I think there is always going to be a divide between the statistical data, which—as many folks have mentioned today—is, unfortunately, deeply flawed. There's going to be a gap between the statistical data and the lived experience and testimony of survivors. The stigma folks are experiencing when they're trying to communicate that something has happened to them and they've been exploited in different ways.... There is stigma culturally, but there's also stigma because there are literal punitive impacts, like being highly at risk of deportation from just wanting to report their abuser or from entering the system in any way.
When we talk about stigma.... Yes, there is a significant cultural stigma—specifically around sexual exploitation, consensual sex work and sex trafficking—that is very much ingrained in Canadian society. However, there's also stigma towards folks who have experienced labour trafficking, where people think, “Why couldn't they just leave?” That stigma is a question that I suspect many folks have brought up to this panel—the “why didn't they just leave?” question. The fact that this question is still coming up suggests the widespread presence of stigma.
Thank you very much.