:08.101
What I learned that summer

0:02:08.631,0:02:12.445
was how to remain hypervigilant,[br]how to avoid attack -

0:02:12.445,0:02:16.592
something that no young girl[br]should ever have to learn.

0:02:17.812,0:02:20.256
But it didn't stop[br]with the neighborhood boys.

0:02:20.576,0:02:25.772
I would later be abused at the hands[br]of a multi-generational pedophile.

0:02:26.292,0:02:29.574
And it was his words that kept me trapped.

0:02:30.174,0:02:31.718
When he said,

0:02:32.858,0:02:35.946
"Your parents won't love you anymore[br]if you tell on me,"

0:02:36.706,0:02:40.170
in my isolated environment,[br]I believed him.

0:02:41.220,0:02:46.484
And my behaviors started to reflect[br]the environment that I lived in.

0:02:47.524,0:02:50.080
I don't remember a time back then

0:02:50.080,0:02:53.462
when my body ever felt like my own.

0:02:54.772,0:02:59.337
At 17, I started moving from club to club.

0:02:59.337,0:03:01.233
I first started stripping.

0:03:01.673,0:03:05.456
Then later, I worked for a smut magazine,

0:03:05.886,0:03:06.900
where I would meet

0:03:06.900,0:03:10.295
some of the most dangerous people[br]I've ever encountered.

0:03:11.385,0:03:16.266
Still, I was on this never ending quest

0:03:16.266,0:03:20.316
to have some form of agency[br]over my own body,

0:03:20.316,0:03:23.789
a source of power I had never had before.

0:03:25.499,0:03:27.514
One day, my phone rang.

0:03:27.514,0:03:30.774
I was looking at my gas gauge,[br]sitting on empty.

0:03:31.054,0:03:34.237
It was my old co-worker[br]from the magazine company.

0:03:34.237,0:03:38.649
He called me to tell me he was running[br]Toronto's largest massage parlor,

0:03:38.649,0:03:41.423
and he wanted me[br]to come and join his stable.

0:03:42.283,0:03:46.272
The word "stable"[br]didn't even give me pause.

0:03:47.932,0:03:52.496
Well, on the outside,[br]it looked like a normal business,

0:03:52.496,0:03:54.775
except it wasn't.

0:03:55.445,0:04:00.368
This massage parlor had 10 rooms,[br]and they were always busy.

0:04:00.978,0:04:05.726
There were between 40 to 60[br]women and girls on rotation in the spa.

0:04:06.526,0:04:10.158
A massage was between 40 and 50 dollars.

0:04:10.418,0:04:12.550
We'd get a 10-dollar commission

0:04:12.910,0:04:15.304
if you didn't have a fine.

0:04:15.824,0:04:19.223
And you could have a fine[br]for just about anything:

0:04:19.223,0:04:21.875
being late, talking back

0:04:22.085,0:04:25.385
or not having a perfectly primped body.

0:04:28.415,0:04:30.074
It was expected

0:04:30.074,0:04:33.860
that the girls could earn[br]considerably more money

0:04:33.860,0:04:35.325
by doing extras.

0:04:35.751,0:04:37.568
And by doing extras,

0:04:37.568,0:04:43.827
I am talking about some of the most[br]unimaginable and degrading acts.

0:04:45.417,0:04:46.417
Police raids,

0:04:46.417,0:04:48.543
they occurred in these places,

0:04:49.100,0:04:54.621
but no police officer, no bylaw official[br]ever offered me help.

0:04:54.881,0:04:57.538
No one ever said, "Hey,

0:04:57.538,0:04:59.550
is there somewhere else you'd rather be?"

0:04:59.763,0:05:01.729
or "I know somebody you can call.

0:05:01.729,0:05:03.529
Can I connect you two?"

0:05:04.479,0:05:09.293
And this would be my life[br]for the next nearly nine years.

0:05:12.063,0:05:14.010
Maybe you're listening to my story

0:05:14.010,0:05:18.302
and you're thinking,[br]"How foolish is this girl!"

0:05:18.962,0:05:21.140
But I wasn't foolish.

0:05:21.140,0:05:22.358
I was vulnerable,

0:05:22.808,0:05:24.171
I was naive

0:05:24.171,0:05:26.260
and I was a perfect target.

0:05:27.070,0:05:29.390
I didn't have a sense of belonging.

0:05:29.390,0:05:34.664
I didn't feel wanted or valued[br]for anything other than my body.

0:05:35.704,0:05:37.800
I had started to deceive myself:

0:05:38.070,0:05:41.128
"This is my choice.[br]I'm making this money."

