Elizabeth Smart, who endured one of the most publicized kidnappings in recent memory, discussed how hardships can empower an extraordinary life at George Washington University on Thursday.
Smart was 14 when she was taken from her home at knifepoint in Salt Lake City, Utah, by kidnapper Brian David Mitchell and his wife Wanda Barzee. She was held captive for nine months before being rescued and reunited with her family. Her 2002 case quickly became one of the most publicized kidnappings in the country, as well as gaining international attention.
Smart wrote about the life changing ordeal in her new memoir, My Story, which she discussed in front of an exuberant audience last week. Smart considers her new role in life not to be a victim of abuse, but rather an activist pushing for empowerment and strength to overcome hardships.
“I remember thinking I felt so broken and so filthy and so ruined, who could ever love me now, who could ever want something to do with me — I mean, was I even human?” Smart said during the speech at the Marvin Center in Washington, D.C. “I just kept thinking even if I could escape right now, who would take me back?”
She said most of her days were spent listening to her kidnappers speak and being raped several times, not knowing which was worse. Smart explained that the only reason she got through the experience was continuously going back to thinking about her family, and holding on to her strong faith in God.
“My family will always be mine… they would always want me to come home, maybe nobody else would, but they would,” Smart explained. “Because I had something worth living for, worth surviving for that couldn’t be taken from me… I made the decision to do whatever I had to to survive.”
The crowd was filled with about 100 students as well as notable public figures such as Second Lady of the United States, Jill Biden.
While Smart believes the experience was nothing but horrific, she said she would not trade it for the world because of the impact it has had on her life.
“I would never go out and say, ‘Oh please, sign me up for a kidnapping. Hello, that sounds like a vacation,’” she joked. “No, I would never say that. But I can honestly and truly say that I am grateful for what has happened because of what it has allowed me to do.”
And Smart has done nothing short of move on to live an incredible life. Along with founding a nonprofit, the Elizabeth Smart Foundation, she has worked as a correspondent for ABC News and helped with radKIDS, an organization committed to helping families train children in safety practices.
She ended the speech by offering advice to everyone who may be going through a difficult time.
“Never give up because life is so wonderful, so worth living,” she told the audience. “Whatever your trial or hardship is right now you never know how it will help you later on in life. Whether it’s something you learned now or whether it changes the path of your life. You just never ever know. So never give up. Always have hope.”
