Available for Media Interviews
Ruth Rondon is available for media interviews. She is a credible resource for current human trafficking stories and events and she can comment on the story or help educate people on the myths and realities of human trafficking. Ruth is an 18-year sex trafficking survivor, the author of The Realities of Human Trafficking From the Inside Out to Freedom
and co-author of two Human Trafficking Awareness training programs: One for Healthcare workers W.A.R. on Slavery and the other for First Responders & Safety Officers. Both programs offer continuing education credit through Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI). She is a sought after professional speaker and subject matter expert/consultant on sex and human trafficking. Ruth serves on the Awareness, Education, and Training Subcommittee of the Michigan Human Trafficking Health Advisory Board. She is also a blogger: Survivor Speaks Out.
Click here for Ruth Rondon’s Press Kit
Recent Media
Because of Michigan legislation that was passed in January 2015 which allows human trafficking victims to have prostitution convictions erased, Ruth’s records were expunged on April 24, 2018. Here’s a story from TV8 WOOD TV with investigative reporter, Susan Samples.
Part 1 : Trafficked In Grand Rapids: “I knew I was a victim.”
Part 2: Trafficked In Grand Rapids: Training to spot victims
Ruth’s Sex Trafficking Story. An interview that sheds light on how Ruth fell prey to traffickers as a teen, why she stayed trapped for so long and what it took to escape and find freedom.
1. All I Knew Was Abuse
2. Become Trafficked
3. Escaping the Life
4. Prevention vs. Intervention
5. Releasing the Shame
6. The Voice that was Never Heard
7. You Can’t Hear If You Don’t Listen
40 Media Story Ideas
About Ruth’s Sex Trafficked Life:
1. What kind of children do traffickers target and why?
2. Why were you susceptible to traffickers? What in your childhood made you particularly vulnerable?
3. How did you meet your first trafficker and what did you think of him?
4. How did he coerce you into being trafficked for sex?
5. Tell me about the missed opportunities – situations where community members could have reached out to try to help you, but did not.
6. Your traffickers stole 18 years of your life. How would you describe the life you lived in those 18 years?
7. How were you able to escape the life?
8. What was it like working all those years, fearful that someone would discover your past?
9. How many years passed before you finally shared that you were trafficked for sex? As much as possible, please explain why that revelation was so incredibly difficult to make.
10. When did you first hear the term human trafficker and what did you think about it?
11. Talk about your efforts to retrace your life’s journey. Why did you need to do that? How did it help you? What was your most surprising discovery along the way?
12. Were there any people who were key to your recovery journey? What roles did each play and why were they so critical?
13. What role did your mom play in your recovery journey?
14. Talk about your siblings and how your relationships with them have changed and strengthened over the years.
15. Why is it so important that trafficking victims “release the shame?” What does that really mean?
16. Tell me about your eLearning human trafficking lessons. What’s unique about them? What kind of feedback are you getting? What’s your ultimate goal with them?
17. Tell me about the other anti-trafficking work you’re doing.
18. What’s the most damaging myth that’s perpetuated about human trafficking?
19. How can people help in the fight against human trafficking?
20. Is there a difference in escaping the life and finding freedom?
21. What do you say to a victim once they open up to you?
22. What do you mean when you say your mind stopped spinning once your book was finished?
On Ruth’s Record Expungement:
23. How do you feel about telling your story?
24. What do you hope comes from this interview and story?
25. Tell me about the process you went through to get your record expunged. Also – why did it take three years?
26. Please try to explain why the granting of the expungement was so important to you?
27. What was it like sitting in that courtroom, waiting for the judge to rule?
28. What was it like to hear what the judge said when he called you an inspiration. Please try to describe that moment in time and how it felt to you.
General Human Trafficking Questions:
29. How are teens typically recruited into human trafficking situations?
30. Are most trafficking victims only foreign nationals or immigrants?
31. Do victims always come from low-income or poor backgrounds?
32. Do victims of human trafficking self-identify as a victim of a crime and ask for help immediately?
33. Where exactly does trafficking take place?
34. How is pimping sex trafficking?
35. What should parents know about human trafficking to protect their children?
36. Does violence have to be involved in human trafficking?
37. What types of trafficking exists?
38. Who are the victims?
39. What advice would you give to frontline professionals who may encounter a HT victim?
40. What should they look for?