Canadian country music star brings human trafficking prevention summit to Saskatoon

Eighteen years ago, country music star Paul Brandt sat down with his wife to watch a film that changed him forever.

The film was titled “Children For Sale,” a documentary on child trafficking in Cambodia and its damaging effects worldwide.

The film not only opened Brandt up to the topic, it compelled him to do something about what is often described as a modern-day form of slavery, as Brandt and his wife partnered with an organization to see police efforts to prevent human trafficking for themselves.

"What we saw there changed our lives forever," Brandt said.

Since then, preventing human trafficking has been a cause Brandt has held dearly, which ultimately led to the creation of a non-profit, #NotInMyCity.

On Monday, Brandt joined the provincial government in announcing his organization's next annual spring summit will be held in Saskatoon next April.

"This is — really other than music — has really become my life's work," Brandt said.

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Created in 2017, #NotInMyCity's purpose is to raise awareness and take collective action to prevent and end human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Since 2023, the group has held the Maddison Sessions each April. The annual summit is named after Maddison Fraser, a Nova Scotian who died as a consequence of human trafficking.

The Maddison Sessions gather law enforcement specialists in human trafficking investigations and prosecutors from across Canada to gather intel, share information and help creative a more cohesive fight.

"Human life and dignity are not commodities to be bought and sold," Minister of Justice Bronwyn Eyre said. "No one should be for sale."

To help facilitate the 2025 Maddison Sessions, the province is providing $100,000 towards the summit.

Brandt says while human trafficking can take many forms, it almost always comes down to the same thing: forced fraud and coercion facilitated by a third party.

Brandt says the Maddison Sessions have grown each year, and have helped bring human traffickers to justice. Brandt couldn't say how many arrests the summit has assisted, but he's received personal phone calls from investigators thanking his efforts to organize the event.

"When most people hear about human trafficking, they say that doesn't happen here, 'not in my city,'" Brandt said. "But once they learn about the realities of this crime, they say, 'not in my city!' And they determined that this will be something that they will be without. "

A big reason for organizing the summit and bringing it to Saskatoon next year is the transient nature of the crimes, which often involves moving across provincial or international borders. Brandt says traffickers move across borders in unpredictable ways and attempts to prevent the crimes need to match those efforts.

According to data from Statistics Canada, 3,996 incidents of human trafficking were reported to police in Canada between 2012 and 2022. However, it is noted the crime is largely underreported with victims often not wanting to disclose the crime because of trauma, safety concerns and shame.

He hopes by raising awareness and organizing the Maddison Sessions, more people can be diverted away from human trafficking.

"It's going to shift the way that this issue is dealt with across the entire country," Brandt said.