Sometimes they are able to steal a cell phone or one gets left behind by a john. Other times their captors get relaxed enough that they leave a phone out by mistake.
I went on a road trip years ago though west virginia and virginia and in the ladies room at the rest area there were signs about human trafficking and an emergency button that directly called the police.
Another time i was in a manhattan rooftop club for a bachelorette party. A girl (maybe 18? Very very young looking, very tall, and very pretty) was there with a much older and overweight man. My friends and i ran into her in the bathroom. She was crying and saying she wants to go home and doesnt want to be with that guy. She didnt have a phone and asked to use one of ours. She called her mom and then asked us to help her sneak out. A bunch of us went out to smoke and she left with us. When we hit the street she walked right up to a parked cop car on the corner and started talking to them. I think of her sometimes and hope everything worked out.
So it can happen anywhere. People should also not feel bad about calling the hotline if they think they are witnessing trafficking or slavery.
Call me ignorant but how do these victims get a chance to call this hotline they mention?
Sometimes they are able to steal a cell phone or one gets left behind by a john. Other times their captors get relaxed enough that they leave a phone out by mistake.
I went on a road trip years ago though west virginia and virginia and in the ladies room at the rest area there were signs about human trafficking and an emergency button that directly called the police.
Another time i was in a manhattan rooftop club for a bachelorette party. A girl (maybe 18? Very very young looking, very tall, and very pretty) was there with a much older and overweight man. My friends and i ran into her in the bathroom. She was crying and saying she wants to go home and doesnt want to be with that guy. She didnt have a phone and asked to use one of ours. She called her mom and then asked us to help her sneak out. A bunch of us went out to smoke and she left with us. When we hit the street she walked right up to a parked cop car on the corner and started talking to them. I think of her sometimes and hope everything worked out.
So it can happen anywhere. People should also not feel bad about calling the hotline if they think they are witnessing trafficking or slavery.
Of course they should not feel bad. I'm just surprised they get access to phones, it describes lots of calls from victims themselves.
Sorry- I did not mean for you to feel bad. I just always tell people it is better to over report than under report.
Sadly a lot of victims will not get access to a phone and do rely on people calling in for them.