Tattoo Removal Helps a Sex Trafficking Survivor Move Forward
At the 2023 Annual Conference of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery (ASLMS), Dr. Paul Friedman was honored to share the stage with his special guest—Kathy Givens, a Houston sex trafficking survivor and advocate. As a board-certified dermatologist and the former President of ASLMS, Dr. Friedman is dedicated to helping human trafficking survivors through the New Beginnings Branding Tattoo Removal Program. MDEdge shared coverage of the presentation.
Ms. Givens escaped from sex trafficking more than 20 years ago, but she was left with a painful reminder: a branding tattoo of her trafficker’s name. While she had gone on a personal healing journey, started a family, and founded a non-profit to help other human trafficking survivors, the tattoo was a constant reminder of her past.
Dr. Friedman Provides a New Beginning
When Ms. Givens was introduced to Dr. Friedman for free laser tattoo removal, she was grateful for the support. After completion of her treatment series she said, “she was able to truly close the door on her sex trafficking past thanks to the tattoo removal Dr. Friedman performed as part of New Beginnings.”
At the Conference, Drs. Friedman and Emily Guo presented a study that shows approximately half of trafficking survivors have branding tattoos and that, “at least 1,000 survivors a year could benefit from removal of those tattoos.” The New Beginnings Branding Tattoo Removal Program provides trauma-informed training for qualified physicians who pledge to offer free tattoo removal to trafficking survivors. There are 93 participating physicians around the United States and Canada since Dr. Friedman implemented the program.