In observance of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the Francis Marion University department of sociology welcomed and hosted the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives (MMIWR) task force Wednesday from 3:45 to 5 p.m.
Kiley Molinari, an associate professor of anthropology, introduced the panel’s guest speakers. Veronica Smith, a staff member with the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force, and Ana Black, a member of the MMIWR and South Carolina Indian Affairs Commission (SCIAC), prepared a PowerPoint presentation to educate more than 70 students who filled a small classroom in Founder’s Hall. They focused on raising awareness of sex trafficking in Indigenous communities across South Carolina and highlighted the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) movement.
Founded in 1992, the MMIW movement advocates for ending violence against Indigenous women. May 5 is nationally recognized as MMIW Day. The movement’s symbol—a red handprint across the mouth—represents the forced silence inflicted on Indigenous women across the United States, according to Black.
The discussion addressed the broader context of human trafficking, which involves the use of force, fraud or coercion to compel labor or commercial sex against a person’s will. Smith and Black educated students on risk factors, how to recognize signs of sex trafficking in an individual, where it occurs and ways to protect themselves and others. They also provided statistics of those missing in the indigenous communities across the U.S.
Black outlined several warning signs of possible sex trafficking, including but not limited to:
- Unusual behavior such as being overly tired in the morning
- Bragging about making large amounts of money
- Dressing in ways that are inconsistent with age or context
- Lack of control over personal identification or money
- Tattoos or branding that suggest ownership
- Isolation from friends and family
- Sudden fear of law enforcement
According to the National Crime Information Center, 1,503 Indigenous women, 1,720 Indigenous men, 4,179 Indigenous girls and 2,898 Indigenous boys were reported missing in 2024. In 2023, the SCIAC partnered with the University of South Carolina’s social work program to survey Indigenous families about issues of violence and missing persons. The results showed that 53% of respondents had a family member who was a homicide victim, and 44% reported a missing female or two-spirit family member—a modern umbrella term some Indigenous North Americans use for people who fulfill a traditional third-gender role.
“The vast majority of the cases happened on the I-95 corridor,” Black said, identifying the interstate as a hub for sex trafficking.
She also emphasized South Carolina law enforcement practices, explaining that officers respond differently based on victims’ ages and that those policies affect missing data. Law enforcement agencies in the state do not have to report missing persons over age 21 to federal databases. “But if you are a minor, they do have to report that… so we are missing data essentially for Native women and men,” Black said.
She identified grooming as a primary tactic in trafficking, noting that it involves more than a surface-level definition. Black said grooming starts when perpetrators target an individual, gain their trust and isolate them before exploiting and ultimately controlling them.
According to Black, Indigenous youth are five times more likely to get sex trafficked than youth of any other ethnicity. She added that young Indigenous boys and members of the LGBTQ community face heightened risk because social stigma surrounding trafficking, sexual assault and abuse often discourages them from coming forward, sometimes out of fear of familial rejection.
Black emphasized the growing role of technology abuse, noting children are “especially at risk.” She warned that traffickers use deepfakes—artificially generated images that appear hyperrealistic—in online sex trafficking and outlined steps victims can take to protect themselves. She identified the Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act, commonly known as the TAKE IT DOWN Act, as a primary resource.
Congress established the TAKE IT DOWN Act on May 19, 2025. The legislation created TakeItDown.org, which accepts reports of deepfake nudity posted online and works to remove the content.
Smith drew on her background in refugee services. Prior to moving to South Carolina, she taught English in Mexico and earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of Sonora, located in northern Mexico. After relocating, she taught Spanish at St. Peter’s Catholic School in Columbia, where she also worked as a medical interpreter for what is now Prisma Health before transitioning into social services at Lutheran Services Carolinas. There, she advanced from program assistant, working directly with victims of labor and sex trafficking, to case manager for cases involving unaccompanied minors.
Using data collected in 2025 from the Florence regional area, McLeod Regional Health officials reported a sharp increase in nonlethal sexual assault cases. Smith compared figures from 2022 to 2025, noting an increase from 93 reported cases to 332—a 256.98% rise. In 2025, McLeod Health also documented 10 reported cases of human trafficking among individuals who came forward. “This number is only from McLeod in 2025. That doesn’t mean everyone who experienced sexual assault or trafficking is represented here,” Smith said.
More recently, McLeod shared additional data with the speakers showing January and February reports. Those figures indicate an increase in sexual assault cases reported without an exam, as victims may choose to opt out, rising from two to seven cases.
“Once the [Pee Dee] task force is active, there will be more involvement… we do have a higher education subcommittee that we are also working on being more active, which will be converging,” Smith said.
The Pee Dee region is home to two state-recognized Indigenous tribes—the Pee Dee Indian Tribe and the Pee Dee Indian Nation of Upper South Carolina. Federal legislation such as the Savanna’s Act and the Not Invisible Act supports these communities and aligns with the goals of the MMIW movement.
Named after Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind following her death in 2017, Congress passed Savanna’s Act in 2020 to improve coordination among tribal, state and federal law enforcement and establish guidelines for handling cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous people. That same year, Congress passed the Not Invisible Act in 2020, creating a joint advisory committee of tribal leaders, human trafficking survivors, law enforcement officials and federal representatives. The law gives Indigenous communities a direct role in shaping federal policy and responses to issues that affect them.
South Carolina provides several resources for victims of sexual assault and human trafficking, including support through the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault and the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force. In the Pee Dee region, organizations like the Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Assault and McLeod Health offer crisis support, counseling and advocacy services for survivors.
FMU also offers several resources for students who experience sexual assault or know someone who does. These include confidential counseling through the university’s Testing, Counseling & Special Services Center, access to campus police for immediate assistance through their telephone number at 843-661-1109 and reporting options through Title IX services. Campus police also offer “silent witness” forms found here for those who wish to report a crime anonymously.