At age 5, she remembers being touched inappropriately; at 7, doing drugs for the first time; at 10, going into foster care, where she was a “lost child” until getting adopted in her teens.
As an adult and addict at risk of losing her own children, Chari sought help in the fall of 2022 and began a remarkable transformation. Join Julie and Charity in The Escape Pod as they welcome this special guest and OneHeart "rock star" to share her inspiring story of overcoming trauma and choosing a better life for herself and her kids.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
- Topic #1 1:04 Escaping the Zoom video preview? One co-host wishes she had!
- Topic #2 6:01 Meet escape artist and special guest Chari
- Topic #3 23:12 The truth about human trafficking
- Topic #4 31:44 Chari talks OneHeart, safety, and why she’s able to thrive
- Topic #5 42:36 Creating healthy family connections
Resources & Links
- Information obtained from the SD Department of Public Safety (DPS) via a public records request notes that in SD state fiscal year 2022, DPS Victims’ Assistance funds supported 12 victims of labor trafficking and 258 victims of sex trafficking; in state fiscal year 2023, funds supported 24 victims of labor trafficking and 253 victims of sex trafficking.
- A 2018 report from the Human Trafficking Institute found that SD ranked 8th in the nation for number of new criminal cases initiated; 11th for number of active criminal cases; and 22nd for number of defendants convicted.
- Federal and state law enforcement have worked together to make nearly 100 arrests (primarily for attempted commercial sex trafficking of minors) from 2009 – 2023 during the Sturgis Rally. A total of 39 trafficking arrests were made from 2019-2023, 92% of whom were SD residents, demonstrating the state’s demand.
- Of all U.S. cities, Rapid City, SD, has the ninth highest number of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls cases not in law enforcement records.
- In 2019, Shared Hope International released its annual “state report cards” on human trafficking responses and services. SD received a “D” grade—the lowest given to any state—due to gaps in statutes protecting and serving youth victims of sex trafficking, including connecting them with specialized services.
- In 2023, CTF served 419 clients and their intersecting needs; of these, 86% were below the federal poverty line, 53% had experienced homelessness, and 38% identified as American Indian or Alaska Native.
- We’ve served over 1,400 clients since our founding in 2016, and the majority of those individuals were from—and trafficked within—South Dakota.
- In 2023, a total of 36 clients served by CTF stated that their perpetrator was a family/household member; an additional 28 stated it was a parent.
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