Cycling across Canada for a good cause

Janet Kanters
Times Contributor

 

Aided by a brisk tailwind, three cyclists rode into Strathmore last Friday, just one of many stops on their journey across Canada to provide awareness and to raise money to fight human trafficking.
On June 6, Luke Wahl, Dominic Mayhew and Ryan McAuley left Vancouver on their 7,300 km trek to St. John’s, N.L.
The Biking Against Slavery in Canada (BASIC) ride is a cross-Canada bicycle tour raising funds and awareness to end modern slavery in Canada. Their goal? To raise $25,000 to help end sexual exploitation in Canada.
The lofty goal “came out of a place of wanting to make a difference in human trafficking,” said Mayhew. “We all knew about it but we wanted to make an impact in it, but none of us are lawyers or police officers. So we thought, ‘what can we do? What skills do we have?’ Well, we ride our bikes, and if we get far enough, people will be impressed and give us money. It just came out of wanting to change and be a part of it, but not being professionals, we figured this was a good way to raise awareness and a bit of money.”
All funds raised will go to Defend Dignity, an organization that acts as a catalyst for individuals and churches to end sexual exploitation in Canada. Defend Dignity defines commercial sexual exploitation as pornography, strip clubs, escorts, massage parlors and prostitution. All involve the selling of sexual services which undermine the dignity of women, men and children and are detrimental to a healthy society.
“Their goal is to end sexual exploitation in Canada, and they have three avenues through which they try and do that,” said Mayhew. “The first one is advocacy: they advocate at the federal government level and provincial governments as well to try and create legislation change and attitudes politically that help facilitate ending sexual exploitation in Canada. They also try and provide awareness, so talking about the things that are involved in sexual exploitation and what to look for and all that sort of thing. And they also do aid, and so that’s things like the survivors’ fund where they try and provide practical aid for people exiting the industry and aid for people who are trying to combat it.”
To date, the BASIC ride has raised close to $6,000.
“The first $10,000 we raise is going towards the survivors’ fund, and that’s basically just for practical needs for people who are coming out of the industry,” said McAuley. “So things people might need, such as a new place to live, clothes, furniture, things like that.”
According to Wahl, anything above that $10,000 goes into Defend Dignity’s general budget.
“I’ve been dreaming about doing this for three years,” he added. While the goal is $25,000, “if we go above that, that would be fantastic. But $25,000 is what we’re shooting for – if we get a million dollars, we’d be happy with that, too.”
Interestingly enough, both Wahl and McAuley grew up in Strathmore. So their stop on Friday was a busy one, with friends and family coming together for the evening. On Saturday, the trio continued their journey east.
The three, along with support vehicle driver Matthew Wright, have been assisted with their trip, with sponsorships from Laser-Fab, Country Lane Farms, Décor Cabinets, Tight Fit Framing and Massive Impact Signs. The sponsorship funds helped pay for the trip expenses, such as fuel and accommodation if needed. For the most part, the team stays with billets or camps along the way.
As they continue on their way, the cyclists hope to be able to equip and motivate people to begin responding to the issue of human trafficking/slavery themselves, and “to feel like they know they can be a part of combating human trafficking in Canada,” said Mayhew. “Even now, although I’ve known about this issue for a long time, I still hear certain stories and I think, ‘Oh that couldn’t possibly happen here.’ Well, it does, right in this very province, too.”
Adds McAuley: “There’s often this assumption that it [human trafficking] involves people brought in from other countries, and that does definitely happen. But 90 per cent of the human trafficking that takes place in Canada is domestic, it’s Canadians trafficking other Canadians.”
The team plan to roll into St. John’s on Aug. 15.
For more information about the BASIC ride and to donate, visit basicride.com and defenddignity.ca.