Crisis support for the world, one text away
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0:01 - 0:03"I'm 14, and I want to go home."
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0:03 - 0:06"My name is Beth, I'm here for you,
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0:06 - 0:07tell me more."
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0:08 - 0:09"I've run away before,
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0:09 - 0:11but I've never been involved
with anything like this. -
0:11 - 0:13I think they put drugs in my liquor."
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0:13 - 0:16"It sounds like you feel you're not safe.
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0:16 - 0:18The fastest way for me to get help to you
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0:18 - 0:21is for you to call 911."
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0:22 - 0:23"LOL, Beth.
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0:23 - 0:24If they hear me, they'll kill me.
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0:24 - 0:27They're about to send another man in
to have sex with me, -
0:27 - 0:28please hurry."
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0:29 - 0:31"OK, it sounds like you're in danger.
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0:31 - 0:34I can call 911 for you and send help.
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0:34 - 0:36You're being very brave."
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0:37 - 0:38"Thanks, Beth.
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0:38 - 0:41Tell the police to be careful,
these men are armed." -
0:42 - 0:44I can share this story with you,
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0:44 - 0:48because it was widely reported
in news outlets throughout the country. -
0:48 - 0:50We did call 911.
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0:51 - 0:53The police rescued this girl,
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0:53 - 0:54two other girls,
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0:54 - 0:56and arrested three men,
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0:56 - 0:59all at the Motel 6 in San Jose.
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1:00 - 1:02My name is Nancy "Beth" Lublin.
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1:02 - 1:05I'm the cofounder and CEO
of Crisis Text Line, -
1:05 - 1:07the free 24/7 service
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1:07 - 1:10that helps people by text and Messenger,
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1:10 - 1:12with mental health
and behavioral health issues. -
1:12 - 1:15And when I go on the platform
as a crisis counselor, -
1:15 - 1:16I use the alias "Beth."
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1:16 - 1:20I happen to be the crisis counselor
who took that conversation. -
1:20 - 1:22But this is what Crisis Text Line is.
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1:22 - 1:25It's strangers helping strangers
in their darkest moments -
1:25 - 1:28to stay alive, feel less alone,
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1:28 - 1:31and to remind them how strong they are.
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1:31 - 1:35Crisis Text Line launched
quietly in August 2013 -
1:35 - 1:38in Chicago and in El Paso,
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1:38 - 1:39and within four months,
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1:39 - 1:43we were in all 274 area codes
of the United States, -
1:43 - 1:46because people used the service,
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1:46 - 1:49had a great experience
and shared it with their friends -- -
1:49 - 1:50that's organic growth.
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1:50 - 1:52And in six and a half years,
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1:52 - 1:55we've now processed
about 150 million messages. -
1:55 - 1:59The people who use our free 24/7 service
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1:59 - 2:01skew young,
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2:01 - 2:02because it's text, so they skew young.
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2:02 - 2:0645 percent are under the age of 17.
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2:06 - 2:08Also poor, racially diverse.
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2:08 - 2:1017 percent identify as Hispanic,
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2:10 - 2:13and 44 percent LGBTQ.
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2:13 - 2:16The top five issues
that we see are relationships, -
2:16 - 2:19depression, anxiety, self-harm
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2:19 - 2:22and in approximately one
in four conversations, -
2:22 - 2:24suicidal ideation.
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2:24 - 2:27Everyone texting us is unhappy,
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2:27 - 2:32yet we normally have
about an 86 percent satisfaction rating -
2:32 - 2:33from our texters.
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2:34 - 2:35What makes it so good?
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2:35 - 2:38The technology, the data and the people.
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2:38 - 2:40So, the technology.
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2:40 - 2:42It is not an app.
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2:42 - 2:44It's not something you have to download.
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2:44 - 2:45It's free,
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2:45 - 2:48there's no complicated intake survey,
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2:48 - 2:50so it's really user-friendly.
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2:50 - 2:51You just text us.
