ST. PETERSBURG, Fla — Thursday, a panel of experts at the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum delivered a dose of reality to the St. Petersburg community on the current state of human trafficking.
"It's not overseas, it's not in other countries. It's happening literally right here while I am talking to you. It's happening somewhere here in our city," said human trafficking survivor Telisa Espinosa.
It was also an opportunity for Espinosa to share her story.
"It was months of him grooming, months of him coming to see, months of him just wanting to get to know everything about my life to where he could use that against me later," she said.
Espinosa now works as an anti-trafficking advocate and she said she wants people to know the following:
- Traffickers and survivors come in all ages, genders, and races;
- Trafficking is often tied to sex or labor;
- The issue can often be spotted in plain sight.
"If something doesn't look right, it's usually not right," she said.
If something doesn't look right, St. Pete Police Chief Anthony Holloway told ABC Action News that people should call for help immediately.
"Just call any local law enforcement and say 'Hey, I saw this thing it looked suspicious here's the tag number or here's the home address of where I saw the person,'" said Chief Holloway.
Panelists also included the Executive Director for the non-profit Miracles Outreach Inc. Michelle Walker. The organization provides resources to trafficking survivors, among other things.
"Educational stability, housing, connecting them with mental health services. Whatever is necessary to try and fill those voids and to try and help them to get back to a sense of normalcy," said Walker.
In the end, the group said its information is to help you protect yourself and others in the community.
And for Espinosa, it's information that she hopes can help a survivor break free.
"There is a life after the life," she said.
