Former Sex Slave Gives Students Insight

Sex Trafficking Happening To Growing Number Of American Girls

via CAAI

POSTED: Friday, October 22, 2010

Srey Neth talks to students at UNF about sex trafficking

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- At 22, Srey Neth still has an innocent demeanor, but she has survived an unimaginable ordeal.

When Neth was just 14 years old, her mother sold her into sexual servitude for $300.

"I went to a brothel and I worked there for two months," Neth said. "They hit me every day and they forced me to serve around eight to 10 guys per day."

Neth is from Cambodia. Even though she speaks limited English, she's speaking up now about her experience as a sex slave in hopes of calling attention to this global crisis.

On Friday, Neth gave some University of North Florida students an unforgettable lesson about sexual servitude and its increasing prevalence among American girls.

"They go through a process called conditioning, so when they are kidnapped, lured or sold into slavery, they're beaten, (shocked)," said James Pond, CEO of Transitions Global, the organization that rescued Knight. "Oftentimes girls are gang-raped as a part of that process. They're put to work in brothels and serve up to 20 customers a day."

The United Nations Children's Fund, known as UNICEF, estimates that in the United States, close to 300,000 young girls are forced into prostitution each year. In addition, Florida has the third highest rate of human trafficking in the U.S. But because it's an invisible crime, the only way to counteract it is to raise awareness through candid discussions like Neth did Friday.

Human trafficking is considered modern day slavery and is the second most profitable criminal industry in the world. To learn more about sex trafficking, e-mail info@transitionsglobals.org.