I was sex trafficked for years. Brothels are hidden in plain sight. | Casandra Diamond | TEDxToronto
TLDRThe speaker shares a poignant narrative of her journey from childhood abuse and neglect to becoming a victim of sex trafficking in Canada. She describes the insidious nature of the industry, operating under the guise of licensed massage parlors, and the psychological manipulation she faced. Despite the trauma, she found solace in faith and community, leading to the establishment of BridgeNorth, an organization aimed at ending sex trafficking and providing support to victims. She calls for systemic change, advocating for the Nordic model that penalizes buyers while assisting women to escape and recover. The speaker emphasizes the need for societal awareness and action to abolish sex trafficking, support victims, and challenge the normalization of these exploitative practices.
Takeaways
- 📝 The speaker uses cue cards to help focus on their message and shield from painful memories, indicating the difficulty of sharing a traumatic story.
- 🏠 Growing up in the speaker's family was challenging due to mental health problems and abuse, which led to neglect and the speaker ending up on the streets at a young age.
- 😔 The lack of structure and routine in the speaker's childhood resulted in feelings of shame and paralysis when asked to write about summer activities at school.
- 🚨 The speaker experienced sexual abuse from both strangers and neighbors, leading to a constant state of fight-or-flight and hypervigilance.
- 🗣️ A multi-generational pedophile manipulated the speaker into silence with threats of losing parental love, highlighting the psychological tactics used by abusers.
- 💃 At 17, the speaker began working in clubs and later for a smut magazine, encountering dangerous people and seeking a sense of agency and power over their body.
- 💰 The speaker was recruited into working at a massage parlor that was a front for a brothel, where they were expected to perform degrading acts for additional money.
- ⚖️ Despite police raids, no help was offered to the speaker, illustrating the systemic neglect and lack of support for victims in such situations.
- 🕰️ The speaker was in this situation for nearly nine years, showing the prolonged nature of exploitation and the difficulty of escape.
- 🌐 The speaker founded BridgeNorth to provide support and services to women affected by sex trafficking, as well as advocating for legal changes to address the issue.
- 📉 The speaker highlights the need for systemic change, including the adoption of the Nordic model which penalizes buyers and supports women in exiting exploitation.
Q & A
What is the primary reason the speaker uses cue cards during her presentation?
-The speaker uses cue cards to help her focus on her message and to shield her from painful memories and intrusive thoughts associated with her difficult past.
How does the speaker describe the impact of sharing her story?
-The speaker describes sharing her story as retraumatizing, but she believes it is worth it if it means giving another girl a chance at freedom.
What was the consequence of the abuse and mental health problems in the speaker's family?
-The abuse and mental health problems led to neglect, which eventually left the speaker on the streets of Scarborough as a young girl.
What was the speaker's experience like during her school years?
-The speaker felt ashamed and paralyzed when asked to write about her summer activities because she did not have the typical experiences of going to summer camp or a cottage; instead, she played outside all day due to the lack of structure and routine in her life.
How did the speaker's experiences with abuse affect her behavior and sense of self?
-The speaker's experiences with abuse led her to believe that she was trapped and that her body did not belong to her. She started to reflect the environment she lived in and developed behaviors that were a response to her abusive circumstances.
What was the nature of the work environment at the massage parlor where the speaker was employed?
-The massage parlor was a front for a brothel, where women were expected to perform degrading acts for additional money. The environment was exploitative, with fines for minor infractions and a lack of genuine business practices.
Why did the speaker feel that her work at the massage parlor was not a real choice?
-The speaker felt that her work was not a real choice because she was told how to dress, who to have sex with, and where to live. She was manipulated into believing that the man who recruited her was her protector, when in reality, he was her trafficker.
How does the speaker describe the role of licensed massage parlors in perpetuating sex trafficking in Canada?
-The speaker describes licensed massage parlors as a system that allows traffickers to operate under the guise of a legitimate business. These parlors manage schedules, advertising, and calls, which allows traffickers to find more victims while maintaining a facade of acceptability and safety.
What is the Nordic model that the speaker advocated for, and how does it address sex trafficking?
-The Nordic model is an approach that penalizes the buyers involved in sex trafficking while providing support and resources to help women exit the industry. The speaker advocated for Canada to adopt this model to combat sex trafficking more effectively.
What are the challenges the speaker identifies in the implementation of the 'Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act'?
-The speaker identifies a lack of arrests of buyers, inadequate funding for services needed for women's recovery, and a general absence of action despite the existence of a legal framework as the main challenges in implementing the act.
What steps does the speaker suggest to combat sex trafficking in Canada?
-The speaker suggests abolishing sex trafficking entirely, providing support to women trapped in the industry to help them exit, and increasing public awareness and pressure on government officials to take action against this issue.
