We are excited to share the third installment of our ongoing blog series “Survivor Voices.” (Previous submissions by Alisa Bernard and David Wayne can be read here and here.) The “Survivor Voices” series showcases original pieces authored by survivors of sex trafficking, prostitution, and commercial sexual exploitation. The CSE Institute believes that highlighting the perspectives, insight, and stories of survivors is essential to bring about the end of the commercial sexual exploitation.
This installment was written by Autumn Burris, Founding Director of Survivors for Solutions. It is a fearless reflection on the survivor movement, especially its purposes and the growth it has achieved over the past several decades. Autumn discusses the importance of survivor input and the value of peer mentorship, as well as the treatment that drives her to decline invitations to speak. If you are interested in hearing more from Autumn, check out her workshops – Engaging the Survivor Community in Policy and Legislative Advocacy and Survivor Empowerment and Opportunity– at our Survivor Symposium, “Engaging the Survivor Community in Advocacy, Healing, and Criminal Justice,” next week. Click here for tickets.
Read on for Autumn’s contribution to “Survivor Voices,” and check back soon for the next installment of our “Survivor Voices” series.
Survivor Leadership: A Meaning for Us and for the Movement
by Autumn Burris
I am a survivor of commercial sexual exploitation. I exited more than twenty years ago. I started in the movement before I reached six months out of “the life” – a life that is no life at all. My subject matter expertise comes both from my lived experience and my professional experience. I coined the phrase and train on the subject of “More Than A Story” because that is who survivors are and we bring a vital perspective to this movement beyond what happened to us.
I am fortunate. First, because I survived and second, because I had peer-led exit services. And subsequently, I have opportunities working in this movement. I learned early on, I was not alone and I had the ability to make a difference for others like me. This is both a gift and curse. I will never forget where I came from and I strive to help other leaders become empowered and succeed regardless of what is going on in my own personal life. As I witness what the foremothers of this movement bring to the table, I feel honored to be a part of the fight to get us, the survivor leaders, to a place in this movement where our voices matter. I get to learn from them as I teach others to follow in the footsteps while creating their own unique pathway.
As sex trafficking moved from no federal legislation to being a hot topic in legislation, media, service provision, the medical community, and a myriad of other social justice sectors, I wonder silently, “how far have we really come?” I recognize that there is no longer a handful of survivor leaders but hundreds in the U.S.; a fact that fills me with both a sense of victory and pride. I am beyond thrilled as I discover that some of the most innovative, creative, intelligent persons are, in fact, survivors of sexual exploitation. When I witness my survivor colleagues excelling in higher education institutions, as business owners, as public speakers and trainers, working in law enforcement and as legislative experts, I shout-out, “YES!-We can and we will!”
When I give a presentation, whether it be to professionals, law enforcement, sex buyers or traffickers, my primary goal is to change one person’s perspective – one individual at a time, and convey that survivors are so much more than our story. I train, teach, and speak with a flexible plan based on my intuition of the audience and I sprinkle my story at the level that is comfortable and appropriate in that particular moment. Why? Because I own my story, my presentation, and the way I chose to deliver it. In addition, I mentor other survivor leaders to do the same with their stories—it’s called empowerment.
In terms of contractors or potential venues, I am up front that I am more than my story. If organizations or institutions are looking solely for a story and not my 20 years of professional expertise, then I simply decline. I have been in negotiations with individuals that comment on my body type and attempt to engage with me in numerous inappropriate dialogues. I have learned to value myself and my expertise enough to respectfully decline those requests and professionally point out how damaging and inappropriate comments are to us. My hope is that the next survivor won’t be subjected to such treatment. I don’t stand for inappropriate comments, expectations of providing a service for free, and exploiting my person or my time. Why? I expect to be treated as any other professional and, oftentimes, I have far more professional experience than those who are attempting to hire me. People unintentionally or intentionally re-exploit survivors, an unacceptable practice.
To my colleagues and allies who don’t expect me to work for free and don’t want just my story, I applaud, appreciate and value you. Those who know me, recognize that I am not a delicate flower that needs to be treated with kid gloves. You realize I am intelligent, empowered, talented and command respect. My goal is to create a culture in this movement where all survivors are treated that way. We are not “others” so please refrain from “othering” us as we are the ones who drive this movement.
Thank you to Shea Rhodes, Esq. and the CSE Institute at Villanova Law for allowing us to lead this ground breaking conference and valuing us for more than our stories and as subject matter experts. It means the world to us, the movement and sets precedent for the future!