My Trafficking is Nebraska’s Strength, Resilience and Resolve

My name is Darcy Mohamed. I am a trafficking survivor. I am an educated, highly intelligent, Middle Class American. I have never been arrested, an addict, nor a prostitute. While nobody should ever be trafficked, many have assumed that it was somehow my fault and used these reasons to justify our trafficking.

It’s like saying that a rape victim was asking for it because they were intoxicated, acting like they wanted it or wearing enticing clothing. It’s a fallacy. I am proof of this fallacy when it comes to both rape and trafficking. I am a wake-up call to Americans and more importantly, my fellow Nebraskans about the dangers that live next door.

I am not a victim of a billionaire, a celebrity nor a world leader. My traffickers were low level criminals and addicts. They were assisted by seemingly more respectable people who used our broken government to assist in their crimes and keep them hidden.

Since I was bedridden and my mom had advanced Alzheimer’s, our type of trafficking is known as benefits trafficking. They used us to defraud the government, appear more respectable and take everything from us including my mom’s life. This was only the tip of the iceberg though. It always is with criminal enterprises.

Our traffickers started out life in similar circumstances as many of us, including me. They were severely abused. They were, unfortunately never able to rise above it. They used the lessons they learned from their abuse to abuse not just themselves but anyone else they could. The harshest abuse was leveled at themselves. The harshest outward abuse was leveled at and by their own family, friends and associates.

When abuse isn’t exposed, stopped and treated, it will only continue to grow in severity and spread to the rest of society. While every society tries to tackle this problem that is pervasive within our human history, it can be difficult due to its complex nature. It takes everyone in society to work together to tackle the causes of abuse, recognize the signs and act appropriately so that it never gets to the point of trafficking, enslavement and murder.

The easiest preventative measure is an understanding community that takes care of their vulnerable members. Abuse that is seen as justified by society can manifest in addictions, destructive behavior and violence against others. When the causes aren’t addressed nor the behavior stopped, everyone within society suffers.

I have met so many who were rightfully terrified of me because of my recent trafficking. They also desperately wanted to help me but had no idea how. They had to watch my desperation, frustration and continued torture as my pleas were seemingly falling on deaf ears. The lack of acknowledgment of my situation caused some to assume that I was lying, a criminal, an addict or mentally ill. They were correct on the mentally ill part.

That intense, prolonged torture caused severe memory loss, confusion, flashbacks and uncontrollable emotional distress. We know this as PTSD. It is the same as when my daddy returned from Vietnam as a traumatized war hero who hid his service and Purple Heart from a seemingly uncaring society.

As a child I stood up for him at every turn and called out the glad handers. I also tried to show him that not everyone was against him because of his service and sacrifice in an unpopular war that destroyed our nation.

I am doing the same by speaking up about the experience of my mother and I while trying to remember that the glad handers are few. Most people are exceedingly kind and understanding towards me. I have nothing to fear because of it. I have the protection of an informed community which is the best defense known to man. I pray that it spreads and grows faster than the abuse of the few.

I was far more knowledgeable and experienced to endure, survive and recover from my trafficking than many. Most require far more assistance, patience and understanding that is lifelong and essential to the overall health, welfare and safety of not only themselves but society as a whole.

Trafficking victims require experienced professionals who operate with their unique needs and experiences in mind. This isn’t anything that the average citizen should even consider trying to involve themselves in. Even through the fog of the intense trauma, I remembered this.

A young man who stopped to check on me never left his vehicle. He politely and kindly reminded me to keep my distance. It was to keep himself safe while obtaining information about my situation. These matters must be addressed by the proper authorities. Never be alone with a victim until they are out of danger and have recovered sufficiently to no longer be a potential danger to themselves or others.

Some victims become traffickers themselves. They can use their victimhood to take advantage of or lure others into the life of trafficking. Traffickers will use any weakness and do absolutely anything to perpetuate this life. It is akin to being a prisoner of war in a war zone, like my daddy’s friends who did their service in what was known as the Hanoi Hilton. POW/MIA will forever live in my heart and soul. As I and our nation cried You are not forgotten for the boys of Nam, I pray that our nation and world can show our trafficking victims, survivors and families that they are not forgotten as well.

While no two people can agree on everything, I know that we can agree that trafficking must be stopped. We must bring our own home. They must be free, respected, remembered and understood so that we don’t repeat the sins of our past. I know that Nebraskans are up to the challenge and will once again say, You are not forgotten.

They have already proved it by listening to my story and my plight. They understand that when we value every life, we value our own.

Because every life matters, especially your own.

God bless Nebraska and especially her people.