Connect with us

Minneapolis, MN

Sex trafficking survivor shares message of hope as Minneapolis launches new campaign

Published

on

Sex trafficking survivor shares message of hope as Minneapolis launches new campaign


A human trafficking victim is sharing a message of hope as the City of Minneapolis gets ready to launch a new public awareness campaign.

The Minneapolis Departments of Health and Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging are using the Sex Trafficking Thrives in Silence campaign to raise awareness and provide resources to those in “The Life” and those who are at risk.

“I’m hopeful that victims/survivors will see me and see there is a way out,” said Joy Friedman, a survivor from Minneapolis, who is helping amplify the message of the initiative.

The 61-year-old has used the last couple of decades to redefine her life. She launched a consulting business called the Missing PEACE and wrote a memoir about her experience.

Advertisement

Friedman was caught in a cycle of sex trafficking and exploitation that started when she was a teenager. She explained her siblings watched her while her single mother worked.

“I ended up hanging around the wrong people and they saw my vulnerabilities,” said Friedman.

Friedman said she was raped, beaten and held captive for 24 hours, just a block and a half from her mother’s home when she was 15 years old. For the next 22 years, she was in and out of the life.

“I didn’t see a way out,” she said.

Friedman received help for substance use disorder more than a dozen times but it wasn’t until she was in her 30’s that she was introduced to a program specifically for sexually exploited individuals.

Advertisement

“Would it have made a difference at the beginning? Yes,” she said. “I never saw what I was in as trafficking, I never knew. I thought I was a willing participant because there were no chains on my hands. Why didn’t I leave? Why didn’t I go to the police? There’s a lot of reasons, fear for one.”

According to the Minnesota Department of Health, about 1,500 people received services related to sex trafficking state-wide between April 2021 to March 2023.

“That’s just a small number,” said Shunu Shrestha, a senior advisor for the City of Minneapolis. “There are many people who are not within the Safe Harbor system who are receiving services from other organizations.”

Shrestha explained the words and art being used in the new campaign were created in collaboration with survivors to ensure it reaches individuals who need it the most. It focuses on sexual exploitation and the role substance use disorder plays.

“Traffickers often exploit individuals by using drugs, something to control and manipulate them,” she said. “We’re trying to shine the light on these two intersecting topics. Making people aware that people are so vulnerable and really remove that stigma from people so they are more open to accessing services.”

Advertisement

Posters will go up next week in bathroom stalls at 30 locations city-wide. The campaign will also feature billboards and advertising on bus shelters, inside buses and on light rail platforms.

“Especially to victims, we want to get this message to victims that there are services available, there are resources available and we’re here to help,” said Shrestha.

It also highlights signs of trafficking, including missing school or work regularly, telling inconsistent or rehearsed stories and unexplained gifts or new possessions.

Friedman, who left the life when she was 37 years old, hopes those who are being trafficked know healing is possible.

“We’re people’s daughters, sons, we’re people’s moms,” she said. “I want the victims to know we can get out and we can have a wonderful life and there is a way out, all you have to do is reach out.”

Advertisement

Click here for human trafficking education and resources.



Source link

Minneapolis, MN

Man dead, 2 others hurt in overnight shooting in Minneapolis

Published

on

Man dead, 2 others hurt in overnight shooting in Minneapolis


Police say two people were hurt and one other man died.

A homicide investigation is underway in Minneapolis after a shooting early Friday morning killed one man and hurt two others.

Minneapolis police were called to the area of East Franklin Avenue and Chicago Avenue at around 12:30 a.m.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS cameras caught more than 65 evidence markers scattered across the ground in the area and shattered glass at a bus shelter. Some nearby businesses also appeared to have some damage.

Advertisement

Minneapolis police are still working to determine what led up to the shooting and who was involved but investigators say first responders found the three men suffering from gunshot wounds.

One injured man is in his 40s, the other in his 50s, police say. Both were taken to a hospital by ambulance.

The third man died at the scene. His name and age haven’t yet been publicly released.

Police say early information suggests the men were on a sidewalk when at least one person opened fire, then fled in a vehicle.

So far, no arrests have been made.

Advertisement

Anyone with information about what happened is asked to call police at 612-673-5845 to leave a voicemail or email policetips@minneapolismn.gov.

“This is a tragic and deeply disturbing act of violence that has taken a life, and left others seriously injured,” MPD Chief Brian O’Hara said. “This kind of violence is unacceptable, and we are committed to identifying those responsible and holding them accountable.”

