Episode Details

In this episode of Zone 7, Sheryl McCollum is joined by human trafficking survivor and advocate Tina Dixon, who ran away as a young teenager before being trafficked through the Dixie Mafia’s network of brothels and organized prostitution across the South. Together, they discuss the grooming, manipulation, violence, and addiction traffickers use to control their victims and how organized trafficking operations adapt to changing technology as recruitment expands through social media and other online platforms. Tina also explains what finally helped her break free after decades of exploitation and why she has made it her mission to help others escape trafficking and rebuild their lives.

Highlights:

(0:00) Sheryl explains the Dixie Mafia’s ties to human trafficking and the importance of understanding victimology in investigations

(2:00) Why investigators distinguish between different forms of commercial sexual exploitation and how those differences shape an investigation

(3:45) Tina runs away at 14, arrives on Bourbon Street, and becomes involved with an outlaw motorcycle club

(8:30) The differences between a “Cassanova pimp” and a “gorilla pimp” and how traffickers use manipulation before violence

(10:15) Inside Louisiana's prostitution “circuit” of roadside bars, gambling rooms, and brothels hidden throughout the bayous

(11:45) How traffickers groom children online using social media, emotional manipulation, and false promises

(15:00) Childhood abuse, addiction, and the vulnerabilities traffickers intentionally exploit

(17:15) Inside a rural brothel: how victims are trained, controlled, and punished

(23:15) Why traffickers profit while victims are left with addiction, trauma, and nothing to show for years of exploitation

(24:15) How online predators continue using the same grooming tactics to recruit children today

(26:45) The confrontation that led to Tina being shot twice

(30:00) Why Destiny House, Hookers for Jesus, and EMDR finally succeeded after 17 rehab attempts

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Tina Dixon is the founder and executive director of Queens Arise, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping survivors of human trafficking build independent futures through education, career training, mentorship, and long-term recovery support. After surviving decades of trafficking herself, Tina now helps survivors create lasting stability while advocating for survivor-led solutions.

Learn more about Tina and sign up for updates on her upcoming memoir, Going to the Country: https://queensarise.org/tina-dixon/

Sheryl “Mac” McCollum is an active crime scene investigator for a metro Atlanta police department and the director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, which partners with colleges and universities nationwide. With more than four decades of experience, she has worked on thousands of cold cases using her investigative system, The Last 24/361, which integrates evidence, media, and advanced forensic testing.

Her work on high-profile cases, including The Boston Strangler, Natalie Holloway, Tupac Shakur and the Moore’s Ford Bridge lynching, led to her Emmy Award for CSI: Atlanta and induction into the National Law Enforcement Hall of Fame in 2023.

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