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2:51 - 2:53We use machine learning
to stack-rank the queue -
2:53 - 2:54based on severity.
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2:55 - 2:59Kind of like a hospital emergency room
would take the gunshot wound -
2:59 - 3:01before the kid with a sprained ankle.
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3:01 - 3:03We work the same way.
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3:03 - 3:05So we take the high-risk cases first.
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3:05 - 3:07So the person who swallowed
a bottle of pills -
3:07 - 3:10would come before someone else.
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3:10 - 3:12This is data science to save lives.
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3:13 - 3:15But it's humans who do the counseling.
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3:15 - 3:19We've trained over 28,000
volunteer crisis counselors -
3:19 - 3:22who apply online,
go through a background check -
3:22 - 3:24and then about a 30-hour training.
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3:24 - 3:25And if they pass --
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3:25 - 3:27not everybody passes,
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3:27 - 3:29there's only a 33 percent pass rate --
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3:29 - 3:32they can save lives from their couch.
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3:33 - 3:35It's a new gig economy for volunteerism,
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3:35 - 3:39like Uber or Lyft for volunteerism.
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3:39 - 3:41And we also have full-time staff
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3:41 - 3:43with a master's degree
in a relevant field. -
3:43 - 3:44They're supervisors,
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3:44 - 3:48and they watch every conversation
and step in if needed. -
3:48 - 3:50Thanks to this technology and data
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3:50 - 3:52and our volunteer labor model,
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3:52 - 3:55we're able to reach
tons of people in pain. -
3:55 - 3:58People who don't have access
to other resources, -
3:58 - 4:02like the gay teenager
who can't share with his parents, -
4:02 - 4:05because they keep telling him
to pray the gay away. -
4:05 - 4:07Or the girl who can't sleep at 2am
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4:07 - 4:09because she's got anxiety about finals
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4:09 - 4:12and she doesn't want to disappoint
people who love her. -
4:12 - 4:14So they text us.
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4:14 - 4:16And we love on them.
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4:16 - 4:17And we support them,
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4:17 - 4:19and we remind them how strong they are.
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4:19 - 4:23And we work on a plan
together to stay safe. -
4:23 - 4:25And we tell them that if this felt good,
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4:25 - 4:26sharing with us --
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4:26 - 4:30and 68 percent of people say
they've shared something with us -
4:30 - 4:32they've never shared with another human,
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4:32 - 4:36so if it feels good to share with us,
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4:36 - 4:40maybe find just one other person
in your life tomorrow to share with. -
4:40 - 4:41And after our conversation,
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4:41 - 4:45they put that safety plan in place.
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4:45 - 4:46And maybe they go to sleep.
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4:46 - 4:49Or they journal.
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4:49 - 4:51Or they listen to BTS or Lizzo,
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4:51 - 4:53or they write a letter to their sister
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4:53 - 4:56or their boss or to themselves,
to read in 12 months. -
4:57 - 4:58They stay safe.
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4:59 - 5:03Sometimes, people have the ideation,
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5:03 - 5:05the plan, the means and the timing
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5:05 - 5:07to hurt themselves or someone else,
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5:07 - 5:08and we can't deescalate.
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5:09 - 5:13Like the man in Texas,
five years ago on Christmas Eve, -
5:13 - 5:17who told us he only felt pleasure
when he inflicted pain -
5:17 - 5:20and he wanted to kill women
and was going to do it that very night. -
5:20 - 5:23In those imminent risk situations,
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5:23 - 5:24we call 911.
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5:24 - 5:26And thank goodness for 911,
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5:26 - 5:28because in that Texas incident,
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5:28 - 5:29as reported in the news,
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5:29 - 5:32they did send help,
they sent the police to his home, -
5:32 - 5:35and they found him with an arsenal
of loaded weapons -
5:35 - 5:39and on record as being
in possession of a human foot. -
5:40 - 5:43Now, active rescues
are less than one percent -
5:43 - 5:45of our conversations.
