When we interviewed Mary Frances Bowley along with Jen Sensenig of North Star Initiative and the Harbor in Lancaster, we also captured the compelling story of Gabby, a young woman who had been trafficked in Atlanta. Gabby went through the Wellspring Living program and is now a business professional. Gabby dispels the stereotypes that society may have of what buyers (often referred to as “johns”) and traffickers are like. As she explained, her trafficker “was a state university professor who took his mother to lunch on Sundays after church.” Gabby also described her experience of going through the Wellspring program and how important it is for society to invest in these kinds of programs like Wellspring Living and the Harbor that provide comprehensive, long-term residential services that are tailored to each survivor’s specific needs.
Gabby’s perspective on factors that can contribute to someone being vulnerable to the lure of a trafficker, the misconceptions that society has, and the importance of society investing in the futures of survivors is really important for the public and people involved in any capacity in the fight against sex trafficking to hear, and we appreciated her sharing her story and insights with us.
