As the Chief Executive Director and Founder of St. Thomas-based Courage for Freedom, Kelly Franklin has made it her mission to help in the fight against human trafficking along the Hwy. 401 corridor in Ontario and right across Canada.
Courage for Freedom exists to educate, train and certify front-line and community service providers on strategies and prevention tactics that serve victims of human trafficking.
And last week, Franklin was the recipient of the June Callwood Outstanding Achievement Award for Voluntarism. Her reaction to the announcement was nothing short of “shocking.”
Franklin has overcome abuse, trafficking, rape and prison to become one of the foremost speakers and leaders on helping girls overcome the trauma of sex trafficking.
The award, stresses Franklin, is for all of the human trafficking survivors.
Her Courage for Freedom organization stresses courage, hope and resilience as survivors travel through the recovery process.
Sixty per cent of all of Canada’s human trafficking can be linked in some way to activities that occur along the 401 corridor across southern Ontario. In 2019, that led to the launch of #ProjectONRoute, a provincial human trafficking awareness campaign.
That initiative has expanded across the country and is now known as #ProjectMapleLeaf.
Franklin stresses boys and girls in Canada are not for sale, adding “they are not little commodities.”
If you suspect that someone you know is a victim of human sex trafficking, it is up to you to speak out by calling 911 or the Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-833-900-1010 if you wish to remain anonymous.
