past labels

What do you think of when you hear "teen prostitute"?

what do you think of when you hear "sexually exploited child"?

the power of words is amazing - associations, generalizations, stereotypes - often we put people, things, institutions, whole social systems in boxes - into things we try to make sense of, dismiss, or demonize. What are we really accomplishing? how do we move past these labels to humanity? to truth - even ugly truth. How do we recognize the victim and reach out with support for empowerment, rather than turning the other way saying "thats all they were good for anyway". That is ultimately what we are saying if we stop and think about it - when we don't care that a young girl from Uphams Corner goes missing - when we don't want to face the back of the Pheonix and recognize the exploitation happening there, but rather shut it fast. When the media gets all upset about a white girl from the suburbs with wealthy parents who gets abducted, and nothing is mentioned about the hundreds of girls who go missing from our city's poorest communities. This is not ok.

I went to an all day training today through "My Life My Choice" - much of these thoughts comes from processing the training.
something interesting from the training...

Who is at Risk?
girls at risk for recruitment into CSEC (commercial sexual exploitation of children) are girls who:

• Are under 18 years old
• Walk to school or to the stare alone
• Own or have access to a computer
• Are attracted to consumer goods
• Desire to develop romantic relationships
• sometimes feel insecure
• feel misunderstood
  
• fight with their parents
• sometimes feel their parents don't care
• want more independence
• test boundaries and take risks

question: According to this list, who is at risk for recruitment into CSEC? Know anyone - especially any teens that fit those?

exactly - this could happen to anyone! which is why we must continue to get the word out! and, we must watch out language and move past harmful labels.