Little Warriors drops keynote speaker accused of sexual misconduct
An Alberta woman is questioning the choice of a keynote speaker for an event put on by Little Warriors — an organization focused on fighting and treating child sexual abuse, and advocating for survivors.
The speaker was pulled from the bill earlier this week, however, the organization knew about the speaker's alleged sexual misconduct months ago.
Chelsea Meyers, a sexual assault survivor, has donated her time and money to Little Warriors over the last 10 years.
The local charity raises awareness and provides information about child sexual abuse. It also has a treatment facility known as the Be Brave Ranch to help children cope with the effects of sexual abuse.
That’s why Meyers says she was shocked last week to discover who Little Warriors had booked as keynote speaker for its upcoming Be Brave Luncheon.
"When I saw their Facebook post announcing their excitement over having him as their keynote speaker, which immediately raised red flags for me," Meyers said.
Paul Hutchinson is a producer and investor for the movie Sound of Freedom, which came out last summer.
It's a story about American vigilante Tim Ballard, who founded Operation Underground Railroad (OUR) which rescues children from sex traffickers in Colombia.
After the movie was released, reports surfaced about Ballard’s own alleged sexual misconduct.
Hutchinson was also a part of OUR in 2016. He allegedly touched the breasts of a trafficking victim in Mexico during an undercover operation.
In a statement to CTV News Edmonton, a spokesperson for OUR said:
"An Operation Underground Railroad employee flagged the incident involving Mr. Hutchinson to the president, Matt Osborne, and he promptly notified the Mexican federal police."
The story about Hutchinson came out in Vice in the fall, a few months after the movie came out.
A credible source tells CTV News Edmonton Hutchinson was booked as the keynote speaker for Little Warriors around the same time.
"It was very triggering to see that they would even consider having someone who's been accused of molesting someone as a guest speaker," Meyers said.
Hutchinson's representative insists his actions were necessary during the undercover sting. Hutchinson has also said Mexican police assured him the woman was an adult.
An OUR spokesperson said:
"The Mexican police investigated the incident and did not press charges as the woman was an adult.
Mr. Hutchinson has never been employed by OUR in an official capacity and OUR ceased any affiliation with him shortly thereafter.
The actions by Mr. Hutchinson do not represent OUR's standard operating procedure and were inappropriate, regardless if the woman was an adult or not."
Criminologist and former undercover officer Dan Jones agrees.
"You're going to be compromising the sexual integrity of another human being while you're doing that, which is absolutely inappropriate from an undercover perspective."
Meyers says she left a complaint on Little Warriors' Facebook last week about its choice of Hutchinson as a speaker.
She says she received this response from a person behind the account, saying, in part:
"There is gravity to the rescues and operations that many cannot understand.
"While operating undercover, Paul must act entirely like the traffickers are expecting.
"All Paul's undercover work was done with integrity and honor."
After she complained again, Little Warriors wrote back: "We are sorry to hear you are having issues with our event. This individual has no criminal proceedings or charges against him."
And then Meyers was blocked.
On Monday, Meyers says she spoke with a Little Warriors staff member over the phone and they insisted they were still going ahead.
"I felt like I was being silenced all over again, that my concerns didn't matter," Meyers said.
Several more complaints popped up on X, saying the event should be cancelled immediately.
Tuesday night, Little Warriors pulled Hutchinson as the keynote speaker, and the organization's CEO, Jennifer Martin, issued a statement:
"Our goal for having one of the movie producers speak at our fundraiser was only to increase awareness and the need to address this horrific issue.
"Recognizing concern by some just late last week regarding our speaker, we very quickly made the decision to change our program so we can focus on the key issue at hand, which is the protection of children and healing those who endure the trauma of sexual abuse."
"I think it's the least they could do but it also feels like too little, too late," Meyers said.
"Considering they work with children, parents literally send their children to them to heal. They should know the bigger picture, they should know what's going on. This isn't an organization I would trust with my children anymore."
In a statement from Little Warrior's CEO provided to CTV News Edmonton Thursday night, she says the organization contacted many of its supporters by phone and email to get their perspectives.
She went on to write.
"We had no knowledge of controversy when conversations with the speaker began last August. Later our understanding was that he was fully cleared of what occurred during an undercover operation. When concerns were raised that being fully exonerated was not enough for some just recently, we were happy to quickly take those perspectives into account.
"In response, we made the decision to cancel the speaker. So, the concerns expressed to us were very much heard, as well as promptly addressed.
"Everything about agencies whose missions involve advocating, prevention, awareness and treatment for child sexual abuse trauma can be triggering to survivors. We always want to do our very best to carry out our mission, combat this terrible offence and heal those impacted, while also being transparent and mindful around this very difficult topic."
The organization says it will be hosting a new speaker for its upcoming luncheon but did not say who it will be.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Teen was doing homework at family's Mississauga, Ont. restaurant when gunman opened fire: testimony
The 13-year-old sister of a young man killed in the attack on her family’s Mississauga restaurant in 2021 took the stand in a Brampton courthouse on Monday to describe the terrifying moments of coming under fire.
'Repetitive partisan conduct': Conservatives to force vote on ousting Speaker Greg Fergus
The federal Conservatives have advanced a motion that will force MPs to vote on whether to oust Greg Fergus as House of Commons Speaker, after MPs' deputy adjudicator ruled Monday that the Liberal member's allegedly errant partisan event invite required urgent attention.
Trial for B.C. man accused of killing, dismembering wife begins
The trial for a Langley man accused of killing his wife began Monday, with the prosecutor laying out a disturbing series of facts agreed upon by both Crown and defence.
Robertson's hat-trick drives Stars to Game 3 win over Oilers
Jason Robertson's hat-trick goal midway through the third period broke a deadlock and proved to be the eventual winner as the Dallas Stars beat the host Edmonton Oilers 5-3 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final to take a 2-1 series lead.
What a CBSA strike could look like, according to an expert
Slowed or interrupted travel, the passing of goods and significantly restricted borders should be expected if Canadian border workers take upcoming strike action.
WATCH Alta. man rescues wild foal trapped on steep cliffside
A man's daring rescue of a newborn wild foal that was trapped after falling down a steep embankment was caught on video over the weekend.
Severe thunderstorms, tornado watch in some areas of Canada. Here's where
Depending on where you live, you can expect to get a mixed bag of weather this week, as local forecasts predict heavy rain, strong wind, severe thunderstorms and even snowfall across some areas of Canada.
B.C. senior prepares to move due to devastating effects of fraud
A Courtenay, B.C., senior is downsizing and packing to move as she comes to accept she can no longer afford to stay in her home, after falling victim to a scam that robbed her of her life savings worth more than $100,000.
Israel close to approving Gaza reunification program before Rafah invasion: Miller
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says Israel seemed to be on the verge of approving a program to get Palestinian relatives of Canadians out of the Gaza Strip before the country's invasion of the town of Rafah.