A Tattoo Artist's Insight into Branding and the Sex Trafficking Industry

Statue of Liberty at sunset — Liberty: the ability of a person to have agency

Gina Jernukian is a tattoo artist and the Founder of Soul Survivor Ink, a non-profit organization that works to remove/transform branding on sex trafficked individuals. Because of her personal experiences as a tattoo artist, she has valuable insight into the practice of branding and how young people in the United States are coerced then exploited into the sex trafficking industry.

Here is an audio version of the interview:

view of Statue of Liberty from Battery — phone interview

1. How did you become an advocate for those recovering from the sex trafficking industry?

"I'm a permanent makeup artist and a paramedical tattoo artist. I became friends with another salon owner and she thought I’d like to learn a new process of tattoo removal called needling. It's not laser, it's with a needle and serum. I watched the process and thought that with so much tattoo regret, this could be another source of income. Within just two months of doing this type of removal, I started seeing really odd tattoos and they were the same ones on different girls, crowns or odd tattoos that didn't make sense. Men were coming into my studio that were aggressive and the girls that were with them wouldn’t say anything. I could tell that there was something up but I had no idea. I showed the pictures to friends and psychologists and one person said, “Oh, that's a branding.” I had no clue and I decided I would not be complicit with this practice.

I located local organizations who work with sex trafficked victims in recovery. I said if anyone wants a removal/transformation, I’d do it for free. That became the focus of every single day. I could not believe the amount of people that were coming to me for removal. Word got out and people were driving three, four, five hours to come see me. I was blown away. This is real."

2. In all my conversations there seems to be a general misconception that sex trafficked individuals make a lot of money and are perfectly happy being owned by their trafficker. Have you come across any misconceptions?

"Many people want to lump all men as the same, but I actually see a big change among the men in my community. Many are stepping up and trying to initiate a positive change. My one friend is buying an apartment building to house these girls. He's helped me get three girls into apartments. He bought all the furniture.

One girl was born into trafficking, which is another huge problem, and she needed desperately to have a PTSD emotional dog. This dog is $24,000. We were able to help her by raising just over $14,000, but it wasn’t enough. A bunch of guys from The Care Organization gave me $9,000 toward the dog. Now, she sleeps with this dog and it knows when she's having a panic attack. This dog can sense everything. It's amazing."

3. Can you tell us about the early days of Soul Survivor Ink? How it started?

"Word of Mouth. Prior to 2016/2017, before we became a non-profit, I was just doing it by myself. I’d say, “Send them” and I never said no, just send them. I started recruiting local tattoo artists; people that did laser, people that did cover-ups, and estheticians. Anyone to help, just people that I know through the industry. We need estheticians because sometimes the brandings aren’t only from tattoos, they're sometimes carvings in the skin from a knife. Or, they're burns. So we also need estheticians."

4. Soul Survivor Ink branched out from Arizona to all around the United States. I wondered how difficult it is to manage the tattoo salons and how a salon becomes an affiliate.

"Soul Survivor Ink is pretty well known through the United States so if someone fills out a scholarship for removal/transformation and she's in West Virginia, we look to see if we have someone there. If we do, an advocate who works with survivors will contact our affiliate and the process starts. If we don't have someone there, our team starts emails and phone calls to find someone who can help. Sometimes the advocate and survivor will have to drive across state to find a Soul Survivor Ink Specialist.

There is a vetting process to become an affiliate of Soul Survivor Ink. We have a program they go through, but first, they have to talk to me to make sure they're a good fit. Usually they see us on the news and want to help."

Pennsylvania has three tattoo removal centers that are affiliated with Soul Survivor Ink. One in Lancaster, Pittsburgh and Steelton. Unfortunately, none of these sites has an esthetician. if someone reading this would like to learn more about working with Soul Survivor Ink, contact me at geraldinedonaher.com or contact Soul Survivor Ink directly.

5. Gina is still growing this nonprofit in the hopes of helping more survivors. I asked how she financially supports the artists so the service is free to the survivors. Her answer? Donations.

"We're large in geographical scale with over 60 Affiliates but we're actually a very small organization. Here, in Phoenix, Camelback Ford donates anywhere between $15 and $30,000 a year, which is amazing. And the Arizona Diamond Backs will donate yearly sometimes, or every couple of years. The last time they donated, I believe it was $10,000. Global Vision Bible Church in Tennessee donated $100,000. That was the largest donation we've ever received. I couldn't believe it when they called me and said, “Well, we raised $100,000.”

Smaller donations are a big help, too. People see a news article about us and they'll pledge $50. Their ongoing pledges are a big help. We have our fundraiser coming up next month so hopefully that will be really good and get us through the next year."

