A lead advocate against human trafficking will be visiting Barrie later this month to raise awareness.
The Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) Barrie and District has invited Kelly Franklin to be the guest speaker at their October general meeting, which is taking place on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. in the Barrie City Hall Rotunda. It is open to anyone interested in the topic of human trafficking.
“We felt the topic was sufficiently important to open it up to the general public — people in the community who want to know more about the subject and hopefully make a decision to become involved with eradicating this despicable practice,” said Carolyn Maxwell, who's with the CFUW Barrie and District.
Franklin is the founder of Courage for Freedom, a Canadian-based organization developed to educate, train, and provide certification for treating young girls who have survived human trafficking. She is also executive director of Farmtown Canada, where girls are referred for healing through the Horses That Heal program. The farm uses proven strategies and prevention tactics for repairing the emotional damage victims may have endured.
Franklin is also the organizer chief executive director and founder of the Courage for Freedom project, which oversaw Project Maple Leaf and Project ONRoute unveiled in Barrie in July, which aims to teach people how to spot the signs of a person being trafficked.
The Project Maple Leaf campaign includes a short video, shown on video messaging boards at numerous ONroute locations, educating people with tips and some of the signs to look for in potential human-trafficking cases.
“There is a need for awareness: to dispel the myths, to recognize the signs, to identify who is at risk, and to discover where there is help,” said Maxwell. “Kelly has been a longtime advocate for vulnerable people. She has worked tirelessly to share her message with governments, corporations, municipalities and communities.”
There is no cost to attend.
