Country musician Paul Brandt, chair of Alberta’s human trafficking task force, vows the organization will centre on the victim’s experience
Paul Brandt performs at the Canadian Country Music Awards in Calgary, on Sept. 8, 2019. Brandt will lead a human trafficking task force in Alberta.Before one of his concerts, country music artist Paul Brandt welcomed fans to talk to him on stage. They may have expected a bit of banter, but instead Mr. Brandt told them stories about child exploitation in Cambodia and sex-trafficking survivors he met in Alberta. The fans grew awkwardly silent as they looked down at their feet.
“I fully understand that government committees are often wallpaper. This one won’t be. This one will present recommendations to the Alberta government, informed by data, balanced expert panels, frontline workers and those with lived experience,” Mr. Brandt said in an interview. Lise Gotell, a professor of women and gender studies at the University of Alberta, said she believes he was a “very poor choice” for the position.
“I understand people’s concerns, but I see it really as a great privilege to bear the brunt of criticism and controversy in the act of standing for freedom," Mr. Brandt said. Dr. Gotell also took issue with the composition of the government-appointed task force, noting that survivors were not included. She said someone from the Action Coalition on Human Trafficking Alberta should have been appointed to the group.
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