The Stories of Human Trafficking Survivors

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children 100,000 children as a minimum are prostitute each year (Smolowe). Fortunately some victims manage to escape or are rescued from human trafficking. For example in Liz Kimbel’s case. Her home was destroyed by the death of her father. As the oldest of three she was obligated to take care of her younger sibling and manage the home while her mom who was a waitress worked. She was the one that found her dad dead, so she no longer wanted to be in her home. She started to live in houses of family and friends at the age of twelve. She later began to hang out with guys that were double her age, she smoked marijuana, and she even did cocaine. After being invited to a hotel party where she was completely intoxicated. When Liz woke up she found herself in the hands of a “pimp”. She was forced into prostitution and closely watched to endure she would not escape. Six weeks later she mildly overdosed on cocaine and after she woke up covered in her blood, Liz saw the opportunity to run away. She found her mother and stayed there for a while until she met a guy who asked her to run away with him. Liz took the offer because things back home were tense. They were on their way to Washington D.C when he kicked her out near the train tracks and gave her specific instruction on what to do and say when a car pulled over. At the time she was fifteen, but had lied to him and said she was seventeen. She thought he wouldn’t want her if he knew she was fifteen. Liz had been betrayed by the man she loved and she could not do anything but follow his orders. She eventually got arrested where she testified against her “pimp” and he was sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty. Years later she was able to finally have some stability in her life. Liz married her best friend and had two children. . In this case Liz was lucky to have people in her life that cared for her. She plans to go to college and major in psychology to be able to help other victims like herself which are not as lucky.

Nashville law enforcement officers have an arising problem that involves four cities trafficking humans which are Atlanta, Memphis, Birmingham, and Nashville. Girls are transported through each of the cities. The way the girls are forced into prostitution are imaginable. Pimps hold guns to them while tied up for hours. The case of Stephanie who is from middle Tennessee was only fifteen when she was sold into prostitution. Like most girls she was approached by an older man who showed her affection and won her trust; he later drugged her. When Stephanie awoke she was being raped by a room full of men. She was manipulated by her trafficker with threats to her and her family. She was taken to an abandoned house and chained to a basement. While tied up in the basement she met another girl who was dirty and seemed scared. Stephanie was later sold to a gang member who made her dress a certain way to attract customers at a club. Policemen eventually arrested her and that’s when she was rescued from prostitution. After testifying against her pimp she went to a program called End Slavery. She is now has a job and working towards attaining a GED (Finley).  The story of Stephanie relates to the stories of many other girls across the country and even the globe. Human trafficking is becoming very prominent in big cities. The demand for commercial sex seems to have no end; taking many victims away from their homes and into the streets.  

Former Sex Slave Interview

Works Cited:

Smolowe, Jill, et al. "Selling The Girl Next Door." People 80.25 (2013): 80. Academic Search Complete. Web. 21 July 2015.
"Teen Girls' Stories of Sex Trafficking in U.S." ABC News. ABC News Network, 9 Feb. 2006. Web. 21 July 2015. 

Finley, Jeremy. "Former Sex Slave: I Was Chained in Basement and Sold." - WSMV Channel 4. Web. 24 July 2015.