0:05:41.468,0:05:43.221
But in hindsight,

0:05:43.851,0:05:46.584
there wasn't much choice involved at all.

0:05:46.584,0:05:49.825
This wasn't work; it was trafficking.

0:05:50.435,0:05:52.425
I was told how to dress,

0:05:52.425,0:05:53.700
who to have sex with,

0:05:53.700,0:05:55.009
where to live -

0:05:55.009,0:05:56.389
everything.

0:05:57.629,0:06:00.901
I felt scared almost all the time.

0:06:02.331,0:06:04.070
The man who recruited me,

0:06:04.420,0:06:05.420
he manipulated me

0:06:05.420,0:06:09.350
into thinking and believing[br]that he was my protector,

0:06:09.830,0:06:11.356
my boyfriend,

0:06:12.329,0:06:14.076
except he wasn't.

0:06:14.076,0:06:18.967
He was my trafficker,[br]and I was little more than his property.

0:06:19.927,0:06:22.959
Over time, he made me a manager -

0:06:23.219,0:06:24.574
made me.

0:06:24.704,0:06:27.226
This was not an act of saving me.

0:06:27.226,0:06:30.534
This was not a promotion.

0:06:30.924,0:06:35.813
This was him trying to build his status[br]and grow his power.

0:06:36.973,0:06:38.260
On paper,

0:06:38.260,0:06:41.655
he ran a licensed body rub parlor.

0:06:41.990,0:06:46.707
This allowed him to look[br]like a legitimate businessman.

0:06:47.437,0:06:49.060
This license

0:06:49.060,0:06:54.725
allows you to rub, knead or stimulate[br]any muscle in the human body.

0:06:55.345,0:06:56.805
Officially,

0:06:56.805,0:07:00.805
these words don't mean[br]that sex is on the menu,

0:07:01.155,0:07:06.052
but my experience[br]and that of thousands of others

0:07:06.052,0:07:07.797
suggest differently.

0:07:08.982,0:07:11.811
Somewhere between the letter of the law,

0:07:12.161,0:07:17.293
the predatory practices[br]of massage parlor owners and operators,

0:07:17.893,0:07:21.599
the willingness for police[br]to look the other way,

0:07:22.209,0:07:27.172
our city has created[br]the licensed brothel system.

0:07:29.572,0:07:32.040
A massage parlor keeps the schedule,

0:07:32.040,0:07:34.155
manages all of the advertising

0:07:34.155,0:07:36.268
and fields all of the calls,

0:07:36.988,0:07:40.277
freeing up a trafficker[br]to look for another victim.

0:07:40.987,0:07:42.150
Buyers,

0:07:42.150,0:07:44.675
they don't have to go to a seedy motel.

0:07:46.020,0:07:48.919
Massage parlors and holistic centers,

0:07:48.919,0:07:53.940
the ones on the way[br]to and from your home and work,

0:07:54.550,0:07:56.900
they provide a facade

0:07:57.850,0:07:59.809
of acceptability,

0:08:01.679,0:08:03.974
safety and option

0:08:03.974,0:08:05.566
on a woman's part.

0:08:06.549,0:08:08.673
But even worse,

0:08:09.233,0:08:14.878
the fact that all of this[br]happens inside of a licensed system

0:08:14.878,0:08:18.432
means that we are enshrining a man's right

0:08:18.432,0:08:22.332
to buy a living, breathing human being.

0:08:22.332,0:08:24.531
That's what we're talking about.

0:08:26.581,0:08:29.630
This is what sex trafficking[br]looks like in Canada.

0:08:29.630,0:08:32.979
It is the brothel hidden in plain sight,

0:08:32.979,0:08:36.661
where women are trapped[br]and, many, enslaved.

0:08:38.151,0:08:40.305
And here, all of us,

0:08:40.305,0:08:42.993
all of us are deceived into believing

0:08:42.993,0:08:45.939
that what's happening is a woman's choice.

0:08:47.559,0:08:53.453
You see, our cities license[br]these parlors and holistic centers.

0:08:53.453,0:08:55.303
And in their point of view,

0:08:55.303,0:08:59.314
they're not officially granting[br]a license for a brothel,

0:09:00.024,0:09:04.030
but they are well aware[br]of what's happening behind closed doors.

0:09:04.980,0:09:07.682
Not all massage centers are like this.

0:09:07.682,0:09:12.149
No, legitimate owners,[br]they're not open until 4:00 am.

0:09:12.149,0:09:16.040
They don't advertise their staff[br]in scantily clad clothing

0:09:16.040,0:09:17.984
on escort websites.