Minneapolis police investigating alleyway shooting near East Franklin Avenue

It comes less than 30 hours after another serious shooting along East Franklin Avenue, just a half-mile west of Friday’s scene. That incident left a man hospitalized with a potentially life-threatening gunshot wound. No arrests have been announced in that case either.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS is still working to learn more about this shooting. Stay with KSTP-TV for the latest updates on air and on the KSTP app.

Advertisement

Android app



Source link

Continue Reading

Minneapolis, MN

A Minneapolis woman recounts death of Alex Pretti as lawyers eye a class action lawsuit

Published

on

A Minneapolis woman recounts death of Alex Pretti as lawyers eye a class action lawsuit


MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minneapolis woman who confronted federal immigration officers alongside Alex Pretti in January was among a group of potential litigants who spoke out Thursday about alleged excessive force against people protesting or monitoring the enforcement surge in Minnesota.

Georgia Savageford, who introduced herself as Wynnie at a news conference, said she was inside an officer’s vehicle when she saw federal agents shoot Pretti.

“That day has changed me forever,” she said. “The trauma will haunt me for the rest of my life, and I will never be the same.”

Savageford said she had been legally observing the actions of federal officers in Minneapolis ever since the shooting death of Renee Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Jan. 7. She said she was doing so again on the morning of Jan. 24 when an agent pushed her twice and caused her to fall.

Advertisement

“As I was going down, three agents proceeded to tackle me and drag me face-down into the middle of the street. They knelt on my back, twisted my arms and my legs to the ground, and handcuffed me. The cuffs were so tight I lost feeling in my hands, which resulted in temporary nerve damage,” she recounted.

Officials with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond Thursday to emails seeking comment. Minnesota officials sued the Trump administration on Tuesday for access to evidence they say they need to independently investigate the killings.

Savageford said Pretti recorded video of her arrest and yelled at agents to leave her alone.

She said the officers put her in the back of a vehicle, from which she saw agents shoot and kill Pretti on the other side of the street.

“At that moment, I thought I was going to die too. I pleaded with the agents to understand why another life was taken, and to not take mine,” she said.

Advertisement

She added that they told her to shut up and to stop being hysterical. She said they then took her to an ICE holding facility where she was held for 12 hours in a cold cell without ready access to food, water or the bathroom until she was released without being charged.

“I did not know him, but I knew he had my back,” she said of Pretti. “I know the kind of heart he had. One that loves and protects without limits.”

Savageford shared her story at a news conference where civil rights attorney John Burris, of Oakland, California, and other lawyers laid out how they’re paving the way for potential class-action lawsuits over alleged excessive force used against protesters and monitors.

Burris, who specializes in police misconduct, helped win an $11 million settlement against the Oakland Police Department in 2003, and helped win a civil jury verdict of $3.8 million for the late motorist Rodney King, who was beaten by Los Angeles police officers in 1991.

He said he and his colleagues have filed complaints with federal agencies involved in the Minnesota enforcement surge on behalf of 10 people, including Savageford, as the first step in a process that’s likely to lead to a larger class-action lawsuit.

Advertisement

“We have many others that are under investigation that have not completed the process. But I thought it was important for us to start this process now. Put the government on notice that we’re here,” Burris said.



Source link

Continue Reading

Minneapolis, MN

Boy who shielded classmate during school shooting receives Medal of Honor

Published

on

Boy who shielded classmate during school shooting receives Medal of Honor


A fifth grader from Minneapolis received the Citizen Honor Award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.

Victor Greenawalt jumped in front of his friend during a mass shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.

Weston Halsne told local station KARE 11 that Greenawalt saved his life.

“It was really scary,” Halsne told KARE 11. “My friend Victor, like, saved me, though. Because he laid on top of me. But he got hit.”

Advertisement

Two students were killed and several were injured after a shooter opened fire through the windows of the church last year. The shooter died on the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The Congressional Medal Society said in a statement that Greenawalt showed “extraordinary bravery far beyond his years.”

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – SEPTEMBER 3: Flowers line a pathway to Annunciation Catholic Church as U.S. Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance visit to pay their respects to victims of the shooting there on September 3, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The shooting left two students dead and many more wounded. (Photo by Alex Wroblewski-Pool/Getty Images)

“Instinctively, Victor protected a classmate with his own body, directly saving their life during the attack,” the society said in a written statement. “His courage and selflessness became a powerful symbol of hope and humanity for a community in crisis.”

Greenawalt was hospitalized following the shooting, according to a verified GoFundMe page. His sister was also injured.

Advertisement

He flew to Washington with his family on Wednesday to accept the award.

Greeenawalt met with Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., while on Capitol Hill. The ceremony also included a wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery.

Comment with Bubbles

BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT

He received the Young Hero award, which honors individuals age 17 or younger for their courage.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending