Recently, there has been this campaign going around on facebook that I find really ridiculous
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I might be called a cynic for saying this, but let me highlight the reasons why this campaign is ridiculous.
1) There is more than sufficient awareness that children are being abused. It's like saying people don't know that women are being raped, old people are being robbed, wheelchair bound people are being thrown from HDB flats, actually there was just one case like that recently. The question is not whether people know about it, its whether people care enough to do something about it that actually changes things.
2) What does changing a facebook picture and invoking memories do for all these children? Raise awareness? Look at point one. Do we really need more awareness? We need action. You might argue that people will be moved by childhood memories to treat children better, but you have to realise that children can be abused in a lot of ways.
They can be abused by neglect, a lack of love and care, a lack of respect and recognition for their achievements, a misguided belief that violence is the way to discipline, none of which are causes that are likely to be helped anyway by this meaningless campaign. And the people who are likely to be moved by such a plea are not the ones abusing children. It's like preaching to the converted.
Changing a display picture is not action. Signing up and volunteering at an advocacy group is. Donating money is. So is caring for and loving your own children. If you really cared for the cause, you would do one of the above instead of trying to appear socially conscious in a misguided attempt to shore up your social image. Everyone wants to look like they care about social issues, but seriously I'm not impressed. The day it becomes more about the cause and less about your image, talk to me again.
3) If you really cared about the cause, why should this last till just Dec 6? Because children stopped getting abused after that? Because after that people don't need awareness any more? Why not keep the picture there for good? Because you can never spread enough awareness if that's your point isn't it?
4) You know what, maybe I'm going to start liking the pages of all these advocacy groups so people can see that I'm like really socially conscious. Like I love the environment, I love children so much I can't bear to see them being abused, I love cats, dogs, pandas, cheetahs, random critters from the games I play that I sometimes blow up with bombs and missiles but I love them anyway.
Yup, it's a hollow gesture. Maybe that's why I'm not in advertising.