Tiffany Mester grew up in a neglectful and abusive home, leaving her with no sense of her own value and providing her with a poor foundation for a secure sense of identity.  Her older sister introduced her to her first pimp after convincing her to run away with her when she was 14 years old.  Thereafter, she was trafficked for two years in Arizona and Southern California, forced by her pimp to make $2,000 per day before she was permitted to return to his home to spend the night and be fed.  She explains, “Everything belonged to him, I only had a few changes of clothes and no money.  Eventually he became violent.  When I was robbed, he made me stand with my arms straight out for an hour, yelling and cursing at me.  Then he sodomized me.”  She also found that violence isn’t the exception in the sex trade; it is the rule.  She recounts, “One john in Arizona trapped me in the car, held a knife to my throat, and raped me.  Another john held a gun to my head.  Another tried to kidnap me and chased me for half a mile.  My nails were broken and my face was covered in blood when I got to a gas station.”  Following an arrest and placement in a juvenile hall, Ms. Mester finally found escape.  After being released, she completed her GED and went to college.  Today she works at a residential treatment facility for high-risk youth with behavioral and mental health issues.  She is also on the board of Hidden Treasures, an organization supporting women who are being trafficked, and serves regularly as a speaker to raise awareness about trafficking.