Columbus café offers pathway to freedom for survivors of sex trafficking

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Breaking the cycle of human trafficking is not easy, but a downtown Columbus café is employing and supporting survivors. It aims to give local women practical job skills, creating a pathway to freedom.

"Freedom a la Cart" started as a food truck in 2011 before opening a café and bakery in 2021. CEO Paula Haines said since it opened, it's grown exponentially.

"To see women go from being taken advantage of, to just building up that confidence and gaining their voice and speaking out on behalf of other survivors, it's all just really magical," Haines said.

It's a café with a cause. The goal is to empower survivors of sex trafficking and exploitation to build lives of freedom and self-sufficiency.

The nonprofit has grown from helping dozens of women before the pandemic, to now providing support for close to 400 women this year alone.

"They've been treated as property and that is not okay, so that is what inspired me to get involved," Haines said.

One of those women is Jessica Doone. Her journey has been anything but easy. The human trafficking survivor came from a family where addiction and mental health challenges were prevalent. Her criminal record and inconsistent work history made it impossible to pursue her nursing aspirations.

After several arrests, Doone turned to Franklin County's CATCH Court to seek treatment, but she said it's Freedom a la Cart that really turned her life around.

"It feels good to come to work and know you're loved and supported," Doone said.

Doone credits Freedom a la Cart for saving her life and helping her find her footing.

"Normal things are not normal for people like me. They're harder," Doone said. "I've been sober for eight years, but relearning how to live life, I kind of feel like I'm an eight-year-old kid."

Doone first started in 2019 in the nonprofit's workforce development program where women receive paid training and personal support.

"You just come in the building and want to be a different person," Doone said. "That's what Freedom's done for me."

Doone stepped into a new role with Freedom a la Cart in January. She is now a peer support specialist.

"I get to help people stay here. Stay in this life," Doone said. "And I say that because it's so much easier to go back to the life we know. It's so much easier to make the wrong decisions when you're used to making those decisions."

The nonprofit relies on other agencies, like CATCH Court, that are rescuing women and providing them with initial treatment. Haines said those programs eventually end, but the trauma and barriers continue on for a very long time. That's where the nonprofit steps in.

"I felt like, wow, I didn't know this was happening in my community," Haines said. "And I felt this strong desire to help these women see that this should not have happened to them. And they are so worthy and helping them to see that and build that up."

Haines said it's about giving women a job to get them back in the workforce, and to learn how to take care of themselves.

"Learning how to resolve conflict and to accept feedback and to show up to work and to manage your finances, all of those skills that they develop them in the two years that they're here," Haines said.

All of the revenue from the food services helps support survivors. The nonprofit also offers mentorship and housing assistance.

Freedom a la Cart is looking to expand to Cleveland within the next two years. For more information about the programs offered, visit here.