Research Log #3

Sex Slaves. Dir. Barak Goodman. PBS Frontline, 2010. Free Documentaries. Web. 10
Oct. 2010. http://freedocumentaries.org/int.php?filmID=161. 


 In this film, “Sex Slaves”, from PBS, was about different stories of victims that had been sold for sex. The story I was most interested in was a story about a man trying to get his wife back from the pimp she was sold to. An acquaintance, Vlan, of the wife Katia and her husband Virel, tricked Katia and lied to her. He told her he was going to be going to Turkey and if she wanted to go with him to get cheap groceries she was welcome to. Katia trusted Vlan and went with him to Turkey where she would soon find out that she would be sold to a pimp named Aldo and his wife Maria to be a sex slave. Virel knew the mutual friend had taken his wife and did this after two weeks of her being gone. Vlan finally admitted to Virel that he had sold Katia but would help Virel get her back because Vlan found out she was sold to a violent pimp. Virel got the pimp’s number from Vlan and called him asking for Katia back and that he would pay him money. The pimp agreed, but after they had planned a meeting place the pimp grew suspicious of all the police and left right away. Virel thought he had ruined his chances by going to the authorities because they did nothing and just watched the pimp ride away in his car. After that happened the pimp no longer trusted Virel so he reused to give Katia back to her husband. Virel kept calling the pimp who’s name is Aldo and his wife Maria. Maria would talk to Virel and she agreed to meet up with him alone. Later Maria and Aldo cut off their conversations with Virel and Virel thought it would be the end of his journey trying to get his wife back. The pimp’s grew scared that Virel would cause too many problems for their business so they decided to send Katia back to Virel safely to their home. Later Vlad their acquaintance went to court but the court never told Katia or Virel of the court date so Katia wasn’t able to testify as a witness and instead Vlad was sentenced to 5 years probation and Virel and Katia were devastated.

I think that this film was the best resource I have come across so far because I know for a fact it is from an organization so it is legitimate. Also it is a much different perspective of sex trafficking then I have been getting with my other resources. It makes it all more real when watching and listening to people’s stories and what they tell you how they felt at that exact moment. It was hard to watch at times because it was so sad to actually see these victims faces and see how they reacted while they told their stories. Katia’s story was sad but it ended in a way where there is a bit of closure since she was able to come back to her family and home.

From here I think I could try and get an interview of a victim or try to find websites that offer victim’s who could answer some questions via email. I think that would be one of the main things I should focus on next for my next two research logs. If not then I would like to watch another film/documentary of victims because it was the most informing and more real of my resources so far.