A few years back, I met a young woman named Sheila. As a teenager, she fled an abusive home and eventually met a man who promised to love and protect her. Instead, after pretending to be the savior she so desperately needed, he sold her. Literally.
Sheila was just 15 years old, being beaten, burned with irons, raped, and living in fear of the men who bought her, with no end in sight. After years of unspeakable abuse, she eventually broke free and found the support she needed with the help of a non-profit led by other survivors. When I met her, she had already earned her GED and was successfully advocating for a new anti-trafficking law that was passed in her home state of New York.