Human trafficking is often invisible to those not directly impacted by it. The hidden nature of this crime has meant that most Canadians are completely unaware that it occurs in our country and the scale at which it occurs. Those most vulnerable to trafficking are young people, many of whom are Indigenous and/or identify as 2SLGBTQIA+.
Today’s announcement by the Province of BC to strengthen enforcement and build a coordinated provincial response to combat and investigate human trafficking is a critical step.
Enforcement is only one piece of the strategy we need to implement to prevent human trafficking and protect the vulnerable.
Covenant House Vancouver is a founding member of the Human Trafficking Prevention Network. This network has identified priority actions to prevent human trafficking, improve systems to intervene when and where trafficking occurs, and how to better support survivors of human trafficking.
“We know that human trafficking is the result of racial, gendered, sexual, and colonial factors which often place young people at great vulnerability to exploitation. The newly announced provincial police unit will target those who profit from that vulnerability and is an important part of the multi-sector response needed to support survivors and prevent exploitation from happening in the first place.” Deb Lester, CEO of Covenant House Vancouver
In 2023, Covenant House Vancouver, in partnership with organizations across Canada, published a toolkit to support capacity-building to better support youth impacted by trafficking.