Warning: This story contains material some readers may find disturbing.
At the age of 17, Linda Harlow’s daughter gave birth to her son after becoming pregnant by gang rape. Facing trauma, vulnerability and isolation at school, her daughter slips through the cracks into the world of trafficking.
He told his parents most things, but not everything. Her parents knew about the rape and pregnancy. But what they didn’t know was the situation Samantha left, being ostracized at school when her friends heard about her pregnancy.
She’d been through a lot, but she was still coming home to her close-knit, tight-knit family. Harlos said that if she and her husband had been more educated about trafficking, she believes their daughter would not have been a victim.
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Now that Harlos has made it their mission to spread awareness and education, it happens to be one less person.
After her sexual assault and the birth of her son, it seemed like they were getting better for Samantha when a boyfriend entered the picture.
“We thought this person was coming into her life, and she was grasping for straws. We knew this was not the right person for her, but you can’t tell that to kids…. Support as best I could,” Harlos said.
He presented himself as the perfect man who said exactly what Samantha wanted to hear.
“He was going to be the person who was going to save her from being isolated. As a teenager, as a single mom, as a single teen mom, all those things are really important to her. And he knew it, and he fulfilled that dream.”
But that dream turned to a nightmare.
Sydney Marcoux with Victim Services of Durham Region, a non-profit organization that helps victims of violence or tragedies, including trafficking, said acting like a hero is a common tactic for perpetrators.
“We refer to him as our Romeo pimp — someone who makes him feel special,” Marcoux said.
Unfortunately, the Durham area, similar to Ottawa and the GTA, is a hotspot for smuggling due to its location along the 401 corridor.
Part of Durham Region’s Victim Services is the Sex Trafficking Education Program (STEP), which teaches parents how to tell the signs their child is a victim.
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Shortly after Samantha’s partner convinced her and her son to move out with him, the trafficking and manipulation began for the 19-year-old.
“One day she came home from work, and he was standing over her son in the playpen and threatening him … because the third party was unhappy with Samantha’s performance at her previous job. Few He passed away in time, and Samantha called us to pick up her and my grandson,” Harlos said.
Samantha went back home and tried to get on her feet again, but she kept quiet about her relationship with the smuggler. But, Harlos said, for many years Samantha had only herself to blame.
“She became convinced that she had said yes to things, and that it was all her fault – which was not true. She had been manipulated,” Harlos said.
Eight years later, it was only when Samantha was talking to a police officer and sharing her story that she learned she had been trafficked. And only then did she tell Harlos and her husband.
“It’s the worst form of abuse because they’re abusing them mentally, emotionally, sexually, spiritually,” Harlos said.
In many cases, trafficked victims feel safe with their traffickers. Samantha had met her trafficker at school, and they had mutual friends. Harlos said, she felt like he cared about her.
“He started reaching out to her saying, ‘I’ve heard about your story, I feel so bad for you, I know you’re having a really tough time. How can I help you?’ I believe in you and I’m sorry this happened to you,” Harlos said. “He became her hero in every way.”
Harlos said she believes she missed the signs partly because of her lack of knowledge about trafficking in the region.
“It can be very small things, like not coming to class, or walking around places they haven’t historically been before,” Marcoux said.
Harlos said she knew nothing about sex trafficking before being with her daughter.
“We didn’t know what sex trafficking was. We didn’t even think it was a problem. To me, it was something that used to happen in movies…. It was really just a way of promoting Human Trafficking with you, a great movie. We knew nothing about sex trafficking and what it really looks like, the fact that it’s in Canada,” Harlos said.
In 2021, 336 cases of human trafficking were investigated in Durham Region. According to Durham Regional Crime Stoppers, the human trafficking unit assisted 312 victims, and 111 were under the age of 18. 215 individuals were charged – a 138 per cent increase in victims compared to 2020.
From April to September of 2022, Project Firebird reports at least 10 individuals facing a total of 32 criminal code charges, including receiving sexual services from a person under the age of 18 and soliciting a person under the age of 16. Including inviting sexual touch. The ongoing initiative looks at crimes involving minors procuring sex, as well as educating and supporting victims or potential victims.
Victim services are also seeing an increase in referrals.
“This year alone, we have served over 350 new referrals for people who are at risk for trafficking, or who are being trafficked and exploited,” Marcoux said. “From 2018 to 2020, the number of referrals to victim services in Durham Region doubled annually. From 2018 till date, there has been an increase of 263 per cent.
So far the program has reached 6,000 people.
According to Durham Regional Police, in one incident a man communicated with an undercover operator over a period of five months and arranged a meeting in Durham Region to purchase sexual services. The man traveled four hours across the province for the meeting, where he was arrested by the police.
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parent with purpose Harlos has an online platform, and how she spreads her story and educational message on human trafficking. She teaches classes with Victim Services of Durham Region and leads her own seminars to help parents understand what trafficking looks like, how to recognize it and prevent it. She also has a free workshop for parents on her website and she said a few hours could save your child.
Harlos said, “I couldn’t protect my daughter because I didn’t know any better.” “I won’t let this be anyone else’s excuse.”
Samantha is now 32 years old and leads a happy life with her family. She has big goals and big dreams that she is free to pursue. But unfortunately, happy endings are rare for trafficking victims.
Harlos said, “There aren’t many happy endings in this, which is why my tagline rescue is easier said than done.” “So if parents really care about their family, the best thing they can do is educate themselves.”
If you have been affected by anything in this story, there are resources available including parent with purpose And victim services durham region,