0:09:19.944,0:09:22.998
So how are these types of massage parlors,

0:09:22.998,0:09:25.243
how are they able to thrive?

0:09:25.778,0:09:29.560
Here in Canada, each municipality

0:09:29.560,0:09:35.236
has the power and control[br]to grant the licenses for their area.

0:09:35.926,0:09:40.425
The higher levels of government,[br]they know that these problems exist,

0:09:40.425,0:09:43.500
yet they take no responsibility

0:09:43.840,0:09:46.373
by saying that they don't[br]make the decisions,

0:09:46.373,0:09:48.352
the municipalities do.

0:09:49.772,0:09:54.098
Even one of our more celebrated[br]and successful politicians

0:09:54.098,0:10:00.903
was found inside a massage parlor,[br]with no negative impacts to his career.

0:10:01.653,0:10:05.350
It's as if we're saying,[br]"We're okay with this."

0:10:06.030,0:10:09.132
But I refuse to believe that;[br]I just simply don't.

0:10:09.752,0:10:11.372
I was in a meeting

0:10:11.372,0:10:16.635
with the most high senior officials[br]from Municipal Licensing.

0:10:17.365,0:10:19.774
I specifically asked.

0:10:20.414,0:10:24.632
I said, "You guys know[br]that this isn't just massage, right?"

0:10:25.162,0:10:26.441
Their response?

0:10:26.441,0:10:31.176
"Yeah, we know that these are[br]just fronts for brothels."

0:10:32.111,0:10:34.777
Everyone knows about this problem,

0:10:34.777,0:10:38.757
yet no one is taking the lead to solve it.

0:10:41.127,0:10:43.789
I eventually escaped my circumstances.

0:10:44.509,0:10:47.260
I literally slept for three days straight.

0:10:47.980,0:10:49.918
It was my soul that hurt,

0:10:49.918,0:10:52.318
for where there was no hospital.

0:10:53.358,0:10:56.556
Discovering my faith[br]in a supportive community

0:10:56.556,0:10:58.764
guided me to seek counselling,

0:10:58.764,0:11:01.544
where my journey to recovery began.

0:11:02.204,0:11:05.519
Because you see, getting out is one thing,

0:11:05.519,0:11:08.940
but staying out, that's just as hard.

0:11:10.150,0:11:13.452
With this understanding,[br]I started BridgeNorth.

0:11:14.452,0:11:17.418
I want to be a part of the solution.

0:11:17.418,0:11:21.469
I want to help end[br]sex trafficking in Canada.

0:11:22.199,0:11:24.300
We offer services to women.

0:11:25.070,0:11:28.365
They'll contact us[br]for peer mentorship and support,

0:11:28.365,0:11:31.290
medical care, food assistances,

0:11:31.300,0:11:33.355
many other services as well.

0:11:34.930,0:11:37.071
We also provide-

0:11:38.361,0:11:41.595
I'm sorry, we also provide[br]public education,

0:11:41.595,0:11:44.088
and we advocate to change our laws

0:11:44.438,0:11:48.556
because this problem[br]is still so hidden in plain sight.

0:11:51.476,0:11:54.681
There really are more victims out there[br]than you think there are.

0:11:55.591,0:11:58.858
Some enter this[br]dangerous world like I had;

0:11:59.218,0:12:01.393
others, children and youth,

0:12:01.643,0:12:06.406
they're lured out of foster care,[br]group homes, shelters,

0:12:06.406,0:12:08.423
or from their own families.

0:12:09.473,0:12:10.997
The common thread

0:12:10.997,0:12:16.337
is that traffickers look to exploit[br]the vulnerabilities of their victim -

0:12:16.337,0:12:18.384
common thread, all the time.

0:12:19.554,0:12:24.438
Where I was trafficked,[br]there were up to 60 women working.

0:12:25.468,0:12:29.908
The massage parlor I was at[br]made under just two million a year.

0:12:30.488,0:12:32.998
That doesn't include any of the money

0:12:32.998,0:12:36.020
made in the rooms by the girls -

0:12:36.020,0:12:38.865
that's what we know[br]as the trafficker's cut.

0:12:38.865,0:12:42.720
It doesn't include any money[br]made by going to after-hours parties

0:12:42.970,0:12:45.981
or by other things,[br]like selling drugs or weapons.

0:12:48.481,0:12:51.878
Imagine for a second, that's just one.

0:12:51.878,0:12:54.911
Imagine thousands[br]of these places across Canada.

0:12:56.311,0:12:59.900
Well, as a survivor,

0:12:59.900,0:13:03.260
I believe we have to tackle[br]the systemic problems

0:13:03.260,0:13:06.795
that foster trafficking[br]in the first place.

