Scene I:
Present day – Your neighborhood, a house on your street:
Fourteen- year-old Ashley sneaks out of the house. She’s afraid the next beating from her father will break her bones, even though he’s convinced her it’s her own fault. She’s too afraid to tell anyone because either they won’t believe her, or she and her father will be in trouble.
Ashley meets her boyfriend Bradley at the mall. He’s 17, good looking, and popular in his high school. She has told him her secret. He tells her how pretty and smart she is, and how much he wants to love and protect her. He gives her flowers and holds her when she cries.
Scene II:
That night – An apartment on the other side of town.
Bradley is lovingly sharing his drugs with Ashley, telling her it will help her forget the past, and make everything beautiful again. It will bring them closer together and make their love stronger. She trusts him.
Scene III:
One month later – A street corner after dark:
Bradley asks her to do him a favor. He has a friend who wants to have sex with her. He’ll never ask her for anything else. When Ashley protests, he looks hurt. If she won’t do this one thing for him, he won’t share his drugs with her, and by now she is so addicted, this terrifies her.
Scene IV:
6 months later – A small room with nothing but a bed:
Ashley is thin and weak. She has sores and bruises, and a vacant look in her eyes. As usual, more than 20 men paid Bradley for her during the day. She is too tired to run, and even if she tried, Bradley would find her and kill her. She’s convinced no one would ever know or care.
Finale: One year later – On the floor of a vacant building:
Ashley has been hiding from the police so she isn’t picked up for prostitution. Bradley has moved on to other girls. All the nameless men have gone home to their families.
Ravaged, broken and alone, Ashley closes her eyes for the last time. She is 16.
This isn’t a foreign film, it’s made right here in the U.S., every day. It plays continuously, but no one wants to go see it because it’s too depressing with no hero and no happy ending.
Let’s re-write the story. When you support social services to help children who are victims of sex trafficking, YOU become the hero.
Scene I:
Present day – Your neighborhood, a house on your street:
Fourteen year-old Ashley has been physically abused by her father, but through outreach programs, she knows there is help a phone call away; a place where she will be believed and supported.
Scene II:
Two months later – Your neighborhood, a house on your street:
Through counseling, Ashley’s self-esteem rises, and she has learned skills to help her heal. Through counseling, her father has learned coping skills and been able to work through his triggers that caused abuse. Ashley is now safe at home, no longer a target for Bradley.
Because of you, Ashley’s future is full of hope and a happy outcome.