Sold For Sex: A Parent’s Warning

(KNSI) – A Minnesota couple has come forward with their story describing how their daughter became a sex trafficking victim.

The video, titled “Sold For Sex: A Parent’s Warning For Minnesota Families“, tells the story of a twin cities couple’s struggle to reclaim their daughter. The video was produced by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

In a press conference Tuesday, Beth Holger, Executive Director of Twin-Cities-based non-profit The Link, introduced the video by reminding residents that sex trafficking is occurring statewide.

“People in Minnesota like to think that sex trafficking doesn’t happen here that it’s something that only happens in foreign countries, or in movies, or on some of the TV shows. And that’s just not true. Unfortunately, sex trafficking is happening every day, in every community within our state.”

The Link is a youth and adult-led nonprofit based in North Minneapolis. The Link provides crisis intervention and supportive services as well as housing and emergency shelter for youth victims of sex trafficking. Holger says demand at the facility is strong.

“In 2021, we worked with 134 unduplicated victims of sex trafficking, and we are only one of the service providers for the safe harbor network within the state. Some of the survivors we worked with were as young as 11 and 12 years old. No child should ever be sexually assaulted, raped, tortured or abused so someone can profit off of that. We have to put an end to it as a state.”

View the video here.

For more resources to combat sex trafficking, click here.

___