BALTIMORE — A crime hidden in plain sight, human trafficking comes in many forms. Trading a human for forced labor, sexual slavery and exploitation and anyone can be a victim.
Wednesday is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day and one local survivor shares her story about the trauma that happened to her at such a young age.
It’s a reality that occurs across the nation, Maryland and even hits close to home for some like Elizabeth Kimbel.
She says as a child she was sex trafficked during the ages of 12 to 15.
"I felt like I was making a lot of self-empowering decisions to survive in the only way I knew how to and I felt like I was in charge of my life,” said Kimbel who is a survivor of sex trafficking.
It took the authorities stepping in to get her out.
"I got out by being apprehended by law enforcement and FBI who were, at the time, starting efforts of large sweeps of trafficking victims to get children off the streets and prosecute traffickers," said Kimbel.
This was in 2004 under new laws that she says had been created in Maryland.
"I was one of the first victims to be a part of that," said Kimbel.
Kimbel and her family were then relocated to get away from her trafficker and the trauma brought on by where they were living.
It was in those moments she started a new life and way of healing.
Moving back to Laurel 10 years ago, she now works with other survivors of trafficking.
"So while it was good that we moved to a different area, I still ended up having to find my own healing and processing,” she said. “ So when I think about the programs that I build for other survivors, I’m thinking about the things that I needed and the things I still need and would want. In the future and that's the goal behind all the work that I do.”
Kimbel is one of the many victims that are involved in trafficking each year.
But human trafficking doesn't just come in the form of sex.
"It's also [in] other ways domestic servitude, we talk about them, organ harvesting, child beginnings, debt servicing like you owe a debt to somebody, that can translate into human trafficking" said Isabelle Vladoiu, doctoral student at American Military University.
Isabelle says in 2021 Maryland had between 600 thousand to 800 thousand people trafficked. And just last year, Baltimore had 90 reported cases.
While it can be hard to detect, there are signs to watch out for-- the way someone is dressed, physical injuries, lacking official identification, and looking malnourished.
If you see something say something.
There are many ways of reporting human trafficking if you are suspicious. By calling the national hotline number at 1-888-373-7888, texting "be free" or live chat on the internet at https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en
To find more resources for human trafficking in Baltimore head to https://monse.baltimorecity.gov/human-trafficking-collaborative and https://www.mdhumantrafficking.org/
