I’m sitting here with Theresa
Flores from Birmingham, MI, who has been a part of human trafficking in her early
teen years. It is estimated more than 1 million children are in the global sex
trade. Now Theresa is going to tell us all just what it was like to be part of
this terrible life style. So Theresa, what was it like to be a victim of human
trafficking?
Really it’s something that you
can’t explain.
What do you mean by you can’t
explain it. Was it that terrible or is it just that hard to think about. What
did you feel like through the whole thing?
“It was a living nightmare. It was
like the feeling of terror of a child, of never knowing if I'd come home again.
It was the worst feeling ever.”
Can you remember what they would do
to you at all; places they would take you, what they would physically do to
you, things they would say, anything at all?
I can remember just about everything
that happened. “I have a phone line in my room and I would often get calls at
around midnight ordering me to sneak out of the house to a waiting car. They
would take me to the very nice homes of men, and then just use me.”
Can you explain what you mean by
“just being used”?
Well
one night when I was 16, there was a car that showed up with six men. I was
taken to Detroit and forced into a hotel room where two dozen men were waiting.
From there I was auctioned off to the highest bidder. These people just use you
for pleasure pretty much. It’s absolutely horrifying to know people actually do
that.
So
you’re saying you were sold to men.
Yes,
yes I was.
Would
you be willing to tell us what they did to you that night?
"I
was drugged, beaten, sexually molested, and I passed out." From there I
don’t remember a thing. I do remember “I woke up alone and I couldn't find my
clothes. I had no idea where I was. It was probably the darkest, deepest
despair of my life, and nobody saved me."
Wow
I cannot believe being a victim of such a terrible experience. You are very
lucky to be here today and we are very grateful for you to be here to tell us
your story, and to help get the message out that human trafficking is going on,
even towns like your home town, Birmingham. Is there anything that you would
like to tell our viewers as we wrap up this interview tonight, Theresa?
I
would like to say "If you see something that doesn't look right, feel
right or smell right, it probably isn't right," I did learn that from all
the amazing people at the clinic I went through to help me recover. I would
love to thank those people for getting me back on my feet and back trying to
live my life normal again.
Thank
you again Theresa for this interview tonight and we will be back next week when
we speak to a young seven year old boy who has an IQ of 140. Thank you
and have a good night.
