talking point 10

Human Trafficking is a crime against humanity. It’s an act of taking a person through the use of force, for the purpose of exploiting them sexually and labor. Every year, men, women and children are kidnapped and fall into the hands of traffickers, in their own countries and abroad. Every country in the world is affected by human trafficking no country escapes from this nightmare.

11 FACTS ABOUT HUMAN TRAFFICKING

1. The average cost of a slave around the world is $90.
2. Trafficking primarily involves exploitation which comes in many forms, including:
• Forcing victims into prostitution
• Subjecting victims to slavery or involuntary servitude
• Compelling victims to commit sex acts for the purpose of creating pornography
• Misleading victims into debt bondage
3. According to some estimates, approximately 80% of trafficking involves sexual exploitation, and 19% involves labor exploitation.
4. It is estimated that there are approximately 27 million slaves around the world.
5. 68% of female sex trafficking victims meet the clinical criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder.
6. Around half of trafficking victims in the world are under the age of 18.
7. More than 2/3 of sex trafficked children suffer additional abuse at the hands of their traffickers.
8. Trafficked children are significantly more likely to develop mental health problems, abuse substances, engage in prostitution as adults, and either commit or be victimized by violent crimes later in life.
9. Women who have been trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation experience a significantly higher rate of HIV and other STDs, tuberculosis, and permanent damage to their reproductive systems.
10. There is only one shelter in the U.S. designed specifically to meet the needs of trafficking victims, and it currently only houses a total of seven to nine victims.
11. Trafficking victims normally don't get help because they think that they or their families will be hurt by their traffickers, or that they will be deported.

 There are many cases of human trafficking in the United States. I found a case that happened here in Rhode Island about one year ago. Two men were accused of enslaving teenage girls and forcing them to prostitution. The two men pleaded not guilty to the charges against them in the providence superior court. Both men of 23 are the first to be prosecuted after the state of Rhode Island made indoor prostitution illegal.  Police say “the men came to Rhode Island from New York to take advantage of the loophole, and kept the business running even after the law changed”. Both men are facing 16 criminal counts which include involuntary servitude, human trafficking and pandering. Detectives arrested both men after receiving a lead and the confirmed that both men were advertising their “business” in the internet. One of the criminals is also being charged with one count sexual assault for the rape of a 19 year-old woman. He is being held at the adult correctional institution in Cranston. The other man made bail and was given permission to stay with his family in New York during the process of the case. 

 this case reminds me of the article we read about oppression. the young women that were kidnapped were seen as objects of pleasure. both men did not have cosideration for the life of the girls and did not care if they were suffering. human trafficking is an atrocity that violates every humans right.

  



this is the house both men used to comitt the crimes..

 ( in providence)

“abstinence-Only: Breeding ignorance” hyperlinks

In the article “abstinence-Only: Breeding ignorance”, Mary-Jane wangle argues that this type of sexual education is wrong because the information that is given to students is false. Not providing the individual with the right information. Not letting them know what kind of choices they have if they decide to become sexually active. In the article Mary says that 80 percent of abstinence only programs teach false information about reproductive health. They use wrong scientific information and religious views as facts to give the students.  Mary-Jane gives examples of what kind of information is given to the students in these programs. Students are told that condoms fail to protect against HIV, in one book they tell students that touching another persons genitals could result in pregnancy.  Abstinence is 100% effective in preventing, pregnancy and sexual transmitted diseases. Methods such as birth control, which only protects against unwanted pregnancies, and condoms that have a 99% percent of protection do not give the security of being sexually inactive. Therefore the most secure way of staying safe is practicing Abstinence.

http://onemoreoption.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/abstinence.jpg

However this fact does not give the right to “Breed an ignorant youth”. I believe that they should teach students accurate information about sexual transmitted diseases, ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies, and the things they can use to protect themselves, also the responsibilities of being a parent. This way, teenagers understand that having sexual relations can jeopardize their liberty as young single adults and teaches them that if they believe to be mature enough to start having sex they should also have the same maturity to confront the responsibilities that come with it. I believe that Abstinence should remain an option for students and should be taught in accurate and scientifically proven facts. I believe that abstinence is the best protection but it shouldn’t be taught as the only way. In one of her quotes Wangle says “Abstinence- only programs try to scare and shame teens, teaching only the negative consequences of sexuality without telling young people what they can do to stay safe and healthy”.  I believe that educators have committed a huge mistake of teaching students about the subject because the student can discard his or her options to protect themselves if they fall short.  

Mary Jane uses California as an example, because they have decided to educate their students how to practice safe sex; Wagle states that their rates of teenage pregnancies have reduced by a forty percent over 10 years. In a study done by Columbia University they have found that 88% of students that make virginity pledges delay to have sex but lways end up having premarital sex, and they found that the rate of sexual transmitted diseases within the ledgers was no different from non-pledgers.  

http://onemoreoption.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/898.jpg

Mary raises a huge point in one of her quotes that state that Knowledge can be dangerous. Ignorance however can be fatal. I agree with her because having too much knowledge could be dangerous and this could be proven in every aspect of our society today. From Science to social issues this can be seen today.   

