WHO YOU GONNA CALL?

The goal of this exercise is to ask each participant to consider how to respond o a child asking the questions in each of the five scenarios. When the participants don’t know what they would do or how to respond to a child’s request, the Game Leader should lead a collaborative problem solving conversation to ensure that each participant leaves the exercise having a basic plan of action for such situations.

Presently, California is moving ahead to address the needs of children involved in commercial sexual exploitation by increasing awareness of the issue and building an infrastructure to respond to the complex, challenging needs these youth present. This handout aims to help adults who encounter CSEC/youth:  Anticipate the kinds of needs CSEC/youth are likely to express;  Prepare to identify and connect youth to community-based services;  Meet youths’ conditions for help (e.g. don’t tell my mother, don’t tell the police).

Consider this observation: “I’ve been in some family team decision-making meetings where you have 15 people in the room, where it looks like it is really resource-rich and service-rich… and then I ask a very simple question: ‘Is there anyone in this room that this young person will call when she is in crisis?’ That’s the level of assessment we need to be doing. It is not how many referrals you’ve made. It’s not how many times you’ve tried to open the door. It’s, ‘Is there a relationship that the young person will reach out to when they need help?’” -Leslie Briner, Sexual Exploitation Training and Policy Coordinator, Youthcare, Washington State

Scenario 1: A child calls you from a detention center and says s/he can only be released to an adult like you, what should you do?

Scenario 2: A child says s/he is being kidnapped/held/beaten but doesn’t want the police involved, what should you do?

Scenario 3: A youth asks if there is someone s/he “can talk to without getting anyone in trouble,” to whom would you direct the child? What would you tell the child?

Scenario 4: A child says s/he doesn’t want to go home, where should I take the child?

Scenario 5: A parent says s/he thinks his/her child is involved in CSEC, what should you do?