Alezandra Russell

Alezandra Russell is an award winning Latina activist, entrepreneur, author and Founder of Urban Light, a non-profit organization dedicated to actively empowering the lives of young men affected by sexual exploitation in Thailand. To date Urban Light remains one of few organizations worldwide working with vulnerable boys. Urban Light's victim-centered approach provides services and support to vulnerable young men and boys through an array of mental & physical health support, informal & formal education, transitional & emergency housing, as well harm reduction care. Despite the visibility Alezandra and her team have brought to the trials faced by young men who are victims of trafficking, Urban Light remains one of the only organizations in Thailand working specifically on behalf of boys who are so often overlooked, forgotten, and ignored in the global discussion of trafficking and exploitation. Alezandra, who was forced to flee Thailand in June 2018 the result of a journalist's unethical reporting and a military-run government with strict defamation laws. Alezandra continues to advocate from across the globe on behalf of the boys and young men of Urban Light and all victims and survivors of sexual exploitation.