The controversy surrounding Sen. Katie Britt's (R-Ala.) rebuttal to President Biden's State of the Union address has intensified after the sex trafficking survivor referenced in her speech accused the senator of distorting her story for political purposes. Karla Jacinto Romero, who was trafficked in Mexico at a young age, said in an interview with CNN on Sunday that she felt Britt had taken advantage of her story and that it was "not fair" for the senator to use it without her consent.
"I hardly ever cooperate with politicians because it seems to me that they only want an image. They only want a photo - and that to me is not fair," Jacinto told CNN's Rafael Romo. "There are millions of girls and boys who disappear all the time. People who are really trafficked and abused, as she [Britt] mentioned, and I think she should first take into account what really happens before telling a story of that magnitude."
During her rebuttal to Biden's speech, Britt criticized the president's handling of the southern border while referencing Jacinto's story. "When I first took office, I did something different. I traveled to the Del Rio sector of Texas, where I spoke to a woman who shared her story with me. She had been sex trafficked by the cartels starting at age 12," Britt said. "President Biden's border crisis is a disgrace. It's despicable. And it's almost entirely preventable."
However, journalist Jonathan M. Katz of Talking Points Memo cited evidence suggesting that Britt's portrayal of Jacinto's story had been inaccurate. According to information Katz found, including Jacinto's own past testimony before Congress, she was trafficked entirely within Mexico between 2004 and 2008, when Biden was not in the White House.
Romo reported that Jacinto also pointed out another discrepancy in Britt's account, stating that she was not trafficked by Mexican cartels, as the senator claimed, but by a pimp. Additionally, Jacinto said that no one had approached her for permission to use her story in the political broadcast.
A spokesperson for Britt told several outlets that the senator's telling "was 100 percent correct" and claimed that "the Biden administration's policies-the policies in this country that the President falsely claims are humane-have empowered the cartels and acted as a magnet to a historic level of migrants making the dangerous journey to our border." However, when confronted about when the sex trafficking had occurred on Fox News, Britt defended herself by saying that she referred to "a grown woman" who "was trafficked when she was 12."
The controversy surrounding Britt's rebuttal has not only focused on the accuracy of her portrayal of Jacinto's story but also on her delivery, which some critics, including conservative commentators and former Republican officials, have described as "overly dramatic." The senator faced ridicule from various quarters, including a parody on Saturday Night Live.
Jacinto's latest remarks have added fuel to the ongoing firestorm, with the survivor emphasizing the importance of politicians being empathetic and understanding the reality of human trafficking before using such stories for political purposes. "Someone distorting my story and using it for political purposes is not fair," Jacinto reportedly told Romo.
As the controversy continues to unfold, questions remain about the accuracy of Britt's account and the appropriateness of using a survivor's story without their consent. The incident has highlighted the need for politicians to be more sensitive and responsible when addressing issues related to human trafficking and the experiences of survivors.
As the public and media scrutiny intensifies, it remains to be seen how the senator will address the growing criticism and whether this controversy will have lasting implications for her political career.
