Human trafficking is one of the most fast growing criminal industries in the world. It is when people are enslaved and a major part of human trafficking is sex trafficking. There is an estimate of 12.8 MILLION people who are being trafficked globally.

Her Story

After Norma Bastidas' father died when she was eleven, her mother had a hard time supporting herself and her five kids, so everyone had to work. Norma cared for her blind uncle, who eventually raped her. When Bastidas was 19 she was offered a modeling job in Japan. Her mother was reluctant to let her go at first because she was afraid, but she knew that Norma could get a better life than what she had in Mexico.

Shortly after she arrived in Japan, her passport was taken away by the "modeling agency" and was told that she had to pay them back for everything. She thought she was going to get a job soon, but no offers ever appeared; instead she was told to go work at a gentleman's club. She never went to the police until she was brutally drugged and beaten. The police didn't do anything to help her, instead they called her a "bad girl" simply because she worked in a bar. She started drinking to hide the pain.

Eventually she escaped to Canada and started a family. Her drinking problems caused a divorce and impacted her ability to keep a steady job. She broke her drinking habit when her eleven year old son was diagnosed with cone-rod retinal dystrophy, which would eventually make him blind. She began running at night to cope with her stress and because it was something that she could control.

In 2013, she had an idea for a triathlon for human trafficking survivors. It followed the path of known human traffickers from Cancun, Mexico all the way to Washington, D.C. In 2014, she did this triathlon in a total of 65 days. By the time she reached Washington, D.C. she had thousands of trafficking survivors running alongside her, cheering her on.

What We Can Learn

Norma Bastidas has been through more than most people would admit to, but no matter what she still pushed through it all. This goes to show that even if you are going through a rough time, just keep on trying, eventually you'll come out of it. We can also learn to never let our past become our fears, and ALWAYS do your best, even if you want to give up. She is an inspiration to many people, particularly human trafficking survivors, simply because she didn't let her past become her life, she found a way to move on.