This is Stop Sexual Exploitation Week across Newfoundland and Labrador, and one of the goals is to bring conversations on the topic to the fore.

Angela Crockwell, the executive director at Thrive, says having conversations about exploitation helps to destigmatize the issue.

Crockwell says issues around sexual violence are often under reported, and people don’t talk openly about it.

“It is about taking this conversation out of the shadows.” Crockwell says adults need to be comfortable having conversations about sexual exploitation. If not it will remain a “secretive” subject for young people.