Episode #53 - Camrie

After Hurricane Katrina, Camrie's family left New Orleans for San Diego, where they were homeless for about seven years. At school, she was labeled with ADD and learning disabilities and moved from program to program.

At 13, after a fight with her mother, she was kicked out and spent the night in a park, where a man raped her on a bench. She describes being recruited by a pimp, being returned home after missing-person reports, and testifying against him in court. Later, while on probation, she ran away to Maryland to meet a man she had met online, and she was exploited there too.

A social worker brought her to the Children of the Night home. She stayed for two years, did regular schoolwork outside of special ed, and never returned to the streets.

Camrie talks with Dr. Lois Lee about:

How her trauma was misdiagnosed as a learning disability

Childhood abuse and how it made her more vulnerable to exploitation

Finishing high school, going to college, and raising two daughters

Working in health care and planning to finish her degree in health administration

What schools, lawmakers, and everyday people could do differently for kids like her.

⸻

Listen Now:

🎧 New episodes weekly on Spotify, YouTube, iHeartRadio, Podbean, and wherever you listen. Follow & Support