Why (and How) We Need to Talk to ‘the Victims’

Too often, research on unfree labour is speculative, inaccurate and downright damaging to the individuals labelled as ‘victims’. This Chapter will make the case that, in order to overcome these serious failings, we need to conduct in-depth qualitative research with victims themselves. This means giving voice to their analyses and experiences and it means spending time learning from and with them. In making this case, the Chapter will draw on the author’s research between 2005 and 2012 into ‘child trafficking’ and youth labour mobility between rural Benin and Nigeria.