How to teach a 5-year-old about human trafficking (no, really, how?!)

My 5-year-old is a sponge. And a detective. And, very often, I'm convinced, a creative genius. And she asks A LOT of questions. This morning between wake up at 6:00 and drop-off at 7:30, we covered such topics as plant upkeep, ocean health, oil pipelines, and, for the first time, human trafficking.

Keeping up with all the curiosity is at times
invigorating and exhausting!
Photo cred: Tiffany Tsang

Up until now, our daughter has known in vague terms what we do (we've discussed poverty and child protection, among other things) but this morning I tried to explain, in simple, 5-year-old terms, what human trafficking is. And probably butchered it. (Although I am now convinced that all researchers should have to explain their work to 5-year-olds to better understand their own research!)

Her first question after my short explanation was, "Do the people who get trafficked want to go?" OOF. Way to sucker punch, darling girl! But it did make me think of Lesson #9 from my 10K for 10 years post:

Trafficking and exploitation are a spectrum, with choice

and coercion playing varying and nuances roles

So how does one explain something so nuanced to children, who depend on black and white in their lives? There were so many possible things I could have said, and I opted for this: "Sometimes people think they're getting an opportunity to earn money and help their family, but when they get there, they've been tricked and are not paid and not allowed to go home or see their family." 

It's just the beginning of a conversation, one that will continue in many forms and over a long time. So I turn to you - how would you explain trafficking to a 5-year-old?

10K for 10 years

The original blog post can be found at http://chabdai.org/blog/2017/11/26/10k-for-10-years.

Ten years ago, I was working for a small child protection consulting company in Canada, writing policy and (slowly) learning how to apply all my theoretical undergraduate knowledge to the real world. I was also learning how to be married to my husband of 3 months, and we were excitedly saving and planning to leave the next year for our first overseas placement. Where and doing what we were unsure, we just knew we wanted to go!

Charlie and I got married in 2007
Photo cred: Michel Tremblay

I applied to every internship under the sun – in Africa, of course, because I had focused most of my International Development Studies on African development – and never heard back. In the midst of knocking, pounding, and kicking on every door, my boss sent me to represent the company at a conference on child trafficking and exploitation. And I met a certain woman named Helen Sworn.

I interviewed Helen for a concept note I was writing for my company and we hit it off. I learned about what Chab Dai was doing in Cambodia, and immediately gained a deep respect for their values and approach. Well, to make a long story short, it turned out Chab Dai needed someone to do exactly what I knew how to do – write Child Protection Policies!! And, very providentially, Chab Dai’s partner, Child Helpline Cambodia, also needed a volunteer, for which my husband was well suited.

We went to Cambodia for the first time in September 2008 and spent
6 months interning with Chab Dai.

When Charlie and I went to Cambodia for the first time in 2008, we were well aware that our experience in the anti-trafficking sector would either tear us down or light a fire that would not easily go out. Ten years on, we are both still very committed to this sector and to Chab Dai. Over the past 10 years, I have held multiple positions with this organization I love so dearly, as a volunteer, paid staff, co-founder of Chab Dai Canada, and now as a board member with Chab Dai International.

After grad school, we moved back to Cambodia in
2012 and have been here ever since.
Photo cred: Tiffany Tsang

What better way to celebrate 10 years than to run my first 10K marathon?! On December 3, I will run the Angkor Wat 10K and I’d like to invite you to donate $10 to Chab Dai for my 10K. As we all know, the fight for human rights is a marathon, not a sprint, and I hope the skills, passion, and knowledge I have gained in the past 10 years will propel me on for the next 10!

Post from my first ever run on May 24, 2017

To commemorate my 10 years of involvement in this sector, here are 10 things I have learned:

1. Human trafficking is not just sex trafficking;
2. Human trafficking is not just about movement, but about vulnerability;
3.  If we want to understand vulnerability, we need to understand injustice, poverty, and discrimination;
4. We can cause more hurt if we do not help in thoughtful ways;
5. I am not a savior and the solutions are so much bigger than me;
6. Survivors of trafficking are not homogenous, they are as diverse as all human beings;
7. The anti-trafficking sector needs more than “rescuers,” it needs researchers, social workers, writers, artists, psychologists, fundraisers, community workers, foster parents, business owners, etc.!
8. Victims/survivors want to be treated with respect, not pity, and we need to be careful about how, when, and why we tell their stories;
9. Trafficking and exploitation are a spectrum, with coercion and choice playing varying and nuanced roles;
10. If we want to end human trafficking, we need to fight for all human rights.

If you wish to join me in support of Chab Dai, you may do so by donating here.

Thank you!!