Rani Hong pictured above with her husband Trong is a human trafficking survivor.

She and her husband formed the Tronie foundation to combat the problem.

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At seven years old, Rani Hong’s life took a dramatic turn. While living in southern India her father became sick and her parents couldn’t support her, so they gave her up to a woman who said she would take care of her, that woman eventually sold Rani into slavery.

Rani spent almost a year with a man who beat and starved her. Eventually that man sold her to an international adoption agency. Fortunately Rani ended up in the United States with a family who loved and cared for her. Rani says the experience has made her stronger. “As a survivor now, I look at the future. My past had a lot of devistation a lot of pain and emotion but today I have to focus on the future. What am I going to do with my life? I have chosen to be that voice and not to only be that voice but to give restoration. We need to give victims like me healing, a place to live but we’ve got to make them fully functional like someone did to me,” said Hong.

Rani along with her husband, also a human trafficking survivor, formed the Tronie Foundation. Its mission is to reach to survivors and raise awarness about the practice.

Hong was recently in Spokane talking about her experiences with service providers and outreach specialists at Lutheran Community Services. She says human trafficking is a big problem across Washington and Idaho.

” So it’s not a problem in just foreign countries, it’s right here in Spokane. Right here in Washington state..because we have a port and we’re a border area with Canada. So as an individual person we do need to care because we’re facing it in our businesses and in our schools and the different places where we are at,” says Hong.

Hong, who now works full-time with the Tronie Foundation says 17,500 victims are brought into the United States every year to be sold into slavery. Washington State is hub for this activity. 16 counties in Washington have been identified as places where human trafficking goes on, including Spokane County.

“Human trafficking is today’s modern form of slavery. We are finding victims working 12 hour days, 14 hour days with no pay. That means they’re forced to work through coercian, threats on their life and many times their visas are taken and their passports are taken. To be in slavery they are being controlled by another person and they can’t escape and that is why we need to help them,” says Hong.

One of the most common forms of human slavery in Washington and Idaho is Mexican migrant workers forced to work long hours with no pay. Many have debts to land owners who won’t let the workers leave. Many are threatened with jail time and deportation if they don’t do the work. Hong says that’s the reason it’s so hard for victims to simply walk away. “They can’t just walk away, usually because the people they work for have power, money or influence. Often times victims are threatened with their lives,” says Hong.

Currently Hong is working with the Washington Department of Labor on legislation to help stop human trafficking. Hong believes training and education is the key for people to be able to identify victims.

“There’s a lot of education and a lot of awareness but we’re seeing a gap in restoration, so we’re trying to create this movement in restoration; partnering with other organizations such as Lutheran Community Services and asking how we can come together and build restoration and healing to the victim. So I see that as I a gap and I’m working hard to fill that gap,” says Hong.

The Tronie Foundation relies solely on donations and grants for funding. If you would like to make a donation please contact them at The Tronie Foundation
P.O. Box 1308 Olympia, WA 98507-1308 Phone: (360) 705-1230

Email: info@troniefoundation.org