Joy Friedman Bio
Joy Friedman, The Missing Peace
Joy Friedman is a sought-after, nationally recognized, and award-winning public speaker with over two decades of experience supporting survivors of sexual exploitation through outreach, advocacy, courtroom support, and group facilitation. An expert trainer in trauma-informed responses to vulnerable and sexually exploited women, Joy has equipped diverse stakeholders—including drug treatment centers, domestic violence shelters, prosecutors' offices, legal aid centers, social service agencies, universities, the Minnesota Department of Corrections, and the Mayo Clinic—with the skills necessary to provide effective and compassionate support.
In 2014, Joy completed a prestigious human trafficking program hosted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Her expertise has been sought nationwide, and she has testified as an expert witness on trafficking issues across the United States. Joy has provided expert consultations to various law enforcement agencies, including the St. Paul Police Department, Minnesota’s Human Trafficking Task Force, and the FBI. She was pivotal in coordinating and training participants in the nation's first Offender Prostitution Program, commonly known as John School.
Joy's dedication to empowering survivors led her to establish "The Missing Peace," a consulting business through which she continues to train and advise anti-sex trafficking stakeholders nationwide. She led Survivor Leadership Groups for The Family Partnership Pride Program, helping other survivors enter the movement and develop public speaking skills. Joy has also been instrumental in assisting incarcerated survivors’ transition back into society by connecting them with essential resources and services, earning her the inaugural Champion Award from the Sexual Violence Center in Minneapolis in 2021.
Joy serves on the “Just Exits” Initiative advisory boards and the University of Minnesota’s Modeling Effective Network Disruptions (MEND) Project. She has been certified to lead survivor mentor groups through My Life, My Choice, demonstrating her commitment to ongoing professional development and survivor support, and is also Certified as a Peer Recovery Specialist by the State of Minnesota.
She also currently serves as an advisory board member to Truckers Against Trafficking and the International Association of Chiefs of Police “IACP”.
Recently, Joy became the first independent contractor to receive grant funds from the Minneapolis People's Assembly Partners, enabling her to facilitate community input through street outreach to reimagine public safety. As an author, Joy penned "Fragments of Joy," a book that provides an intimate look into her life. She has also co-authored an article in the International Journal of Qualitative Methods titled "Learning Each Other’s Language and Building Trust: Community-Engaged Transdisciplinary Team Building for Research on Human Trafficking Operations and Disruption."
Joy Friedman's remarkable journey and unwavering dedication continue to inspire and drive significant changes in the anti-trafficking movement and for survivors around the world.
