Breaking the Silence: Michelle Jewsbury's Fight Against Abuse and Human Trafficking

This week Ivy Slater, host of Her Success Story, chats with her guest, Michelle Jewsbury. The two talk about talk about transforming personal trauma into global advocacy, building educational opportunities for survivors in Sierra Leone and Ghana, and the challenges of leading a nonprofit devoted to empowering survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking. In this episode, we discuss: How Michelle Jewsbury transformed her personal experience surviving severe domestic violence into the founding of Unsilenced Voices, using settlement funds from her lawsuit to launch a nonprofit dedicated to empowering survivors globally. What inspired Michelle's international expansion—from bartending in Hollywood to establishing programs in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Rwanda, where her organization now supports approximately 1,800 individuals across two villages. When Michelle recognized her calling to create broader impact, channeling her one-woman play about abuse into a published memoir and curating "Breaking the Silence," a collection of survivor stories addressing trauma, trafficking, addiction, and grief. Why persistence defines effective leadership—Michelle shares a powerful lesson from India: "It is not up to us to finish the project. It is up to us to start it," urging nonprofit leaders to overcome imposter syndrome. How Unsilenced Voices plans for sustainable growth, including building a dedicated school in Sierra Leone for vocational training, counseling, and medical support to break cycles of abuse and dependency.   Michelle Jewsbury, a dynamic force in transforming personal stories into powerful narratives, is the founder and CEO of Unsilenced Voices. With a mission to empower survivors of pain and trauma, Michelle has emerged as an internationally recognized speaker, coach, and advocate. Renowned for her expertise in translating adversity into business and personal success, she has graced stages across the globe. From sharing her journey of breaking the cycle of abuse, Michelle inspires individuals to transform their own stories into impactful narratives. As the driving force behind Unsilenced Voices, Michelle Jewsbury is dedicated to engaging business owners, entrepreneurs and organizations harness the transformative power of their stories. Website: https://unsilencedvoices.org/ Social Media Links: https://www.facebook.com/michelle.jewsbury https://www.facebook.com/unsilencevoices https://www.tiktok.com/@michellejewsbury?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc https://www.instagram.com/michellejewsbury/ https://www.instagram.com/unsilencedvoices/ https://twitter.com/mjewsbury https://twitter.com/unsilencevoices https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-jewsbury-5310953b/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/18824076/ https://www.youtube.com/@michellejewsbury