Emily’s Story: When a Boyfriend becomes a Trafficker
Here at Dressember, it is important to share stories about survivors and our programmatic partners fighting against human trafficking. Olive Crest, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping abused and neglected children and a member of the Dressember Network, shared the story of two teenage survivors of human trafficking who have been able to transition their life in a positive way thanks to the organization.
Olive Crest transforms the lives of at-risk children by giving them the opportunity to heal through the power of support and family.
A survivor named Emily* shared how she escaped a romantic relationship that led to trafficking. In some cases, a romantic relationship is started and gradually used as a method of manipulation into commercial sex work.
Emily got involved with Olive Crest in the summer when she was only 17 years old.
Last summer, in 2019, Emily was just 16-years-old and was living in foster care. She had just recently started dating an older boy at school, and decided to run away with him.
Upon realizing that Emily had run away, her foster parents grew worried and contacted their social worker to file for a missing person. It wasn’t until over a month later that her family had learned that Emily had run off with her partner.
Running off with a partner is often one of the early signs that advocates and family can notice to identify human trafficking, especially when it is done out of character.
It wasn’t until Emily called her social worker because she was in fear and had realized that her boyfriend had involved her in trafficking activities—which only made her feel humiliated and isolated. Through romantic relationships, traffickers can coerce survivors into acting unexpectedly and doing things out of character.
Emily’s trafficker had convinced her into getting tattoos—symbols she thought she wouldn’t ever be able to escape.
Thanks to her brave act in contacting her social worker, Emily was able to find an organization that really helped transition her life. This summer, Emily was placed in an Olive Crest group home where she began therapy to heal from the wounds and manipulation she felt under her trafficker. The group also helped her develop close relationships with staff and rebuild trust.
In August, she interviewed for the Operation Independence program. The program provides foster youth 15-24 years of age with the support and training needed to become independent and successful adults.
For Emily, this opportunity didn’t seem possible before. Her involvement in the Olive Crest program and her current independent living situation with two other girls in an apartment helped her make her own choices.
Olive Crest is working with private donors in hopes of helping Emily with a tattoo removal, so she doesn’t feel like she still belongs to her trafficker.
Emily’s story is similar to those of other survivors seeking the opportunity to leave their pimp or lover boy.
A lover boy situation is when the trafficker tries to get their partner to fall in love with them so they can later manipulate them by saying that their exploitation is a way that they show their love. By complimenting and becoming close with their partner, traffickers can break barriers of mistrust and coerce survivors.
Romantic relationships can leave vulnerable survivors feeling lost and confused on how to seek help. Here at Dressember, with the help and support of our programmatic partners, we can help provide opportunities for survivors to escape.
We believe that our advocates can make a tangible difference in the lives of survivors. Check out more of Olive Crest’s work to learn more about how the community is coming together to fight against human trafficking.
*Emily’s name has been changed for her protection.
About the Author
Daniela (D) Molina is a Cuban gal pursuing a M.S. in Journalism at Indiana University. Since she was young she knew that words had power. She absolutely loves moths and is proud to speak Spanish with whoever she meets.