Free-Them 2020 Recap

This past year posed a significant amount of challenges. The world faced the beginning stretch of a worldwide pandemic, extreme loss of employment, along with community lockdowns and restrictions. No one, in 2019, could have ever fathomed such adversities, or this level of devastation to take root simultaneously within our societies. Yet, here we are. With the ever-changing societal, economical, and political disturbances, the world as we knew it or rather, once understood it, has forever changed.

Amid all this chaos, has been the ever-loudening echoes of victims of human trafficking. Echoes of modern-day slaves, who before the novel coronavirus, were already suffering a traumatic existence. Our external catastrophe that we, “free people,” continue to experience, can’t make any such comparison to those being exploited in the underground world of human trafficking.

The echoes of these victims remain loud. Calling on us, are their voices still trying to be heard. Yet, in a society in such disarray, have they been forgotten?

Free-Them didn't, if anything, in 2020 a major pandemic pivot was taken to make sure those lost victims of human trafficking were still heard. By keeping their ears open to the very echoes and calls of those being exploited, Free-Them, against all odds, has stayed strong in the rather unpredictable course.

Founder of Free-Them, Shae Invidiata, says through it all, there have been some silver linings that she is profoundly grateful for.

“When I think of all things I’m grateful for out of 2020 one of them is how much of the world woke up to issue of human trafficking in 2020.”

With extensive action, Free-Them, like many nonprofit organizations and charities, have worked endlessly this past year to navigate the pandemic parameters and restrictions. As an organization, they have had to make quick and sustainable decisions not only for its personal survival, but to continue forth in the fight against human trafficking worldwide.

Adaptability and perseverance are two words that Free-Them embodied in 2020. Although Free-Them pre-pandemic already operated online in terms of its internal functioning, there was certainly a big shift in its external events and community engagements. This included, primarily raising awareness of human trafficking by bringing the community together for fundraisers, speaking engagements, legislative work, and campaigns.

The 8th annual Freedom Walk was one of the fundraising events that couldn’t take place in 2020. The 3K walk, typically draws hundreds of people from the community each year to the streets of Toronto, Ontario, Invidiata says that this was “the biggest shift not being able to do that event.” In 2019 alone, the Freedom Walk raised over $100,000 for Aurora House, a safe house for immigrants and refugees who have been exploited or trafficked in Canada. However, this large impact was accomplished by bringing the voices of the community physically together.

Instead in 2020, efforts had to be redirected and amplified online. Gratefully, for the past three years, Free-Them has exercised an online campaign to raise awareness that not only leads up to the Freedom Walk but also coincides with World Day Against Human Trafficking in July.

This year's campaign, Expose the Exploiters, although only online, proved to be a success, drawing thousands upon thousands of people from all around the world. Although the campaign was awareness-based, for those who did want to donate to the cause, Free-Them re-directed the public to support one of the biggest leaders fighting global human-trafficking, Operation Underground Railroad.

“It was a very powerful day...we saw the ripple effect go across Canada, the United States, and into other parts of the world as well, we had people that participated from all over.”

— Founder of Free-Them, Shae Invidiata

Additional shifts and successes for the nonprofit have been the growth and formation of its internal teams. Free-Them’s internal network spent a big portion of 2020 gathering resources to further support the shift and its efforts online. This included the development of a writing team, the re-launch of The Free-Them Blog in May 2020, and a social media team to manage the ever-growing engagement levels.

Both have played a pivotal role within the organization with their dedication to elevating the message and educating the public on human trafficking. Much of the engagement has also prompted those in the community to reach out and get involved to further help the cause.

“Both internal teams help manage the engagement levels that we received and are still receiving through this awakening people have had in learning that human trafficking is happening, not just in the third world and developing countries, but it’s happening right here in our own backyards, on... Canadian soil and American soil which are two countries that are supposed to be amongst the freest in the world.”

The pandemic, along with Canada’s Federal and Provincial funding being delayed in the process, the fight against human trafficking has faced some setbacks in 2020 which has now rolled itself over into the new year. Making 2021 a critical year in how they help the vulnerable and at-risk communities in an on-going pandemic world.

Despite it all, Invidiata continues to hold an optimistic outlook for Free-Them, “I think we learned how to pivot and pull our resources together to effectively still convey the message of human trafficking and raise awareness on the issue,” and raising awareness and educating the public is what Free-Them will continue to do.

Free-Them 2021 Forecast

With 2021 set to be online, Free-Them will continue to fulfill its mission in educating the public, “that is the biggest weapon and tool,” says Invidiata. One way will be to inspire more people to get involved through its social media platforms and online campaigns. This year Free-Them’s main focus will be to make a bigger impact online, “we want to have more people and ultimately we want to see Free-Them fighters all over the world who are standing up to fight injustice, to stand for freedom and to defend those who are being silenced in our world.” This is what 2021 for Free-Them is going to be about.

“The compound effect or the ripple event when you bring people together to do something powerful that has a life-changing effect, you get life-changing results.”

Another avenue the organization hopes to expand on is The Free-Them Blog. By producing more content related to education, awareness, politics, and justice when it comes to human trafficking, will provide the public with tangible tools to get involved and help spread further awareness on human trafficking.

There are plans to further innovate and implement more strategies online to continue to educate parents on how young people are lured and coerced over social media. Free-Them also plans to continuously put pressure on the government and the mainstream media to cover and address this escalating human rights issue. This has always been on the yearly agenda and will remain on the agenda for 2021.

“You can’t fight something that you are not aware exists and so the awareness component is the first step to seeing change. It’s the first step of being able to fight injustice but first, you need to be aware of what the problem is.”

Free-Them is always on the lookout for expanding its voices with Freedom Fighters. Whether you’re looking to donate, volunteer or partner with, we want to hear from you. It is the Freedom Fighters that keep the echoes of the victims of human trafficking alive. It is your voice that helps Free-Them continue to move forward in its fight to end human trafficking.

If you are or believe you have identified someone in a trafficking situation, you can take action. Call 911 immediately to notify local law enforcement. You may also call the human trafficking hotlines in Canada and the United States by dialling the numbers below. Both hotlines are open 24/7/365 days of the year and provide services in over 200 languages.