The Journey to Safety: What It Takes to Escape Family-Controlled Human Trafficking
When most people imagine human trafficking, they picture strangers or organized crime rings. What they don’t picture—what they almost never expect—is that the trafficker could be a parent, a caregiver, or someone meant to protect the child from harm. But the truth is staggering: 41% of all trafficking victims report that their first trafficker was a family member or caregiver.
At Mezzo Allies, we exist because of this reality. Because when your parent is your trafficker, the barriers to safety aren’t just high—they’re nearly impossible. That trafficker has access to you from birth. They know every vulnerability, every weakness, and how to keep you quiet. They often raise you in complete immersion of abuse, under constant control, and with an overwhelming sense of fear and dependency.
Parents are the mirror that children look into to find their value and worth and the window through which they see the world. For many survivors of family-controlled trafficking, trauma is the only life they’ve ever known. The messages that have been baked into their system from an extremely young age are “this is because of you, you are bad, you deserve to be hurt, you were created for these things…. If you tell anyone, or let it show, no one will believe you, everyone will hate you, you will lose everything including your bedroom, your stuffies and things you love and you will face unimaginable consequences …”
So, imagine trying to leave a world when you’ve never seen another one. When the concept of safety feels foreign and unimaginable. When freedom feels like a fantasy. For these victims, simply imagining a different life can feel terrifying, overwhelming, and even surreal.
And then, if they do try to escape, they are met with another challenge: the helpers they turn to often don’t believe them or aren’t equipped to help. Child protection systems, medical providers, and even law enforcement are still largely untrained in recognizing the specific red flags and unique complexities of familial trafficking. The absence of awareness means these children are sent back into the very hands of their traffickers—over and over again.
When the lies their abusers have told them actually come true – “no one believed me, there is no help, the consequences are too great, this is my fault”- the fallout and damage to a child’s body and brain are unbearable… making every future attempt to safety that much more complex and difficult.
This is why we do what we do.
At Mezzo Allies, our mission is to bridge the gap to safety—to walk beside survivors from the moment they begin imagining a different life to the moment they are truly free and beyond. But we can’t do that without awareness, education, and support. Helpers need to understand this form of trafficking exists. Systems need to shift. Survivors need real pathways to healing.
That’s why this year’s Step Up for Survivors Walkathon is more than just a fundraiser—it’s a movement. Our virtual walk follows a symbolic route through the Grand Canyon, chosen for its winding, treacherous terrain—a reflection of the very path survivors of family-controlled human trafficking face every single day. It’s not straight. It’s not easy. But it is possible.
Want more info about the Walkathon?
➡️ Head to the Walkathon Fundraiser Tab
Together, let’s raise our voices, raise awareness, and raise the funds needed to continue bridging the gap to safety—for every survivor still waiting to be seen.