Raising Awareness: Who is your target audience?

On September 18th Chab Dai USA sponsored its 3rd annual Sacramento March Against Slavery.  Before the march I took a few minutes to reflect as I stood in the middle of the Cesar Chavez Park where the event was taking place.   It felt good to see it come together.  The event staff, who had already worked tirelessly to organize the event, were still running around.   The co-sponsors and booth supporters were busy greeting one another while showcasing their organizations with pride.  The band was playing, raffle tickets were being sold and despite the heat people were preparing to march.

That's what today was about.   It was about coming together for a common cause;  supporting and encouraging local anti-human trafficking organizations;  and it was about raising awareness.   The only part of today's purpose yet to be determined was the raising awareness piece and I wondered how that might play out today.  It seemed obvious but by the end of the day, I wasn't so sure.

As I helped to clean up after the event,  I could see from a short distance a group of our youngest volunteers, ranging in ages from 10 - 17.  They had worked hard all day yet there they were still proudly wearing their event t-shirts and still tucked under their arms were the signs they carried in the march.    I could tell they were having a serious conversation and as I stepped a little closer I realized it was more than just superficial.  They were, in their youthful way, debriefing today's event.   They were rereading their signs and talking about the pictures they had seen at some of the booths.  One of them mentioned how 'cool' it was to see local organizations helping victims by selling their handmade items and wondered what she might do to help some of those victims.   The last thing I heard was a young girl saying: "I'm never going to let that happen to me or to anyone I know."

I had clearly underestimated the impact that painting signs, selling raffle tickets, serving water and simply being present at the march would have on these young, and in some cases vulnerable, kids.  How limiting of me to assume that our target audience were simply today's spectators -- those passing by as we marched around the Cesar Chavez Park and State Capitol!

At the end of the day and as I drove away I was comforted to know that today's march had brought about an awareness in these young kids -- an awareness I hoped would never be forgotten.   Likewise,  I prayed that as they returned to their families and friends they might be burdened with a desire to join hands in actively fighting human trafficking and modern day slavery.