8. This woman who found freedom through “Survivor’s Ink”
Many of the women and young girls who are forced into the sex trade industry are “branded.”
Their pimps often mark their territory with a very specific tattoo: often their initials, and a crown.
Jennifer spent more than five years as a sex slave after an abusive childhood led to her being raped at 12 years old. Not long after, she was forced into prostitution where she was sexually and physically abused, became addicted to drugs, and was sold on street corners in her hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
Through a literal God moment in what she believed to be the final moments of her life, Jennifer was able to escape. Still, she wore the memories and trauma of her life as a sex slave on the skin of her neck. Permanently branded by the men who abused her.
Physically free, but emotionally chained.
Jennifer was able to save up enough money to get a new tattoo of her choice that would cover one of her four unwanted pimp tattoos. Through it, she found TRUE freedom.
9. This survivor who became a sex slave at 11 years old.
Lexie Smith was first trafficked and sold when she was just 11 years old.
While she doesn’t share the details of how she escaped, Lexie has found freedom and power in something much more important: Survival.
In the years since she’s escaped, Lexie has worked closely with the Rebecca Bender Initiative to recover from the years of abuse she suffered. As part of her healing process, Lexie made a video in which she reads a letter to the men who trafficked her.
It’s an inspiring three minutes of bravery, courage, and an ode to freedom.