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5:45 - 5:48But still, that's about 26 a day.
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5:48 - 5:53And six of those a week are for homicide.
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5:53 - 5:55Typically school shooters.
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5:55 - 5:58We have now completed
more than 32,000 active rescues. -
5:58 - 6:01Our own data and external studies
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6:01 - 6:03show that we're very good at saving lives,
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6:03 - 6:05and at changing lives.
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6:05 - 6:10We use the data to make it possible
for us to change systems. -
6:10 - 6:11So for example,
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6:11 - 6:15we've learned the best way,
the best language to risk-assess -
6:15 - 6:16around suicidal ideation
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6:16 - 6:20isn't to use the words,
"Are you thinking of committing suicide?" -
6:20 - 6:23Instead, it's to use words like,
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6:23 - 6:25"Are you thinking of death or dying?"
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6:25 - 6:28Or "Are you thinking
about killing yourself?" -
6:28 - 6:32And now, we've shared that language
with journalists, to adopt this. -
6:32 - 6:34We've shared that language with activists.
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6:34 - 6:37We're advising the National Emergency
Number Association, -
6:37 - 6:39the 911 Association,
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6:39 - 6:42on best practices
for first responders in suicide. -
6:42 - 6:45And we're working
with the Veterans Administration -
6:45 - 6:48to identify suicidal ideation
and intent in veterans. -
6:48 - 6:50(Sighs)
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6:50 - 6:52Pain isn't an American experience.
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6:53 - 6:54It's a human experience.
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6:54 - 6:57So we've been growing.
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6:57 - 7:00So far, we've been expanding
one country at a time: -
7:01 - 7:05Ireland, the UK, Canada --
which we did in both French and English. -
7:05 - 7:08And we could keep growing,
one country at a time. -
7:08 - 7:10And it would take us decades
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7:10 - 7:14to reach even just a third
of the people in the world. -
7:15 - 7:17And that's just not acceptable.
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7:18 - 7:22We've already seen,
since the start of COVID in early March, -
7:22 - 7:24a 40 percent increase in our volume.
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7:24 - 7:2778 percent of our conversations
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7:27 - 7:31include words like "freaked out,"
"scared," "panic." -
7:31 - 7:33People are worried about the COVID virus,
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7:33 - 7:35and so they're nervous about symptoms
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7:35 - 7:38and they're concerned for family
on the front lines. -
7:38 - 7:41We're also seeing the impact
of the quarantines themselves. -
7:42 - 7:45People are away from their routines,
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7:45 - 7:48perhaps they're quarantined
with abusive people. -
7:48 - 7:52So we've seen a 48 percent
increase in sexual abuse, -
7:52 - 7:55and a 74 percent increase
in domestic violence. -
7:56 - 8:00One of the biggest impacts we've seen
of the virus and the lockdowns -
8:01 - 8:02is the financial stress.
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8:02 - 8:06We're seeing more people
reach out with fears of bankruptcy, -
8:06 - 8:09fears of homelessness
and other financial ruin. -
8:09 - 8:10And right now,
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8:10 - 8:1332 percent of our texters
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8:13 - 8:18identify as coming from household incomes
under 20,000 dollars. -
8:18 - 8:21That's up from our typical
19 percent low income. -
8:22 - 8:23So we need to grow.
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8:24 - 8:25Quickly.
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8:25 - 8:30For months, we were planning on announcing
that we were going to expand by language: -
8:30 - 8:33Five languages in the next five years,
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8:33 - 8:35covering 32 percent of the globe.
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8:35 - 8:37And then, COVID happened.
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8:37 - 8:39Things changed.
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8:39 - 8:41And now five years feels like a luxury.
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8:42 - 8:45So today, right now,
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8:45 - 8:48we are committing
to do it in half the time. -
8:48 - 8:50Five languages in two and a half years.
