Some runners engage in streaking– referring to the practice of running every day for an extended period of time (not to be confused with the unfortunate fad from the 70s of running naked across the field at sporting events). Runners have streaked for 25 years or more!
I went on a bit of a streak of my own last week. Because I was travelling from place to place I wasn’t able to run every day, but over the course of six days I managed to run in four different cities in Asia. First I ran on the streets of Kolkata in the early morning, dodging lorries, motorbikes, taxis, milk vendors, cycle rickshaws, men bathing themselves, and dogs.
Then I ran in Rot Fai Park in Bangkok, stopping at 6 pm to stand at attention along with the Thais during one of the daily broadcasts of the Thai national anthem. On Saturday I circumnavigated the Old City of Chiang Mai, running on the narrow walkway at the edge of the moat that circles the old city walls, conscious that if I stumbled I could easily tumble into the moat.
On Sunday I ran up stairs and down wheelchair ramps on the Trail of Health in Tung Chung Park in Hong Kong, while the Chinese grandmothers practiced their early morning Tai Chi routines nearby. It was difficult to maintain this pace of activity during my trip, but essential if I was to maintain my level of fitness in advance of the Amsterdam Marathon on October 15.
Far more impressive than my little streak was IJM’s recent eight-day streak of rescues in India. Over the course of eight days from September 14 to 22, IJM teams across India supported local officials on eight successful rescue operations, freeing a total of 88 people from bonded labour slavery and sex trafficking.
When I visited with members of the IJM Kolkata team on Monday the 25th, they were still celebrating the last of the eight rescues, which had taken place on the previous Friday evening. IJM and local authorities were searching for two teenagers allegedly being sold for sex in a hotel, but when the team arrived they found 26 girls and young women being exploited and managed to bring them to safety.
Like a runner training for a marathon, what you do every day matters in the fight to end slavery for good.
Every successful rescue operation is a cause for celebration, but it takes more than one or two rescues to deal a decisive blow to pervasive practices of violence and exploitation like bonded labour slavery and sex trafficking. It takes the relentless, steady, unflinching, daily commitment to the regimens of investigation, victim rescue, law enforcement and survivor restoration that IJM demonstrated over the course of eight days in September. Like a runner training for a marathon, what you do every day matters in the fight to end slavery for good.
Inspired by my colleagues in India, I’m “Going the Distance” at the Amsterdam Marathon on October 15. My goal is to raise $10,000 to help IJM fight trafficking of women and children. To date I’ve raised $3,550. Will you help me get to the finish line? To make your contribution, go to https://support.ijm.ca/going-the-distance.
