Free The Children

This is the story that launched a movement. At only 12 years old, Craig Kielburger was shocked to discover the realities of child labour faced by kids his own age throughout the developing world. Driven to take action and witness these conditions first-hand, he and his trusted mentor Alam embarked on a journey that would take him to places he'd never imagined. Free the Children recounts Craig's remarkable odyssey across South Asia, meeting some of the world's most disadvantaged children and learning the truth behind the headlines. Be there with him as he explores slums and sweatshops, fighting to rescue children from the chains of inhumane conditions. Along the way, he makes lasting friendships, enjoys wild adventures and launches the movement that would explode into an international sensation. Winner of the prestigious Christopher Award, presented to books "which affirm the highest values of the human spirit," Free the Children has been translated into eight languages and served as inspiration for thousands of young people around the world.

Heroes come in many sizes. In the Young Heroes biography series, KidHaven Press examines the lives of remarkable and heroic young people. Some have shown great personal courage in the face of difficult circumstances. Others have acted selflessly in an effort to improve other people's lives. Each book presents a truly inspirational story that will appeal both to student researchers and casual readers. Full-color photographs, a bibliography, and index appear in every volume along with ideas for how young people can get involved in the causes that interest them. Book jacket.

In a Toronto suburb in April 1995, twelve-year-old Craig Kielburger opened the daily paper as usual and began to search for the comics page. But his morning ritual was interrupted when an article about a boy his own age caught his eye. It was the story of Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who, at the age of four, was sold into slavery by his parents. For the next six years, the article read, Iqbal was shackled to a carpet loom, tying thousands upon thousands of tiny knots, twelve hours a day, six days a week. For this he was paid three cents a day. Amazingly, Iqbal's will was never broken: he escaped and began efforts to reveal the horror of child labour. But when Iqbal began to gain international attention, and Pakistani carpet manufacturers began to lose orders, he was shot dead. Craig's life was changed forever that morning. To find out more about child labour he contacted human-rights organizations around the world, and with a small band of his friends from school he formed his own human-rights organization called Free the Children. In the weeks that followed, Free the Children took off, fuelled entirely by the efforts and enthusiasm of children Craig's own age. Soon Craig decided that he had to see first-hand the working conditions of South Asian children. At the time he was not allowed to take the subway alone to downtown Toronto, but he convinced his reluctant parents to let him fly halfway around the world. For seven weeks, in the company of a young Canadian human-rights worker named Alam Rahman, Craig journeyed through the world of slums, sweatshops, and back alleys where so many of the children of South Asia live in servitude, often performing the most menial anddangerous of jobs. In his travels in Bangladesh, Thailand, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, Craig witnessed the shocking variety and extent of child labour, and was transformed from a typical, middle-class kid into a revolutionary. In New Delhi and Islamabad he created a sensation - and learned something of the power of the media - when he famously crossed paths with Prime Minister Jean Chretien, who was touring Asia with the 'Team Canada' trade mission. By the time he returned to Canada, Craig and the young people of Free the Children had gained an international profile. On his extraordinary journey Craig lost his faith in the ability of adults to uphold the rights of children, but his conviction that children themselves have the power to fight for their rights and those of their peers was stronger than ever.

"A brief, true journey into the hearts and souls of children everywhere, allowing our adult minds to remember what is real and true in all relationships"--Provided by publisher.

Craig Kielburger was 12 years old when he first learned about child labor and decided to try to help, eventually co-founding Free the Children.

It's time to do something different to stop child sexual abuse in Aotearoa New Zealand. It wrecks lives, families and communities. In this landmark book, well-known registered clinical psychologist Robyn Salisbury seeks the wisdom of those who have devoted many years, each in their own domain, to working with child sexual abuse. Free to Be Children makes a major and unique contribution to understanding how we can best tackle the tragedy of child sexual abuse as a nation, and how urgent it is that we do. From its foreword by Children's Commissioner Judge Andrew Becroft to its chapters by survivors, clinical psychologists working with both victims and offenders, the Chief Censor, experts on child sex-trafficking and psychotherapists working in harmed communities, the expertise contained in its pages offers a blueprint for best practice and cannot be ignored.