activist

In the Booth with Ruth – Michelle Carmela, Child Trafficking Survivor, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Advocate, Founder and CEO of Once Upon An Eden

January 25, 2013 // 11 Comments

I am a survivor of incest, child rape, child labor and child prostitution, as well as extreme child abuse. I was also born and raised in a Mafia family. I grew up in the United States. America, like every other country, is a great country, and like every other country, also has citizens that suffer greatly at the whims of others, thus having their rights violated. After a forty-one year history with human exploitation and sharing my story with the public for the past twenty-six years, I am thankful people are listening and...

In the Booth with Ruth – Nikolaos Al-Khadra, Child Trafficking Survivor and Anti-Human Trafficking Activist

January 24, 2013 // 8 Comments

While I was doing a research project for one of my classes, I noticed so many loopholes in state policies when it came to prosecuting those involved in youth prostitution. The victims, being the kids, were prosecuted and the adults, johns and pimps, were just fined. Then I saw something in my own past being a possible key as to why these laws existed in the way they did. Since my past involved corrupt politicians being some of my johns, it sparked me to contact a reporter and share my story.

In the Booth with Ruth – Anna Malika, Child Trafficking Survivor and Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Advocate

January 23, 2013 // 5 Comments

Unfortunately, I was trafficked at the age seventeen by a co-worker who was forty years old. I was in that situation while still attending high school, until I was nineteen. During that time, I was forced to do unthinkable things and experienced extreme sexual violation through manipulation and brainwashing while participating in his ‘art project'. I didn’t find out until years later that what I was actually doing was pornography.

In the Booth with Ruth – Barbara Amaya, Child Trafficking Survivor, Author, and Educator of Human Trafficking

January 22, 2013 // 7 Comments

I had the classic ‘aha moment’ or an epiphany last spring as I watched a newscast about trafficked teens in my neighborhood here in Virginia. At that moment, I realized that all those years ago when I’d been in the streets of New York, the man who’d exploited me had actually been trafficking me. He had been a pimp, true, but for years I’d been thinking all that happened to me had been my fault, the abuse I suffered before I ran away from home, the beating he gave me to make me compliant and more. I had truly believed all of those things were my fault and I’d carried it with me for decades...

In the Booth with Ruth – Bridget Perrier, Survivor of Child Trafficking and First Nations Educator & Co-Founder of Sextrade101

January 20, 2013 // 16 Comments

The reason why I became a part of the movement is because of my past as a child survivor and as a First Nations voice. I saw that for First Nations women there was very little representation in the movement. I also used my experience as a trafficked child. I was exploited at a very young age and felt that all the adults, professional and family, did a lot of nothing to help me, and in some ways, they made it worse. I was tired of being looked down on and blamed by society.

In the Booth with Ruth – Ruthie ‘Angel’ Jones Patton, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist

January 19, 2013 // 1 Comment

I'd have to say what draws me to be involved is a spiritual thing really. I believe in the universal connection of all living things. I feel that what happens to one of us happens to all of us. I started to read more stories from trafficked survivors as well as interviews and realized I had to stand up and do something.

In the Booth with Ruth – Gemma Wilson, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist

January 19, 2013 // 6 Comments

The first modern day slave’s story I heard was that of Long Pross. Her story is real, and when I heard it, it became a part of my own. Wilberforce is quoted as having said, “You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.” Once we know, we are responsible...

In the Booth with Ruth – Lise Bouvet, PhD Researcher in Gender Studies

January 18, 2013 // 8 Comments

I've been working on prostitution for fifteen years now, in social sciences, then philosophy. I've worked for NGOs too. I have both field and academic experience. I have researched and compared situations in many countries including USA, England, France, Germany, Netherlands of course, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Japan, Sweden, China and Thailand...

In the Booth with Ruth – Philip J Cenedella, Executive Director, The National Association of Human Trafficking Victim Advocates

January 16, 2013 // 2 Comments

I manage www.stopslavery2013.com. I also collaborate with other advocates via The National Association of Human Trafficking Victim Advocates and I answer hotline calls from throughout the US. As well as that, I help lead the fight against online trafficking, which involves Craigslist, Backpage and Google AdWords - there's information on that here and you can help here, even if it's just by quickly sharing some links on Twitter.

In the Booth with Ruth – Magda M. Olchawska, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Filmmaker

January 16, 2013 // 3 Comments

The support system for the victims needs to be much better and they can’t be punished for a crime they have not committed, but was committed against them. Some countries treat the victims of human trafficking as illegal immigrants and punish them - even with prison sentences.

In the Booth with Ruth – Lynn Robertson, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Advocate

January 13, 2013 // 4 Comments

I began to read about victims and survivors of sex trafficking and my heart broke. Especially when I realised that children were being sold for sex - little girls and little boys sold globally for sex trafficking. My heart broke as I learned more and more. I rarely slept. I knew I had to try to do something to end the horror of this nightmare.

In the Booth with Ruth – Aimee Galicia Torres, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist, Filmmaker and Non-Profit Founder

January 13, 2013 // 1 Comment

I was inspired to support the movement against human trafficking by creating and starting a non-profit called The Majestic Dreams Foundation (www.themajestic.org) because I wanted to create awareness on all forms of abuse. Having been in the film industry for a little over eight years as an award-winning cinematographer, I decided to create a company that would embody and create films that make an impact, therefore, making a difference. I was featured on CNN's Anderson 360, Al Jazeera English on my work on human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

In the Booth with Ruth – William Eberle, Anti-Human Trafficking Advocate

January 10, 2013 // 4 Comments

It is my view of this problem that too often these people find themselves with little to no hope for bettering their situation. I realize that this is my view and doesn't necessarily reflect everyone's reality, but it is what motivates me. I remember a time when I had lost hope and it was through the caring of friends and family as well as my faith in God that I found hope again...

In the Booth with Ruth – Michelle Sweeney, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist

January 7, 2013 // 18 Comments

I have a heart for justice. I cannot bear the thought of others exploiting people for their own selfish gain, plus the fact that the pain and terror the victims have to face is just pure evil and wrong. Knowing that it happens and the suffering that is forced on them breaks my heart. These children, women and men are human beings. Their lives are just as precious as anybody else’s...