Annika Mack, originally from Denver, Colorado, was a runaway youth and victim of human trafficking as a teenager. As a survivor, Ms. Mack showed incredible strength and courage by testifying against her trafficker, who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Today Ms. Mack is a survivor advocate and mentor who speaks publicly to raise awareness and educate communities on the issue of human trafficking. She is one of twelve survivors on the state of California’s Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) action team and advisory board, through which she contributes the creation of policies. She has lobbied for statewide human trafficking bills and has spoken on the topic in juvenile halls, for statewide programs such as Victims of Crime, and was selected as a keynote speaker at multiple conferences through the United States. Ms. Mack lends her expertise on the issue of human trafficking by serving as a contractor with The Blue Campaign for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and by training various organizations, hospitals, tattoo shops, and hotels to recognize the signs of human trafficking. She appears in an anti-trafficking documentary titled “Can You See Me Now?” Ms. Mack believes strongly in this quote by Harriet Tubman, “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”