   

promising practises ( how this conference relate to Feminist practices 2011)

This conference relates to feminist practices in many ways. Feminist practices cover issues that affect women, men, issues of race, gender, and many other forms of oppression. This conference addressed the issues of race in education, and how it can set a barrier between teacher and student. In the youth conference the three high school students addressed that not being able to relate to their teachers lead students to misbehave, because many teachers tend to judge them instead of trying to work and understand what they are asking for. The youth representatives addressed that having nothing in common with their teachers is difficult because even if they asked for help those teachers simply wouldn’t understand. After analyzing the issue I had come down with conclusion that in order to change all these problems of oppression we must teach our children about different cultures and their struggles to prepare them to be knowledgeable of the issues that they go through. In one of the articles written by Fletcher he says  “Encouraging multiracial friendships and exposing naive students to students of color can help to strengthen the knowledge base of students and decrease the incidents of race.”  This also can apply to teachers, especially because they deal with students with different backgrounds   

promising practices(external links)

http://www.projectgoal.org/
http://www.cityyear.org/
http://www.riseonline.org/

Promising Practices

The conference was a great experience from which I walked out with inspiration to change and help overcome the big animosity that is discrimination, whether it is from roles of gender or race this is a problem that hugs our society tightly and does not allow for change to occur. The conference was divided into five stages, the introduction, the workshop meeting, the expo, the youth conference, and the youth panel.

During registration I had the chance to pick form 13 workshops I would like to attend. I decided to choose a conference that would teach me something new, something out of the ordinary. I decided to attend a conference called service learning as a tool for experiential learning, with Professor Mustafa Ozcan. This workshop was mainly learning through experience, and how to make educational programs for students. Dr. Mustafa was a funny man; he was able to deliver a message of learning while having hands on experience. He allowed us to conduct group learning plans for students in elementary through high school. Putting together an experience for the students and an overall learning environment, giving a doubled sided message where the students can take in what they give out. In my group we chose Veterans of war. Our main purpose was to teach a class of high school students about the War of Vietnam and the issues that occurred after the War. We came up with a plan to allow our students to learn in the first person from Vietnam soldiers. By doing this we also taught our students the importance of giving moral support to the veterans in need. This workshop was mainly for students who are pursuing a degree in teaching and for teachers. This technique expresses difference in teaching, the traditional method of giving handouts and explaining what will be discussed was said to be forgotten after months of unused materials. But through hands on interactive with actual people and places students will keep the knowledge of the material they learned over the course of time, simply they make a connection from what they learned to a need in society.

When we were done with the workshop, we returned to Donavan dinning center for the promising partnerships expo.  The expo offered volunteer opportunities for teachers, and students aspiring to become educators. The expo was a great opportunity to learn about the resources and the organizations that exist in Rhode Island. One of the organizations that were present in the expo was city year. City year is a great program that caught my attention. In this program students from different backgrounds serve as tutors, and mentors to students from the elementary level through high school. The dedicated members of city year serve in schools full time for 10 months; they help students to improve their performance in English and math, attendance, and behavior. This organization made such an impact in many of us because their dedication and their hunger to help those in need.

After the expo we had to go to gaige hall where three young adults hosted the “teen empowerment conference with Heang Ly. There message was a simple but powerful one. Letting the voice of the youth from low income communities speak instead of always being spoken to. There expression of how the message of a teacher is translated into a negative view, making these students engage in acting out instead of a positive reaction to their miss-understandings in their work. Further into ways of interactive games that would show how lack of proper communication can deter a students learning environment. The T.E. students gave an inside look on how the students who act out can be reached if different ways to address their issues. To wrap up this part of the conference the T.E. students allowed for some audience interaction, letting any Students or teachers ask questions on this matter. From my point of view the conference was an encouraging word to teachers and those students who are preparing themselves to become teachers not to feel discouraged if they are presented with the challenge of working in a low income community. This message should be taken as a guiding point on how to reach these students, and each and every one of us can make a change in someone’s life.

Going back to the dinning center there was lunch provided and a student panel.  The 3 groups that presented themselves were T.E., M.P.H.T.A., and A.L.L.I.E.D. Each student gave their story of where they came from, where they are now and how they can help those students who were in their positions. All their stories were touching and reminded me of that special teacher that made a difference in my life and it brought a sense of genuine inspiration to want to reach out to another life and have this effect on them.  Finally the panel ended with questions from the audience.

In conclusion I felt that I made the right choice of choosing my workshop because the whole conference had a nice flow. Everything that I learned in each stage of the conference related to each other. Giving me the message that it is not enough to say what I can do to make a difference or an impact, but taking the steps to make this happen. 

8# fletcher A. Blanchard, Andrea Ayvazian (extended comment)

Andrea speaks of Oppression and what it means to her, what she hopes for this country, and how and what are some ways of systemic oppression expressed. she says "what does seem to create real and lasting change is highly movitivated individuals....". She uses the "term oppresion to describe the cobination of prejudice plus access to social political and econmic power on the part of a dominant group." Taking this into the front lines she brings fourth a comment on fighting fire with fire. I say this and her words stating "PFLAG speakers can be heard....because they are heterosexuals speaking to other heterosexuals, they often have a significant impact." Her statement expresses how a black person telling a white person racism is wrong does not have the same impact on a white person than if a fellow white person was to tell another white person racism against black people is wrong. When people come together to say "NO", this change can spring violence in some ways. As she states "deology, or the propagation of doctrins that purport to legitimize inequality; and Violence by the dominat group against the targeted group." In Heathers page she discusses what Flecther B. tries to say,

Heather mainly speaks about Fletcher B, she breaks down three main points that he brings across in his article. Flectcher says that racism should be addressed from an early age because that is the time that children are learning how to create relationships with other children. So is very important that they learn how to socialize with children of other races, and as stated “Encouraging multiracial friendships and exposing naive students to students of color can help to strengthen the knowledge base of students and decrease the incidents of race.”