Los Altos native Elizabeth Khouri has decided to be a lawyer and specialize in human rights. What makes that unusual is that Khouri, still in high school, has already had the type of career-building exposure that many young adults don’t experience until after earning a college degree and launching a career.
A video produced by the International Justice Mission, a global human-rights agency, inspired the then 13-year-old Khouri. She learned that 27 million people, including millions of children, are victims of human trafficking and bonded slavery. The hard-hitting story set Khouri on a course of action that has changed her life.
“After watching that video, I told my parents that I wanted to become a lawyer and defend human rights,” said Khouri, a senior. “I knew it beyond any shadow of a doubt.”
Since then, Khouri has pursued opportunities to learn about human rights, and by the spring of her junior year, she began looking for a meaningful internship.
“I wasn’t sure I had what it takes to succeed,” Khouri said. “I was thinking, ‘Who needs a teenager’s help on such a serious issue as human trafficking?’ I was prepared to stuff envelopes, whatever was needed, just to be involved.”
Then Khouri met Betty Ann Boeving, director of the Bay Area Anti-Trafficking Coalition.
“I knew this was a rare opportunity. Betty Ann has a clear vision about what needs to be done to fight human trafficking in the Bay Area, and she showed me from the start how I could contribute in a meaningful way to the Coalition,” Khouri said.
Khouri’s summer internship with the Coalition went so well that she was invited to continue part-time preparing for the Freedom Summit 2011 event held in Fremont in January. Through that assignment, Khouri met someone who had been a source of inspiration for her career decision – former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
“I’d been helping to recruit speakers for the event when Betty Ann suggested we invite Condoleezza Rice,” Khouri said. “I wondered how we could attract such a big name at a local event, but Dr. Rice was not only responsive to our request, just before her keynote address, she took the time to say hello, pose for a picture with me and autograph my copy of her book.”
What message does Khouri have for her peers?
“High school and college students are moved by the issue (of human trafficking) but don’t always realize that the problem exists in the Bay Area, or that there are as many ways to get involved as there are people with unique gifts they can bring to the effort,” she said. “You don’t have to be an adult or wealthy or a celebrity to make a difference. The way to end human trafficking, whether sexual exploitation or forced labor, is through a community-based effort including health-care professionals, fundraisers, legislators, the media, community and business leaders, churches and others.”
For more information, visit www.freedom-summit.org or e-mail [email protected].
