sexual exploitation

In the Booth with Ruth – Gemma Wilson, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist

“When people who were once trafficked are rescued and out of the hands of traffickers, they often recount the days and years spent in slavery as being worse than what they imagined death to be like,” says Gemma Wilson, part of Northern Ireland’s counter-trafficking movement. She continues, “I found out there are more slaves today than there ever have been… I couldn’t believe it and I couldn’t turn away…”

Ruth Jacobs's avatarRuth Jacobs

Gemma Wilson

How did you become involved in the movement against human trafficking?

I had what some would very rightly call a ridiculous fear of getting bored in the summer months between my undergrad and postgrad studies, so I gave myself a few projects. Having seen ‘Amazing Grace’, a film about the life and work of abolitionist William Wilberforce, I added researching slavery to my list of summer activities – which also included learning to enjoy running. Sadly, I have yet to tick that one off.

This project was based on the assumption that slavery was a thing of the past; I quickly found out there are more slaves today than there ever have been and was gripped by this new unveiled reality. I couldn’t believe it and I couldn’t turn away from it.

I spent the guts of the following year researching the global picture of slavery: its various forms, the…

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In the Booth with Ruth – Holly Austin Smith, Survivor of Child Trafficking and Anti-Human Trafficking Advocate, Speaker and Author

“I was blown away…there was a name for what had happened to them – what had happened to me – human trafficking. Sex Trafficking… For nearly twenty years, I carried around this shameful secret about my past, a secret which led me to believe that I was dirty, that I was damaged goods. And it was a lie all along. I wished I had known that I was not unworthy. I was a survivor. I was a survivor of human trafficking.” Holly Austin Smith, child trafficking survivor and anti-human trafficking advocate, speaker and author, shares her story.

Ruth Jacobs's avatarRuth Jacobs

Holly Smith

How did you become involved in the movement against sex trafficking and sexual exploitation?

It was on a Friday or Saturday night in 2009 that I found myself home alone with the television remote. Ben, my fiancé, was out with a friend, and I was pouring wine and baking brownies to celebrate having the apartment to myself. I’d been working long hours at my full-time job, and I needed a night in.

I flopped on the couch and flipped through television channels. Maybe I watched a movie or a couple of sitcoms before coming across a documentary about human trafficking overseas. I can’t remember which station it was on (possibly HBO), but it was about this woman who was a survivor of human trafficking (in India, I think), and she worked to rescue other young girls from the local brothels.

There was one girl in particular who was being sold…

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In the Booth with Ruth – Magda M. Olchawska – Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Filmmaker

Magda M. Olchawska – Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Filmmaker: “…society needs to be aware that the problem exists… citizens need to feel safe enough to report strange activities in their neighbourhoods to the authorities… The support system for the victims needs to be much better… the Swedish system, where not only the oppressor but also people using trafficked victims in any way are punished, could be the right way forward.”

Ruth Jacobs's avatarRuth Jacobs

Magda M. Olchawska

What inspired you to support the movement against human traffickingand make films about human trafficking and sexual exploitation?

Towards the end of 2010, I started reading a lot about human and sex trafficking. I also watched a movie called The Whistleblower, based on a true story of how UN soldiers were trafficking girls from former Soviet Union to former Yugoslavia.

However, the most influential person who inspired me was a lady I met on Twitter, Lynn Robertson. Lynn’s work and dedication made me inspired to write a script and then to turn it into a movie. I wanted to be involved in the fight against sex and human trafficking in any possible way. At that time, I thought the best way for me to make society more aware of the huge problem we are facing was to make a ‘fictional’ movie.

Can you describe the films you’ve made…

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