How to engage our kids in our advocacy
With schools closed and stay-at-home orders in place throughout the country, there are more hours in the day than normal with the littles in our lives at home. This is valuable time that can be used to engage kids in advocacy in a major way.
Sometimes the smallest members of our community can have the biggest impact in fundraising and advocacy against trafficking. Children and young people have unique gifts and insights that can help create change, but they may require just a little bit of creative thinking to engage. What can children do to help in advocacy?
Make it a family affair
If you are a parent participating in Dressember, encourage your kids to participate in their own way. If it is too much for them to wear a dress or tie every day, try making one day out of the week a “dress up” day! Ask them to take a picture each week and use these photos to compile a small photo album! This can be a fun way to build physical memories with your child and offers you the ability to share these photos with your friends or family who might be interested in your project.
Education
While trafficking can be a heavy topic for young children, there are still ways the topic can be broached and discussed with your kids. It may be more appropriate to start with a discussion on labor trafficking rather than sex trafficking. While it is a heavy topic, slavery is not a difficult concept for most children to grasp. Founder Blythe Hill says in an interview that, “it’s not difficult for children to imagine being forced to work all day without food or time to play or the option of leaving.” Open up this dialogue with your children and be ready to discuss questions that may arise. Try asking, “How would you feel if you never had time to play?” or “What would it be like if you didn’t have a comfortable bed to sleep on at night?” These are just examples to start the dialogue. And you can encourage them that, although slavery exists and takes away dignity from survivors, there are ways that we can fight back for the sake of those without a voice.
For some helpful advice regarding talking with your children about trafficking, check out this article from Dressember.
Advocacy at (home)school
Learning at home opens up the door for personalized projects for kids. You can help them put together a slideshow presentation and have them bring pins or notecards with statistics on them, creating a resource that can inform their peers at school.
“Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world. ”
Shop ethically with your kids
Ethical garments and goods are not just for adults! Shopping from sustainable brands for your whole family not only supports justice for workers, but it also helps to keep your kids happy since sustainable brands tend to specialize in well-made clothing. For example, Pitupi produces using organic fabrics that are sensitive and safe for children. Oli & Carol sells natural rubber toys that are non-toxic and work well as teethers, bath toys, and decorations. They also support children in the Baba Jodh Sachiyar School in northern India, so your funds are going to a socially aware and responsible source. These companies are just scratching the surface! Check out this article for eight other ethical brands that are kid-friendly.
Care Packages
In a former article that I wrote about using our love languages to further our advocacy, I mentioned the idea of putting together recovery care packages for trafficking survivors. This method of support is extremely accessible for kids and can be a fun and fulfilling way for them to get involved. When I was young, my mom would take me and my sister to the store every holiday season where we would pick out treats and gifts to put in a shoebox for children overseas. In the same way, you can involve your children in putting together recovery packages! Let them help you choose what things to put in it, assemble the recovery package together, and have them write an encouraging note to include in the box. Reach out to a local women’s shelter to find out how you can give recovery boxes or visit this link to find out about giving a care package through Restore Innocence!
These ideas are just the beginning! The sky's the limit here with getting children involved--after all, they are individuals with the capacity for ideas and innovation, just the same as adults! Not to mention that children have the ability to be highly empathetic, which means that they will bring an exceptionally compassionate spirit to their advocacy. Bring your children alongside you in your campaign, and I think you will be surprised at what they inspire in you and in others.
About the Author
Allison McCune is a girl of many interests. Whether it’s slinging drinks as a barista, hiking 600 miles in one summer, or dissecting poetry and literature, she brings passion and insight to everything she does. She hopes to refine her writing in the next few years while using her skills to work with non-profit groups. Her goal is to eventually return to school, complete a doctoral degree, and be able to teach at the undergrad and graduate levels.