Now that we have met with paradox we have some hope of progress.

September 26, 2014 8:39 AM

Somaly Mam [previously] responds to the Newsweek article last spring that raised questions regarding the legitimacy of her work as a Cambodian anti-trafficking activist, tainting the nearly two-decades-long work on behalf of victims that catapulted her into the global spotlight. "I didn't lie."
posted by Emor (7 comments total)

So this basically comes down to "Do we believe the Newsweek reporter or the Marie Claire reporter", which further comes down to "which narrative are we primed to believe?"
posted by straw at 9:18 AM on September 26, 2014 [1 favorite]

So this basically comes down to "Do we believe the Newsweek reporter or the Marie Claire reporter",

That's the way the Marie Claire reporter frames it--but the "previously" link makes it clear that there have been other reports calling aspects of Somaly Mam's story into question as well. So that's one strike against the credibility of the Marie Claire reporter right out of the box.
posted by yoink at 10:14 AM on September 26, 2014 [1 favorite]

Yes, thank you. I went back to my blog archives for stuff on Somaly Mam (where I found various other discredited writers on the topic, but only the Newsweek one specific to Mam, clearly I have trafficking fatigue), but didn't hit the previously link here.
posted by straw at 10:25 AM on September 26, 2014

This article also states that her foundation hired the law firm Goodwin Procter to investigate her life, and that as a result of those investigations asked her to sign a letter stating that she had "created and exaggerated stories about my life that were not true." - so it seems like that is another source who has found her not to be credible.

On the other hand, it seems like she was doing very good and important work regardless of whether she "lied" or not - it's a rather ugly part of contemporary culture that we focus on this purity as the "drama" issue - well above ensuring or caring for the many innocent victims she undeniably advocated for.
posted by Another Fine Product From The Nonsense Factory at 11:10 AM on September 26, 2014 [1 favorite]

On the other hand, it seems like she was doing very good and important work regardless of whether she "lied" or not - it's a rather ugly part of contemporary culture that we focus on this purity as the "drama" issue - well above ensuring or caring for the many innocent victims she undeniably advocated for.

There's a whole bunch of other NGO's working with this group of women in South East Asia who'd beg to differ.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 6:35 PM on September 26, 2014 [3 favorites]

I like Marie Claire because the writer who did a piece featuring us did a decent job and was ethical and respectful with the women and teenagers she interviewed from us, and the piece was grounded in the realities we see. This piece feels more like an opinion piece than reporting. It is definitely a blow for the NGOs involved in anti-trafficking in Cambodia because people are correctly suspicious, but at the same time not willing to accept that trafficking isn't sex work isn't child abuse, that those are intersectional and not a single Bad Thing. Argh.
posted by viggorlijah at 7:29 PM on September 26, 2014 [2 favorites]

Somaly Mam's ex-husband speaks out.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 12:02 PM on October 9, 2014