Recommended Reading About Human Trafficking
Our staff here at the New Mexico Dream Center has some great book recommendations if you’re interested in learning more about the world of human trafficking. Oftentimes, we hear things on the news or social media about human trafficking. But learning from people who have actually lived as trafficked people or served those who are trafficked would be the best sources for getting the most accurate and complete information about these topics.
If you are looking for a deep dive into learning about the complexity of human trafficking or are trying to find some resources to understand how you can help or just want to listen to the voices of survivors themselves, check out the recommended reading listed below.
Shelley’s Staff Pick
Renting Lacy: A Story Of America's Prostituted Children by Linda Smith and Cindy Coloma | This is the first book I read after I realized that human trafficking was happening in the United States. It explains what Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is and how it happens in every community in our nation. Definitely a good, but hard, introductory read.
Jazmine’s Staff Pick
Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers \ I first read Redeeming Love when I was 15 years old and it quickly became my favorite book. Francine Rivers immediately captivates your heart with the introduction of the sweet and loving girl, Sarah: a young girl thrown into a world that never wanted her and all she craved was love. At the time, I had no idea that this book was setting the groundwork for the passion in my heart that led me to work at the New Mexico Dream Center. This book tells the story of our clients, it tells the story of God's never-ending and transformative love, and for me, it told the story of me!
Abby’s Staff Pick
The White Umbrella: Walking with Survivors of Sex Trafficking by Mary Francis Bowley and Louis Giglio | What an inspiring read! The White Umbrella tells the true story of how one of the most reputable programs in aftercare for Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking victims, Wellspring, was formed. It will challenge you to get involved in this important work.
Other Recommendations
Girls Like Us by Rachel Lloyd | In Girls Like Us, Lloyd reveals the dark world of commercial sex trafficking in cinematic detail and tells the story of her groundbreaking nonprofit organization: GEMS, Girls Educational and Mentoring Services. With great humanity, she shares the stories of the girls whose lives GEMS has helped - small victories that have healed her wounds and made her whole.
Walking Prey: How America's Youth Are Vulnerable to Sex Slavery by Holly Austin Smith | In Walking Prey, advocate and former victim Holly Austin Smith shows how middle-class suburban communities are fast becoming the new epicenter of sex trafficking in America. Smith speaks from experience: Without consistent positive guidance or engagement, Holly was ripe for exploitation at age fourteen. A chance encounter with an older man led her to run away from home, and she soon found herself on the streets of Atlantic City. Her experience led her, two decades later, to become one of the foremost advocates for trafficking victims.
