Southwestern Ontario truck drivers are coming together to create awareness about human trafficking. Recently, advocates gathered outside the Ontario Truck Driving School in London at the unveiling of a rig wrapped in messaging created by the Know Human Trafficking campaign.
The vehicle will be driven by students around London, Chatham, and Tilbury to make it visible to both urban and rural communities in the area.
This is the seventh trailer to be used in Ontario for this purpose. The Women’s Trucking Federation of Canada, the organization that organized this campaign, said human trafficking is on the rise in Ontario, especially along the 401 corridor. Shelley Walker, CEO and founder of the Women’s Trucking Federation of Canada, said: “The numbers here in London are very high. So we need to be educated to solve it.”
Walker, a great truck driver of over 30 years, said she learned about human trafficking throughout her career and she felt that there was no consistent messaging available to the public. In 2019, she had the campaign’s first rig wrapped and has since been onboarding other ambassadors across Canada.
Walker said there are often red flags of human trafficking in rest areas or truck stops and they can be spotted out in the open if people are aware of what to watch for. She added that one of the biggest myths is that citizens feel the individuals in a trailer are being smuggled across the border. However, it is majorly domestic sex trafficking that is on the rise in Canada.
The campaign’s aims is to educate people on the signs of human trafficking which include how to find them and what to do if they suspect someone is a victim. According to the Women’s Trucking Federation of Canada, the trucking industry is well-placed to help with this initiative as drivers often stop at rest areas and truck stops, where human trafficking happens.
As part of the campaign, the organization has launched a website where citizens can learn more about human trafficking and get resources to help. Also, they have launched a hotline for individuals to report any activity that is suspicious.
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