CLEARWATER, Fla. — January is Human Trafficking Prevention Month, and this week, survivors and victims’ families gathered in Clearwater to create a special mural to raise awareness and remember those we lost.
For Breanna Cole, the chalk art was so much more than just a mural at Charles Park. It’s a reminder of how far she’s come.
“At a young age, I found substances, and that kind of took hold of me, and at the age of 22, I fell into the arms of my first trafficker,” said Cole.
Breanna said people need to understand that human trafficking is happening every day right here in Tampa Bay.
“So many people have this idea of sex trafficking. They think the movie 'Taken,' right, where it happens overseas, and it definitely happens overseas, but it happens here, it happens in our backyards,” said Cole.
Fortunately, Breanna was able to break free and regain her life thanks to the non-profit organization Selah Freedom.
“I’m doing amazing today. If it weren’t for the services provided by Saleh Freedom, I know I wouldn’t be alive right now,” said Cole.
However, Saleh Freedom said there are many victims out there, as young as 12, 13, 14-years-old, who are never able to escape.
“Right now, the state of Florida ranks third in incidents of human trafficking out of all 50 states,” said executive director Stacey Efaw. “There’s a lot of people who have died in the life of prostitution, and they weren’t considered victims, but now we understand more than 80 percent of the people involved in prostitution are being trafficked.”
For Jack Corrigan and Desiree Ridgley, this isn’t just a mural, it’s a memorial, their daughter Destiny fell into human trafficking at age 14, eventually leading to her death just two years later.
“It happened so fast, we didn’t even see it coming, I’m very adamant on parents knowings about their children’s social media, who they are hanging out with, there are so many different avenues that these people can reach your children,” said Corrigan.
The location of the art was specifically chosen along the Pinellas Trail because that’s the last place Destiny was seen alive.
“This month means a lot to me. Everybody coming out today means a lot to me and her memory. Just keeping awareness is what we are going for today,” said Ridgley.
Justin, with The Global Love Project, the organization responsible for creating the mural, said they may be the ones who started it, but the entire community is welcome to help finish it.
“An opportunity to take the things we are feeling inside and putting it into something more tangible on the outside, and from my experience, it offers an opportunity to release and let go,” said Justin. “The thing about chalk is, it washes away, so little pieces of the pain and things we put attention to with creativity can be released.”
For more information on Selah Freedom, go to www.selahfreedom.com. They also have a hotline number, 1-888-8-FREE-ME.
