The Eastern Michigan University Women’s Resource Center reminds us all that January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and although that may seem grim, a healthy dose of perspective can inspire true power for change by simply raising awareness.
On Tuesday, Jan. 29 at 6:30 p.m., the film “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide” will be playing in the EMU Student Center Auditorium. The film paints an intimate portrait using stories of struggles that are faced by women all
over the world every day.
The film was inspired by the best-selling book by the same title written by New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn, but has since turned into a human rights movement.
“After you see and hear the stories of these beautiful jewels, your heart will spring into action. You will be empowered to spread the word,” said Trische Duckworth, a social work major in her senior year and EMU’s ambassador for the Half the Sky movement. “Getting the word out is what we need to do to get government officials to look more seriously at this.”
It is difficult to imagine the suffering and hardships that women all over the world face.
“Young girls leave home to obtain jobs that they were promised, their desire only to take care of their families at home, and to their surprise, they find themselves thrust into a life of prostitution,” Duckworth said.
The victimization of women and girls is one of the most common, yet least visible forms of oppression. The Half the Sky website explains how the effects go beyond the bruises and the fear, and rips at the very fabric holding families and communities together.
“Women and children … are being trafficked for sexual purposes every single day,” said Jess Klein, EMU’s program director at the WRC. “[And those] living in poverty are at the highest risk of being trafficked.”
It is a dauntingly dark part of our world and seems almost insurmountable—but that is exactly why it needs to be challenged.
Klein said it’s important for everyone to see the film.
“A problem can only be dealt with and solved if we admit that it’s a problem in the first place,” she said. “We have to show young women that they can be anything and do anything [and that] being masculine doesn’t mean using physical strength to prove one’s self, asserting dominance by using violence, or simply not crying or being emotional. Being a man means being human and treating others in society with respect and dignity, regardless of gender.”
The film follows Kristof, WuDunn and celebrity activists including Diane Lane, America Ferrera, Olivia Wilde and Nicole Kidman as they travel to 10 different countries and meet inspiring, courageous people. Across the globe oppression is being confronted, and meaningful solutions are being fashioned through health care, education and economic empowerment for women and girls.