How does the speaker's personal journey of recovery and activism reflect her commitment to ending sex trafficking?
-The speaker's personal journey includes escaping her trafficking situation, seeking counseling, discovering faith, and founding BridgeNorth, an organization that offers services and advocacy to combat sex trafficking. Her story and work demonstrate a deep commitment to helping others and changing the systemic issues that contribute to trafficking.
Outlines
📜 Personal Struggles and the Impact of Abuse
The speaker, Belle QS, begins by explaining her use of cue cards to help her focus and protect her from painful memories. She shares the difficulty of recounting her traumatic past, including growing up in a family with mental health issues and abuse. This led to neglect and eventually homelessness. Belle describes the lack of structure in her childhood and the traumatic experiences she endured, such as being raped and abused. She talks about learning to be hypervigilant to avoid further attacks and how she was manipulated into silence by a multi-generational pedophile. Despite the hardships, she emphasizes the importance of sharing her story to potentially help others achieve freedom.
🕯️ The Dark Reality of Sex Trafficking in Canada
Belle QS recounts her experience in the sex trafficking industry, which she entered through a job offer at a massage parlor. She describes the exploitative conditions, including low pay, fines for minor infractions, and the expectation to perform degrading acts for extra money. She highlights the lack of help from authorities during police raids and the facade of legitimacy provided by the parlor's business license. Belle discusses the systemic issues that allow this industry to thrive, including the complicity of some officials and the societal acceptance of these establishments. She calls for a change in perception, emphasizing that the women involved are victims, not willing participants in the sex trade.
🚨 Advocacy and the Fight Against Sex Trafficking
After escaping her life in sex trafficking, Belle QS founded BridgeNorth, an organization aimed at helping other victims and advocating for change. She speaks about the importance of recovery and the need for systemic solutions to address the root causes of trafficking. Belle shares her efforts in lobbying for the 'Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act,' which was inspired by the Nordic model that focuses on penalizing buyers while supporting women to exit the industry. Despite the bill becoming law, she laments the lack of enforcement and funding for essential services. Belle calls for action from the Canadian government, which is known for its leadership in women's rights and gender equality, to match its intentions with effective measures.
💌 A Call to Action and Hope for Change
Belle QS concludes her speech by emphasizing the power of individual action in making a difference. She encourages the audience to contact their government representatives to demand action against sex trafficking. Belle shares her story of freedom and hope, highlighting the strength and potential of the women affected by trafficking. She credits her freedom to the kindness and support of Kathy and Jim, who helped restore her sense of self-worth. Belle's narrative serves as a call for empathy, intervention, and collective effort to end the exploitation and trafficking of women in Canada.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Cue Cards
💡Retraumatization
💡Mental Health Problems
💡Abuse
💡Sex Trafficking
💡Hypervigilance
💡Agency
💡Vulnerability
💡Massage Parlor
💡Trafficker
💡Nordic Model
💡Community Support
Highlights
The speaker uses cue cards to help focus on her message and shield from painful memories.
Every time she tells her story, she experiences retraumatization.
Mental health problems and abuse destabilized her family, leading to neglect.
Neglect forced her onto the streets as a young girl in Scarborough.
She felt ashamed and paralyzed when asked to write about her summers, which were filled with abuse and danger.
Surviving multiple incidents of sexual abuse during her childhood.
Surviving in a state of constant hypervigilance and fight-or-flight mode.
Being manipulated and trafficked by a multi-generational pedophile.
The trafficker's words kept her trapped, leading to a belief that she was alone and without support.
At 17, she began working in clubs and later for a smut magazine, encountering dangerous people.
She was recruited into working at a massage parlor that was a front for sex trafficking.
The massage parlor operated as a business, but the reality was a place of exploitation and trafficking.
Police raids were common, but no help was offered to the trafficked women.
She felt trapped and deceived into believing she was making a choice, when in reality, she was a victim of trafficking.
The trafficker manipulated her into becoming a manager to increase his power and status.
The licensed body rub parlor provided a façade of legitimacy, masking the illegal activities.
The city's licensed brothel system is a product of predatory practices and a lack of enforcement.
She eventually escaped and started a three-day period of recovery, finding solace in faith and community.
She founded BridgeNorth to provide services and advocate for change in the laws regarding sex trafficking.
BridgeNorth offers peer mentorship, medical care, food assistance, and public education.
She lobbied for the passing of the 'Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act', adopting the Nordic model.
Despite the new law, there is a lack of action, arrests, and funding for services to help women recover.
She calls for the abolition of sex trafficking, support for victims, and public involvement in raising awareness.
Her story concludes with a message of hope, emphasizing the potential of the women she represents and the power of individual action.
Transcripts
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