Originally, I wanted to
focus on the way media is playing a role on Sex Trafficking, but then I
I started and still continue to work with
the organizations that assist girls getting off the streets and back home to
their family, but I was introduced to an attorney that is working on changing
the laws in our country on the matters of sex trafficking victims. They are not
just saving lies, but exposing corruption in police stations and the blindness
that this country continue to do amongst sex violence. These attorneys have
been successful with getting girls and boys records expunged, because of what
they were exposed too. Even though it is not in the forefront and in the media
there are people that are making great change in this matter. Despite the
silence on sex crimes in this country, women are taking their voices back and
making their stances to be heard.
Most of my project thus far has been
mostly footwork, I’m a foot solider, and I like to get in the mix of things to
have a better understanding of what is going on. This past Friday I was in
Washington D.C. where the attorneys were working on cases they were preparing
to bring before the Supreme court and prep some of the girls that I’ve been
working so closely with to testify before the Supreme court judges. This is no
longer a silent epidemic, but now becoming one of the most important ones in
sex crime.
My final note on this is I chose
Kingsborough Community College for publication, because one of my closest
friends who was a valedictorian at KBCC was also a sex trafficked violence from
China. Once she told me that and I asked her can I use her story to get
published she agreed and KBCC jumped onboard. Also, she will be one of the
women that will be testifying at the Supreme Court; no one is abstained from
sex violence, because if it is not personally affecting you it is affecting
someone you know. Society has always played a blind eye to sex crimes, now is
the time to force sex crimes to the forefront of societies priorities and see
people not just victims. Sex trafficking of girls and boys must no longer be this
thing that’s happening over there, especially when it is happening two houses
from you.
Your project is so important to be out in the world right now, and I truly admire the footwork you have been doing to raise awareness on the subject. I knew that this was an issue here, but even just from the images you show on your post, it seems way more common than it should be. I'm sure a lot of people don't know the gravity of the situation. Although I am happy it will be published at KBCC, I'm worried it will not reach as many people as it should. Perhaps before (or after) this class is over, you should find a way to share with your fellow hunter students, or somewhere online so it can be shared on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms. This is just an idea, I think KBCC is a great start, but the subject is so important I would just like to see it everywhere!
ReplyDeleteIt will be posted on KBCC paper just for the project, but I'm working with an organization to get it on their website and it will be posted on social media via friends, family and my pages as well
DeleteGreat! Happy to see that this may be just the beginning of a larger activist/journalism project.
DeleteI love this idea, it's definitely an important issue that everyone needs to be aware of.
ReplyDeleteBut I agree with Barbara - I think the article may not reach as broad an audience as it should. Her suggestion of sharing it with Hunter students is a great idea.
I think there could also be several online blogs (maybe from some students in this class?) that would be more than happy to share your article with their followers. The more people you can get to share this article, the better
I think this is a great idea for your project. Sex trafficking is an issue that I am very interested in learning more about. I learn about issues almost entirely from social media so spreading the information on multiple platforms will be affective. Your hands-on work is so inspiring and it has a much different impact than just sitting at home researching about what's going on. I also think it is a great idea to use the KBCC newspaper especially because sex trafficking has affecting their community. This will show students that it is more common than they might think. Maybe you can even try to get it published in a Hunter newspaper as well.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great idea for your project. Sex trafficking is an issue that I am very interested in learning more about. I learn about issues almost entirely from social media so spreading the information on multiple platforms will be affective. Your hands-on work is so inspiring and it has a much different impact than just sitting at home researching about what's going on. I also think it is a great idea to use the KBCC newspaper especially because sex trafficking has affecting their community. This will show students that it is more common than they might think. Maybe you can even try to get it published in a Hunter newspaper as well.
ReplyDeleteI immediately think about TV initiatives that help to spear awareness about the issue. There is also a distinction between human trafficking and sex trafficking that can be made although often they overlap. I agree that this issue(s) is silenced in our media and thus seems like an ignored or denied problem in the US. I agree with others that the choice of KBCC seems appropriate given the connection to the community but I also agree that spreading this message wider is also important. Do consider that as well.
ReplyDeleteI immediately thought of the project In Plain Sight: http://www.inplainsightfilm.com/#sthash.aNJqnt25.dpbs The film is important but the sight shares tons of resources, events and actions. It is an expansive project worth allying your mission with perhaps.
The Polaris Project working on the basis of legislation, enforcement, safety and resource allocation and awareness. They also focus mainly in the US https://polarisproject.org/
I also mentioned the art project "Journey" from 2009 by Emma Thomson and Elena, a survivor of sex trafficking. This story is not a US story but a more global pespective but it was created in the US for a US audience. It was a very powerful experience to see this when it was installed in NYC a few years ago. It left a lasting impact on me and my views about this urgent problem. A few articles about the project:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=114328601
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/art-show-shines-light-on-sex-traffickings-victims/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/09/emma-thompsons-journey-ex_n_351624.html
While looking for info about that project I found an article about another NYC based artist, Molly Gochman, who created another very powerful project called THE RED SAND PROJECT definitely worth a look too: http://hyperallergic.com/269113/an-art-project-ensures-victims-of-human-trafficking-dont-fall-through-the-cracks/
The No Project is another online project about human trafficking worth checking out aimed at a very young audience and helping to raise awareness and safety: http://thenoproject.org/
There is also this recent article in NYTimes about human trafficking http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/09/14/photographing-human-trafficking-in-new-york/
Good Luck!