Local Hero: Florencia Molina

"Even though my enslavement doesn't define me as a person, it makes me who I am today. I am an advocate against slavery, I am a survivor of a crime so monstrous that the only way to move forward is by fighting back."

Florencia Molina comes to community activism through personal experience: she is a Mexican national who became a victim of human trafficking in the Los Angeles garment industry. After escaping, she began to rebuild her life and to speak out to raise public awareness about modern slavery.

In 2001, Molina was taking sewing lessons in the hopes of being able to start her own business to support herself and her three children. Her sewing teacher introduced her to a woman who was looking for people who wanted to earn a decent salary by working as seamstresses in the United States. Molina jumped at the opportunity. But upon her arrival she found that she was expected to work from 4 a.m. until 9 p.m. every day, sewing dresses for well-known department stores. She was fed one meal a day and not allowed to leave the building. At night she was forced to sleep on the factory floor, sharing a mattress with another worker. In addition she was told she would not be paid because she now owed a large sum of money to the person who had trafficked her. Forbidden to talk to anyone in the factory or call her mother or children, threatened with harm if she went to the police, Molina felt as if she was going to die.

After 40 days, Molina was allowed to leave the factory to go to church and she used the opportunity to escape. She reported her experience to the FBI who connected Molina with the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST). CAST found her shelter and helped her with all her basic necessities since she had escaped with nothing.

Molina soon became active in the leadership program of CAST. As she describes it "We are part of a group called the survivors caucus at CAST and we are working to educate people, law enforcement and communities using our stories. . . Even though we were once victims we are now able to impact social change." Determined to become an advocate to raise awareness and spare others her experiences, Molina began to speak out. In 2003 she testified before Assembly Members on behalf of AB22, the first law in California that established Human Trafficking as a crime and gave additional protections for survivors. In 2008, she presented at a panel discussion with former California first lady Maria Shriver to inform border governors about human trafficking. The following year Molina met with policymakers and testified before the California State Legislature on behalf of SB657: California Transparency in Supply Chains Act, which requires businesses to reveal the actions they are taking to ensure their products are not made with slave labor. Because of her advocacy, Molina had the honor of presenting SB657 to former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for his signature at a ceremony at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles in 2010. And in June of this year, Molina's activism was recognized by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in a speech regarding the U.S. State Department's 2014 Trafficking in Persons Report, where Molina is also highlighted. She is a member of the National Survivor Network.

Molina is a founding member of CAST's survivor leadership program and currently serves on the leadership's executive team as the membership chair. She was the first recipient of the CAST's "Seeds of Renewal" award. As a speaker, she has trained a variety of audiences on human trafficking including the LAPD; the FBI; diplomats from Mexico and El Salvador; and legislators in Sacramento and Washington, DC. Her many honors include Congressional recognition and the Minerva Award from Maria Shriver. Molina was chosen as the Speaker of Honor at the 10th anniversary of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in Arlington, VA in 2010.

To find out more about the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking, visit CASTLA.org