Craig Kielburger's Free The Children

“Many adults don’t think of youth as having a role to play in issues of social justice, assuming that we have little to contribute. I have learned, however, that with determination young people can make their voices heard. I see no reason why today’s youth cannot be today’s leaders.” - Craig Kielburger. Craig Kielburger started out as a teen activist and now has a successful charity called Free the Children. Free the Children is an organization that wants to free all children from child labor and send them to school. It all started with another teen activist who spoke out. His name was Iqbal Masih. Craig Kielburger

Craig was born in Thornhill, Ontario, Canada, on December 17, 1982. He got started with his brother Marc, and they fought for

Iqbal Masih became a debt slave at the age of 5, in Lahore Pakistan. He was a slave for an owner of a carpet factory, along with hundreds of other kids. Iqbal was forced to work from early morning to late night, and while working he was treated very poorly. Also, when Iqbal’s mother needed money, she took the loans out from his name so he had to pay it back. He wanted to leave and quit his job, but he couldn’t without risking his life. Iqbal gave other carpet working children the bravery to leave their jobs. At the age of 10, Iqbal was set free of the carpet factory, because he ran away. He continued to speak out against enslaving children and he wanted all kids to be able to go to school. He wanted to free the children in the carpet factories and give them an education so that poor children could have a better future. Iqbal’s dream was to become a lawyer when he grew up. Unfortunately, he was never able to reach his

It got its starts with Craig and 50 other 7th grade students that wanted to make a difference and has grown into a worldwide outreach that has helped many people. Along with his older brother Marc, they set out to free children and their families from poverty and exploitation. They began by writing letters to political leaders and circulating petitions. Their goal is to shut down child labor completely and forever through this outreach.

Through this charity, they have reached 1 million people and have kept them safe, given them clean water, healthcare, and sanitation facilities. Not one person was over 18 years old when it started. They built over 650 schools throughout foreign countries. When he had visited the children in Africa, many had not known what a school even was. This is a global movement that is active in 45+ countries and is driven by the youth. “These pillars ensure girls go to class instead of walking long distances to fetch dirty water for their families.” - Free the