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8:51 - 8:53We're going to turn on Spanish everywhere,
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8:53 - 8:55English everywhere, Portuguese everywhere,
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8:55 - 8:56French everywhere,
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8:56 - 8:58and the fifth language?
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8:58 - 8:59Arabic.
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8:59 - 9:02So we're going to bring our service
to countries and populations -
9:02 - 9:05that have limited mental health services
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9:05 - 9:07and almost no data about what's going on.
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9:07 - 9:10These include immigrant
populations -- who have phones. -
9:10 - 9:13And young people, who are often
not counted in studies, -
9:13 - 9:15but they have phones.
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9:15 - 9:17So we're going to shift to language,
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9:17 - 9:19which makes the technology easier,
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9:19 - 9:21because in addition to text,
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9:21 - 9:23we're going to be using
WhatsApp and Messenger. -
9:23 - 9:27And global expansion helps us
with middle-of-the-night capacity, -
9:27 - 9:29because we'll have time-zone coverage.
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9:29 - 9:30So think about it,
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9:30 - 9:34this will be strangers
helping strangers around the world. -
9:34 - 9:37Like a giant global love machine.
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9:38 - 9:42And the fact that the TED community
has supported our audacious dream -
9:42 - 9:45is just deeply, deeply meaningful,
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9:45 - 9:48to me and to everybody on our team.
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9:49 - 9:51And the best way
for us to show our gratitude -
9:51 - 9:55is to just let you know
that we are ready and we are fired up. -
9:56 - 9:57And we're going to use this support
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9:57 - 10:00to impact millions of lives
around the world. -
10:01 - 10:03Times are hard.
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10:03 - 10:06And it's confusing, and it's depressing,
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10:06 - 10:10and sometimes, we all feel alone,
especially in isolation. -
10:11 - 10:12But no matter what age,
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10:12 - 10:15no matter what your situation is
or where you live, -
10:15 - 10:18we'll be at your fingertips,
in your pocket. -
10:21 - 10:23I've been thinking a lot
these last few weeks -
10:23 - 10:25about that trafficked girl
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10:25 - 10:27who I connected with.
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10:27 - 10:30And I hope she's somewhere safe.
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10:30 - 10:31I don't know ...
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10:32 - 10:35I don't know how she's quarantined
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10:35 - 10:36or who she's with,
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10:36 - 10:37but I hope she's safe.
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10:38 - 10:41And I don't know, last year,
how she had our number, -
10:41 - 10:44or even how she had access
to a phone to reach out to us. -
10:44 - 10:45I never asked her.
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10:45 - 10:47Because it didn't matter.
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10:47 - 10:50What mattered was
that she could contact us, -
10:50 - 10:53that she did have it,
and we got help to her quickly. -
10:53 - 10:55And that's the goal,
-
10:55 - 10:58it's to make it easier
for people to get help -
10:58 - 10:59than avoid getting help.
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11:00 - 11:02That in moments of hardship,
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11:02 - 11:05of danger, of physical distance,
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11:05 - 11:08that nobody is ever alone.
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11:08 - 11:10That thanks to Crisis Text Line,
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11:10 - 11:14none of us is ever actually alone.
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11:14 - 11:17[Support this initiative
at AudaciousProject.org]
- Title:
- Crisis support for the world, one text away
- Speaker:
- Nancy Lublin
- Description:
-
What if we could help people in crisis anytime, anywhere with a simple text message? That's the idea behind Crisis Text Line, a free 24-hour service that connects people in need with trained, volunteer crisis counselors -- "strangers helping strangers around the world, like a giant global love machine," as cofounder and former CEO Nancy Lublin puts it. Learn more about their big plans to expand to four new languages, providing a third of the globe with crucial, life-saving support. (This ambitious plan is a part of the Audacious Project, TED's initiative to inspire and fund global change.)
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 11:30
Brian Greene edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Oliver Friedman edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Erin Gregory approved English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Erin Gregory edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Krystian Aparta accepted English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Crisis support for the world, one text away |