YORK, Pa. — Human trafficking is a global crisis, affecting millions of people each year.

But amidst the darkness, there are stories of incredible strength and resilience. Two survivors are bravely sharing their stories in the hopes of saving others.

“You have to be brave to look at the darkness, you have to be brave to be willing to see the truth,” said Cassie Smith.

Trafficked as a child, that meant enduring horrors most of us can’t imagine. For Smith, that meant also admitting the ugly truth that she was exploited by her own family, who was also trafficked.

“Forty-one percent of all child trafficking cases are from a family member,” Smith said. “These traffickers are not just celebs or even just pimps; a lot of times they are people that we know, we trust that we look up to and admire, they are people in positions of authority.”

Eight hundred thousand children go missing in the United States every year from trafficking. Justice Maddox became one of them at the age of 12 after being invited to a birthday party at her neighbor’s house in 1980.

“I was so excited because the neighbors were there for like five years, so my parents were like, ‘okay, you can go to the neighbor’s house. It’s okay, it’s just next door…’ well that’s when hell began,” Maddox remembered.

They were eating pizza and drinking punch, and the next thing she remembers was waking up in a hotel, where she spent an agonizing 6 months as a prisoner.

“He groomed us, of course; we would have to have sex with him before the buyers would come in; he gave us drugs to be able to perform these acts,” Maddox said.

An undercover police officer saved her life.

A few months after being returned to her family, she gave birth to her abuser’s child. It was her daughter that gave her the courage to speak up and speak out about the horrors she had experienced.

Both Maddox and Smith collectively turned their horrific experiences into helping others, by starting nonprofits.

Justice House of Hope works with survivors to find them safe housing and support as well as educating youth on the signs of