Marisol  Nichols - Une justicière à Hollywood.

Marisol Nichols - A vigilante in Hollywood

A vigilante in Hollywood. Riverdale star Marisol Nichols plays the role of a lifetime for the greater good: pedophile hunter.

A cheap, run-down hotel room, ready-made bulletproof vests, food and bottled water, two dozen police officers from the local Sheriff's Department, two dozen police officers from outside agencies, an FBI agent, two extras, two civilians playing "bait," a former government investigator friend and actress Marisol Nichols. The stage is set, and we are far from the Hollywood studios. Yet she plays a role: that of a parent prostituting her child or, depending on the situation, that of a child prostituted to a man, a scumbag on the way to a dismal hotel to have sex with an 11-year-old girl who does not exist.
Nichols was 11 years old when her life was turned upside down when she was raped by a group of boys at a party she attended with a friend. She still wonders today "what possessed me to put myself in such a situation at my age". She knows it's not her fault, but she constantly needs to be reminded.

Nichols sends a message via an app that is popular with child predators. In this message, she claims to be the father of a child. On the internet, she plays a trafficker who teases adults who want to have sex with children. On the phone, she simulates the voice of a drugged and bent child.
Unlike her other roles, she is not paid for this one. She traveled at her own expense from her home in Los Angeles to the other side of the country for two days of surgery. She has participated in half a dozen stunts around the world over the past five years. Always of her own free will. Each sting is yet another battle in a war that may never end. These predators are everywhere and you try to catch them one by one. If two days of operation catches just one of them, it will have been worth it, because at least one man won't be able to make who knows how many more victims.

But these operations are difficult. Nichols does not always agree with the tactics used and these predators are unpredictable. The effort doesn't always lead to an arrest. So why bother? Many Americans like to think that child sex trafficking takes place primarily in foreign countries, in third world countries and with less gender parity. The truth is that this kind of trafficking is indeed an American epidemic. Nichols knows the brutality of the dark web. People don't want to hear it, but she faces this evil: "If good people don't care, it's going to keep happening, because only good people can do something about it.

During her 20-year career, Nichols has appeared in several crime dramas. She has played cops more than once and to prepare for her roles, she sometimes accompanied detectives on homicide or drug investigations. "I have an insane amount of respect for these people. It sparked my interest in the trafficking world."
In 2012, she had a two-year hiatus and decided to use that career break to fully immerse herself in the world of human trafficking, learning everything she could and communicating with organizations and individuals working on these issues. She wanted to use her connections and her persona to bring this powerful issue to the red carpet, away from the glitz and glamour, a red carpet of real education and action.

In 2014, Nichols created the Foundation for a Slavery Free World. In addition to her involvement in undercover operations, she speaks publicly about the problem and warns parents about the dangers of social media and children surfing the internet unsupervised. She describes how easily a young girl can be ensnared by predators: they may pretend to be kids from the neighborhood or school, befriend mutual friends, add a few similar hobbies, and start conversations that are innocent on the surface.

Catching pedophiles depends on technology, and technology is always changing. During the two-day operation, Nichols sometimes comes up with his own tactics. That doesn't bother officers who are interested in other approaches. She runs ads that attract predators. Her partner plays the pimp and Nichols imitates a preteen voice. "Her voice, as soon as she speaks" is what definitely hooks them.
By the end of the two days, they've arrested a dozen men, none of them thanks to Nichols' method, but she doesn't seem disappointed. The important thing is to catch as many predators as possible, no matter what the method. Nichols is already planning future operations. She hopes to do some of them abroad.

Every moment spent in close proximity to law and order is a first-hand lesson in human behavior. And material for her future performances.

To read the full article in Marie Claire:

https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/a32320089/marisol-nichols-undercover-child-predator-sting/

© Photo: Gage Skidmore - CC BY-SA 2.0

Search