6. We've all heard about the importance of keeping boundaries in relationships but imagine being 15 and trying to keep boundaries with an older charming man who has perfected getting what he wants. Gina explained how an individual gets trapped in the sex trafficking industry.

"In psychology, manipulations within the sex trafficking world are referred to as stretching boundaries. This could be from a family member: a mom or dad, aunts, uncles or older siblings. It could be an older charming person, often referred to as a groomer. Or, even a Romeo. A Romeo is the boyfriend-turned-trafficker. (In my upcoming novel, I use a Romeo as the sex trafficker.)

People think that this is a third world country thing: men drag girls into a big white van and they’re gone forever. That is so far from the truth of what goes on every day in this country. Most of this abuse is familial. The other way, and this is really important, is the stretching boundary concept. I'll give you a story, a true story, then you'll understand what I'm saying. One Survivor teenager was on the swim team, a very good student, popular and on student council. She and her girlfriends were invited to a party. Well, at 15/16, of course you're going to go to a party.

They go to this party and are having a really good time. A cute boy, called a groomer or a Romeo, approaches them and says, “Hey, you girls are super cute. I got some executives coming in and I'm a movie producer (or a ‘music producer’, which they all say they are). When you come to this party, all you have to do is hang out and dance. We'll give you 50 bucks." The girls all agree and go to the party. This is the beginning of stretching boundries. They go to this party they're dancing and they get paid 50 bucks. Then, the same boy, he's probably 19/20, says, “You know what? I’ve got another party coming up, people flying in. If you just wear your bathing suits and kind of flirt around, we'll have bodyguards so no one will touch you, and we'll pay you 250 bucks.” So it progresses and progresses.

These Groomers and Romeos are very patient, they will take as much time as needed to gain the trust of the individual. Maybe the fourth or fifth party, he says, “You know, take your tops off, no one will touch you, we'll give you $500.” So, at this point, the girls are thinking, “okay, he's got bodyguards so we’ll be safe.” And, of course he probably saved someone trying to touch them and had him beat up. But it was all staged. The girls are grateful that he stepped in to save them. The next thing they know, they're trafficked out of the country or out of the state or anywhere else. This girl was on the swim team and on student council. In six months she's being sold and asking herself, 'How did I get here?' "

7. The image many people have of a sex trafficker is different from reality. In my research, I have found them to be charming, stay under the radar by following rules, don't like to get their hands dirty, are intelligent and patient with their manipulation. They get what and who they want. I asked Gina to give additional insights into the personality of a sex trafficker.

"Take the young 15/16 year old. Six months before, if someone told her this is where she was going to be she’d say, “Not a chance will I ever do that!” It is a very slow progression of trust by stretching her boundaries little by little. Six months earlier, she never would have taken her top off for anyone, she was a virgin. And here's this guy saying, “It's your decision.”

Traffickers aren't stupid. They're not going to kidnap anyone because they don't want a missing person’s report. They don't want people looking for her. They don't want her picture on the news. They want the individual to say, “Of course I'll go with you.” The trafficker stretched and manipulated the person enough so the trafficker is trusted. The preteen/teen even agrees with the trafficker when they tell them their parents are a-holes. The trafficker turns everything they said against them so they go willingly. The girls think they freely made the decisions and convince themselves of a whole lot of other things that have no basis in reality. Traffickers don't want someone they have to kidnap because then there's a red flag.

They talk as boyfriend and girlfriend for weeks and weeks. I even know traffickers that have gone and had dinner with the parents. They’re smart and they will they will do whatever it takes. Then, when they’re going to LA to ‘make a movie’ or ‘make a recording’ the trafficker says, “I spent so much money getting you here, I need you to do this one thing…” The girl is flabbergasted but she does what he asks because she thinks she loves him and she admits it did cost a lot of money to get her where she is. They call it ‘turned out’. Once they turn one trick, it's over."

8. Do you have anything you would say to someone who's thinking about leaving her trafficker but is too overwhelmed, threatened, or confused to take that first step?

"I would tell them it's going to be okay. It's going to be hard because they're coming from one world and jumping into a world they know nothing about. They only know what they know and that's setting up dates, going on dates, having sex. That's all they know state by state, city by city. It's really really hard for them to leave but it's worth it. They can find an advocate to get to safety. I'll give you an app we’re working on – STEP.HOW"

9. Can you give us more information on STEP.HOW?

"Survivors and I started it a few years ago and it stands for: Survivors Together Elevating People. With just a click of a button, a person can get help within a 100 mile radius. They’ll be seen and heard. STEP.HOW will be a lifeline for many people, specifically those stuck in any human trafficking situation, domestic violence, unplanned pregnancy fears, abuse, addictions, STDs, etc. It's set to launch in early 2025 and any community service organization can register."