0:13:07.925,0:13:11.060
That's why in 2014,

0:13:11.944,0:13:14.690
I spoke out against sexual exploitation

0:13:14.690,0:13:17.390
before the Justice[br]and Human Rights Committee.

0:13:17.980,0:13:20.638
I helped to lobby[br]for the passing of a bill,

0:13:20.638,0:13:25.233
called "Protection of Communities[br]and Exploited Persons Act."

0:13:26.653,0:13:32.012
We advocated for Canada to adopt[br]the leading practices from Sweden.

0:13:32.352,0:13:34.533
This Nordic model,

0:13:34.948,0:13:37.478
it penalizes the buyers

0:13:38.233,0:13:42.022
while helping women to exit.

0:13:43.832,0:13:47.598
This bill was passed and is now law,

0:13:47.598,0:13:51.197
yet still, we're not seeing[br]very much action at all.

0:13:51.197,0:13:54.177
We're not seeing arrests of buyers,

0:13:54.197,0:13:56.676
we're not seeing adequate funding

0:13:56.676,0:14:00.707
for services that women need[br]to heal and recover.

0:14:01.627,0:14:04.437
So, here and now,[br]we have this legal framework

0:14:04.687,0:14:08.090
but we don't have it in use.

0:14:09.050,0:14:10.468
From Canada,

0:14:10.468,0:14:15.163
who is normally such a leader[br]on so many fronts,

0:14:15.398,0:14:20.030
a country that's known[br]for women's empowerment

0:14:20.030,0:14:21.763
and for gender equality,

0:14:21.763,0:14:26.472
yet still, we need action[br]to match our intention.

0:14:27.762,0:14:29.300
So where do we start?

0:14:31.020,0:14:35.488
Well, first, we need[br]to abolish sex trafficking.

0:14:35.798,0:14:37.694
Its harms are inherent

0:14:37.694,0:14:43.048
and simply cannot be licensed[br]or legislated in a better way.

0:14:44.108,0:14:50.671
Second, women trapped[br]should be given support to help them exit.

0:14:51.406,0:14:58.096
These women, they need to be safe[br]from the repercussions of bad actors.

0:14:58.981,0:15:03.140
And finally, we need more support[br]from people like you,

0:15:03.140,0:15:05.474
just like you.

0:15:06.289,0:15:10.861
I have spoken to numerous federal[br]and municipal government officials,

0:15:10.861,0:15:14.050
and they all say the same thing to me:

0:15:14.460,0:15:19.995
"I can only address what my constituents[br]bring to my attention."

0:15:22.775,0:15:24.510
Write them,

0:15:25.240,0:15:26.743
call them,

0:15:27.393,0:15:33.253
tell them that women being exploited[br]and trafficked inside of massage parlors

0:15:33.253,0:15:35.347
is not acceptable.

0:15:36.907,0:15:38.632
In conclusion,

0:15:39.652,0:15:42.706
it takes just one person - it really does.

0:15:44.186,0:15:47.160
I share my story today because I'm free,

0:15:47.160,0:15:50.793
and that freedom[br]I cannot take for granted.

0:15:50.793,0:15:54.676
I believe everybody in our country[br]should have that same right.

0:15:55.766,0:15:57.717
I'm sharing my story today

0:15:57.717,0:15:59.630
because I am hopeful.

0:16:00.250,0:16:02.398
I have seen, I have witnessed

0:16:02.398,0:16:06.332
the strength inside of the women[br]we're talking about.

0:16:06.332,0:16:09.351
These women are future leaders,

0:16:09.351,0:16:11.031
entrepreneurs,

0:16:11.031,0:16:12.281
moms;

0:16:12.711,0:16:14.496
they are game changers.

0:16:15.796,0:16:19.220
All they need is a chance,[br]just like the one I had.

0:16:20.960,0:16:22.667
It took one person.

0:16:23.687,0:16:25.516
Her name was Kathy;

0:16:25.826,0:16:27.902
her husband, Jim.

0:16:28.792,0:16:31.801
They each extended a hand of love to me.

0:16:32.611,0:16:37.120
They both had shown me again[br]what humanity was all about,

0:16:37.639,0:16:40.639
and they assisted[br]to bring back my self-worth.

0:16:40.639,0:16:45.209
And that is something that you can do[br]for someone else too.

0:16:45.949,0:16:47.780
(Applause) (Cheers)

0:16:47.780,0:16:48.969
Thank you.

0:16:48.969,0:16:52.823
(Applause) (Cheers)