Museum of Tolerance, Los Angeles features Marti MacGibbon, Human Trafficking Survivor Turned Activist, as Guest Speaker

Marti MacGibbon’s powerful comeback story inspired and moved listeners at The Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles yesterday. Event organizer Elana Samuels praised Marti for her courage and vulnerability in presenting this difficult topic to a full auditorium. Audience members included a class of high school students, and a diverse demographic. MacGibbon, a veteran standup comic and professional inspiration speaker, shared how she found her courage while imprisoned, threatened with death, raped, abused and isolated by Japanese organized crime figures. The audience was riveted by by the details of her escape and journey through trauma to healing, and the touching story of how she met her true love while homeless and suffering from PTSD elicited an applause break. Marti uplifted audience members with appropriate humor, and offered tips on overcoming adversity and becoming acquainted with their own deep and powerful inner strength. This is Marti’s second appearance at the MOT, and staff has expressed the desire for her to return again and again. Not many people come back from experiences as harrowing as Marti’s, and regain the strength and courage to share their story with others. Marti’s honesty and openness are disarming, and listeners gain insight into how difficult it is for victims of human trafficking to recover after rescue. This terrible global crime must be extinguished. All human beings deserve the right to freedom, autonomy, and dignity.