This gut-wrenching human story takes a fresh look at a social and legal issue that affects every community in America—but no one is talking about: sex-trafficking of children.

I Am Jane Doe chronicles the epic battle that several American mothers are waging on behalf of their young daughters, victims of sex trafficking on Backpage.com, a sleazy classified site that for years was part of the iconic Village Voice. The Jane Doe plaintiffs featured include middle school girls from Boston, a 15-year-old violinist from Seattle and a precocious 13-year-old girl from St. Louis. The documentary follows the journey of these young girls and their mothers in real time as they run headlong into a collision course not only with Backpage but with judges, special interest group and an internet freedom law. Backpage has long argued that it is protected from such charges because it qualifies as a passive platform for third-party content under the US Communications Decency Act of 1996.

Narrated by Academy Award-nominee Jessica Chastain, this gripping legal thriller reveals how, after rescuing their daughters, these mothers filed lawsuits against Backpage. Although many of the suits have not gone well, their efforts have sparked a Senate investigation, a political movement and, now, pending legislation in Congress. D: Mary Mazzio, US, 2017, 1h38m

The story continues as reported in the New York Post last July: “Backpage hit with new evidence it controls sex-trafficking ads.”

Free and unticketed. Discussion follows.

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