They may look like a bunch of shoes on a large wooden rack to you, but they're much more than that. Each day, they are filled by young women who have been victims of labor and sexual exploitation or for those who are at risk. Their feet have “walked” through experiences that many of us can’t even imagine. The New Life Center, a Christian based organization, that we visited mainly works with women from the tribal communities. As we sat in plastic chairs, under a shaded area, listening to the chirping birds, Kit Ripley gave us a historical background of the tribal people of Northern Thailand and how the girls wound up at the Center.TRAGEGY AND HUMANITY
Certainly, there are isolated incidents, like natural disasters, or major events such as 911, that make headline news, upsetting us as viewers and sometimes even as victims. This is what the media does! Then, there are continuous tragic crimes that don’t get the same attention, like those of human trafficking that don’t only happen in Asia but throughout the world, even the U.S. There are over 200,000 victims of human trafficking in the U.S. each year. That was news to me! http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128873444&sc=ipad&f=1001%3ehttp://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128873444&sc=ipad&f=1001
Here is our director, Jenn, with Kit Ripley from New Life.
On Sunday, we visited the New Life Center, a place which houses rescued victims of human trafficking, followed by lectures at Chiang Mai University regarding the issues of human trafficking, prevention and rehabilitation of victims.
Detailed stories of some girls ... One young woman is from China. At the age of nine, her mom died and her father brought her to Burma, where they resided for a year. He then gave her to a family (she mentioned that she was unsure if money was exchanged), who hung on to her for a few days and then passed her on to another family who sent her to school but gave her the responsibility of caring for their younger children before and after school. At the age of twelve, the “father” and other men of this family raped her about 3-4 times a week. For two years this went on until she got her menstrual cycle. Realizing she could get pregnant, she confided in a teacher, who fortunately knew the proper protocol. In time, the father was convicted but fled ... Meanwhile, she is currently being charged with illegally crossing borders at the age of nine. Now, at the age of 14, she is at the New Life Center and is creating a fresh start for herself. When asked if she would repatriate to China, she said that she wouldn't even remember the town in southern China from where she came .... (Ah, the injustice) ...
Another girl at the Center was a victim of labor exploitation. She worked in a factory from the age of 4 to 14. When she was asked what she would like from the Center, her two requests were to go to school and find her mother. While she was getting her desired education, and as destiny would have it, the Thai government located her mother working at a nearby factory. In the “time” that followed leading to their meeting, she made her mother a quilt. Kit ended the story with this wonderful reunion and heartfelt gift; however I wanted to know how the girl was progressing at New Life. It was so hot (surprise-suprise) and I was already exhausted (this weather takes the life out of you!), yet knew that I only had a window of about 10 seconds as I was walking toward the van to ask Kit about this young lady. “So, what happened to that young girl?” After a quick sigh from Kit, I could tell the story didn’t have such a happy ending. Apparently, she left the Center early because she would sneak out to meet a boy that she grew fond of. Vulnerability and, one could even surmise, the strong desire to fill the void of love that she never got from her mom, led her to marry a man from a nearby hill tribe. With a child to raise in a miserable environment, her regret for not continuing her education is expressed when she walks back to the Center and verbalizes it to the other girls who are there and wishes that she would have chosen to pursue her dream to go to school. Her feet – her shoes – walk through life in sadness and with regret. The other young women at the Center, whose feet fill the shoes you see, will hopefully take the opportunity for a better life at New Life.
On a positive note, Rotary is doing great things.
I was pleased to learn how education was a priority, to hear how much they loved school, and to see all the books.
Our “tour” ended at the Center’s store, which contained items that the young girls made in their home economics classes. It was filled with stuffed animals adorned in tribal dress, jewelry, quilts, pillow covers, satin handbags, quilted handbags, satin wallets, hand-stitched Christmas ornaments … Without hesitation, I picked up a silk stitched shoulder bag with randomly cut shapes and sizes of vibrant colored cloth. Tears started streaming down my cheeks as I realized what this bag meant to me. It clearly represented the different young women who had distinctive horrific pasts, all victims of human trafficking, yet all holding a common goal – that of having a better life. Metaphorically, it spoke volumes to me. The quilts were also attracting me with their beautiful warm colors or carefully arranged patterns. I couldn’t help but wonder how therapeutic and healing it must have been for them to be able to design and sew quilts in a safe environment of love and hope. The work on the quilts was of quality, from the durable material to the hand-stitching, but I couldn’t justify spending the money (handmade quilts are expensive). In my search, I found a quilted shower curtain with beautifully arranged pieces of blue fabric. Incidentally, it is one of my favorite colors as it reminds me of bodies of water, more specifically the sound of the deep Atlantic Ocean near “home.” Additionally, I can recall the intense azure color of the sky driving to Middlebury College in Vermont on a clear summer’s day back in the day. Yes, I love blue and, at the very last minute, decided to buy it and use upon my arrival back to Bangkok as a bed cover. Surely, it would brighten my dormitory room at Chulalongkorn University, providing me with auditory memories of the ocean and visual memories of a New England summer sky, especially after hours of intense classes. Great! I justified my purchase as the penultimate customer in the Center’s shop! Surprisingly, as I waited to check out, Kit introduced me to the artist/seamstress of my curtain. Kit proudly mentioned that Chang just graduated from high school. The only question that I couldn’t think of asking her was how old she was. Kit said she was 23! How ironic that it is my lucky number. Of course, I told her that, thanked her for making such a beautiful curtain that I will utilize as a bed cover and wished her the very, very best! Isn't it beautiful?! It totally brightens up my room and I will forever remember her smile and how she brightened my day at New Life! What do you think Barbara? I can't wait to show it to you along with the rest of my handcrafted items.
After such an emotionally draining day, some of us went for a foot massage, which always includes a brief head/neck/shoulder massage. In addition to using their hands, they also use their forearms and elbows – very interesting – but it killed!!!!!!!! Every time the masseuse would press her elbows on my lower neck, I would whine … and she would giggle!!
After lecture on Tuesday on the prevention of human trafficking, our site visits were to World Vision and Gabfai. http://www.gabfai.com/ The latter was my favorite as it dealt with utilizing theatre in communities, schools, etc. to empower children and raise public awareness about human trafficking … Check out the founder's shirt! A FLAME CAN LIGHT A THOUSAND CANDLES!!
Erinma and I took advantage of a photo op!!
The evening was low-key and concluded with a light dinner with Inday and Nancy (USA) (curry soup and a big salad). A great majority went for a MAH-ssage (as the Australians pronounce it); I, quite frankly, need a break from all sorts of massages (foot, oil, Thai, back) as I’ve averaged more than one a week!
