The Hidden Epidemic
By Marisse Reyes
What if you were living in a dream world and the only way you could make sense out of it was to bang your head against the wall? What if you rocked yourself from side to side, because you heard a lullaby others could not? What if you flapped your wings, because you were happy, and you wanted to fly out of a shell that was not your own making? What if you felt the urge to scream inside a mall, and the security guards tied your hands behind your back because they mistook you for a troublemaker. What if you had autism and you were a little kid, how would you let other people know, when your parents cannot explain to themselves either?
Autism is a developmental disorder. Parents usually see the signs when their children are ages 2 1/2 to 3 years old, nowadays as early as nine months old: acts deaf, the resistance to learning, difficulty in interacting with other children, no fear of real danger, inappropriate laughing and giggling, indicates needs by gestures, resists changes in routine, physical overactivity, does not cuddle, no eye contact, sustained odd play, spins objects, standoffish manner and inappropriate attachments to objects. Some parents may suspect something is wrong, but are not emotionally equipped to handle the situation. To escape the problem, they are in denial: He is just hyperactive, or he took too many sweets. It could even mean blaming each other: It is in your family's genes. Once they have stopped blaming each other for the child's condition, chances are one parent will tell the other parent to do the proper thing. It takes emotionally mature parents to recognize the fact that although there is no cure, children with Autism can become productive members of society through early, safe, & active intervention. Autism occurs once in 166 individuals, 4 times more prevalent among boys. In the Philippines, 250,000 are known afflicted with Autism, only about 5% are diagnosed and 2% given appropriate intervention.
The 2% is probably attributed to the intervention of two organizations known as the Autism Society Philippines or ASP headed by Erlinda Uy Koe, and the Philippine Association for Behavior Analysis or PABA spearheaded by Shanti Kilduff. The ASP is dedicated to the education and well being of persons with Autism nationwide down to the baranggay level. PABA formalizes the teaching method of Applied Behavior Analysis in the Philippines to reach more individuals with Autism and other developmental disabilities.
"Relax, it's only advertising," says Ramon "Mon" Jimenez, Joint Chief Executive Officer (with wife Abby L. Jimenez) of Jimenez Basic Advertising, In the industry, Jimenez Basic is known as the largest Filipino ad agency and No. 2 in the Top Ten ad agencies listing. In this instance, however, advertising will be used not to increase demand for a particular brand or product. With Autism on the rise, there is a need to increase awareness among parents, professional health practitioners, educators and the government.
"We have conceived of Project Embrace," says Mon Jimenez, �a multi-media awareness campaign for Autism. The project logo shows a man and a woman embracing a child. We want people to be aware of the signs of Autism. for families who live with Autism to accept their child's condition and seek help.�
Mon's commitment to Project Embrace or any other advocacy is not new. JimBasic has done many other pro bono campaigns, using their multi-awarded creative team. The fact that at least two senior members of his team have children with Autism, and almost everyone else knew someone with this disorder just made the creative process so much more personal and powerful.
Mon tells us that when wife Abby reached the age of 30, she wanted to do something significant in her life. It is little known knowledge that she was the first employee of then, Jimenez and Partners while Mon stayed in the corporate world as Executive Creative Director of Ace/Saatch & Saatchi. Mon says his wife may be strong in business but is a bleeding heart when it comes to children. Among the causes she supports is the Leukemia Indigents Foundation.
When the joint CEOs called in their Accounts and Creative teams to inform them about the PROJECT EMBRACE campaign, so many volunteers stepped forward. Sixteen campaigns were drawn up, twenty storyboards created. The officers of PABA and ASP had a difficult process of selecting which one would be produced. As ASP President, Dang Koe says, "If our campaign can just make people more understanding of children who throw tantrums in churches and show more compassion for the parents who are trying their best to manage them, the campaign would have done its job."
In a material world, it amazes me to find that there are many who choose not to advertise their nobility, thus storing up their treasures in heaven.
Abraham Lincoln once said that "There is just one way to bring up a child in the way he should go and that is to travel that way yourself." A text message I received during Mother's Day goes: "Old, young, long, short, plump, or thin, it's clear: All arms are just exactly right for hugging someone dear." It is a time to EMBRACE. |
