Teachers in Brazil say the anti-slavery movement needs an infusion of fun to motivate children to think about trafficking. So, activists have created an imaginative and playful board game. It’s called Escravo, Nem Pensar! (“Slavery, No Way!”).
To win, players have to eradicate slavery outbreaks, and the game requires children to cooperate rather than compete. It encourages dialogue, reasoning and strategic thinking — the same techniques that community leaders use to combat slavery at Brazilian farms, ranches, mines and factories.
The Slavery, No Way! initiative has been at work in Brazil’s schools for several years to raise awareness of trafficking and slavery. The project is run by FTS frontline partner Reporter Brasil. Teachers have been asking for new, creative approaches to engage students of all ages. So the board game was born.
“We are very excited to use this educational and innovative resource,” says Natalia Suzuki, the coordinator of the Slavery No Way! program. She says it’s important to approach a complex issue “in a fun and easy way.”
Children must take three lines of action to be successful: preventing vulnerable Brazilians from becoming enslaved, assisting victims already in slavery, and ending the root causes of slavery in Brazil. There are several characters in the game, including justice officials, activists, slaves and traffickers.
You can learn more about the many ways that Reporter Brasil — and our other Brazilian frontline partner, CPT — are working to free thousands of people from slavery, on the Free the Slaves Brazil webpage.
