Susan Trimarco is the Change We All Want to See in the World
When 23-year-old Marita Verón disappeared in Argentina in 2002, her mother, Susana Trimarco, refused to accept the police’s silence and corruption.
So she did the unthinkable: She disguised herself as a madam, walked into brothels across northern Argentina, and pretended to “buy” captive women — hoping one would be Marita. She never found her daughter. But she found something else: hundreds of girls trapped in sex trafficking, some who had seen Marita moved from place to place.
Her one-woman mission exposed trafficking networks, police collusion, and a system built on silence. In the process, she helped free over 3,000 women and girls, sheltered survivors in her home, survived death threats, arson attempts, and multiple attacks — and pushed Argentina to pass its first federal anti-trafficking law in 2008.
In 2007 she created Fundación María de los Ángeles, which continues to rescue victims and pursue traffickers even today. By 2014, after years of trials and appeals, 10 traffickers were finally convicted — including those linked to Marita’s disappearance.
Today, in her seventies, Susana is still fighting, her foundation helping dismantle trafficking rings as recently as 2024 and 2025.
“Every woman I help… somehow helps my daughter.”
