I Kick and I Fly: Empowering Teens in the Fight Against Sexual Violence
May 1, 2023
Teen sexual violence, including their sex trafficking has seen a dramatic rise in the USA since 2020. A recent study by the CDC found that 13.5% of girls said they have been forced to have sex—an 18% increase since 2019 and one in 10 said they had been raped. The National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children additionally reports that the ages of trafficking victims has gone down and that children account for more than half of all trafficking victims in America.
A panel of experts and practitioners included Charlotte Clymer, Writer, Transgender Activist, Communications Consultant, and Military Veteran who moderated the panel, Dr. Kathleen Ethier, Director, Division of Adolescent and School Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Ruchira Gupta, Journalist and author of, I Kick and I Fly. The panelilsts offered best practices and solutions on how to combat this heartbreaking trend. They discussed what educational and emotional resources adults can put in place to give young people the resources they need on how to spot the warning signs of sexual violence and human trafficking, how to stand up to predators, how to protect themselves and seek help.
Content Warning: Tonight's discussion contained descriptions of and references to violence and sexual assault.
Charlotte Clymer
Ruchira Gupta
Kathleen Ethier
About the Book
Fourteen-year-old Heera knows she is living on borrowed time when she is expelled from school. There is no food at home and her father wants to sell her into the sex trade. She has no means to fight back until a woman’s rights advocate enrolls her in her Kung Fu class. Through it, Heera learns that her body isn’t an object to be preyed upon, but a vessel to free herself.