Ugandan Women of Courage

Acid Survivors Foundation Uganda (ASFU) began with the intention to the women of acid attacks with medical attention, psychological assessments, and financial support. Prudence, the woman in the video, and the other women of Uganda established this organization to reach out to other females nationwide, who have been affected by this form of violence. This message is effective because it shows that there is something being down concerning the issue of acid attacks on women.

Acid attacks are occurring all over the world and unifying survivors. I believe this organization should further its efforts by implementing an online support group for women, who have gone through physical mutilation by corrosive acid. This blog will further unify these females more than just because of their sympathy.

Adam Levine on Motivating ADHD

Adam Levine, the lead singer of the band Maroon 5 and one of the judges on the hit show The Voice, speaks out in this advertisement for OwnYourADHD.com. He identified with this condition as a child and then presently as an adult. Also, he encourages the older population of ADHD patients, who have experienced this disorder as a child, to get an assessment by their health professionals because it is possible that they have not outgrown ADHD.

Levine is advocates the Own It campaign for reoccurring ADHD adult patients. The targeted popular is signaled out to act upon this unaware issue. On Own It's website, it offers an adult ADHD screening test. This relates to the prescription drug misuse of ADHD patients because these patients are directly effected by this issue.

Levine is using his fame to spread awareness about this issue and endorsing adults to get assessed. He is effectively persuasive by his influence on the media concerning this problem. This campaign should be furthered through television advertisements, billboards, and education institutions.

As you heard in my speech, the problem i was talking about was the use of child soldiers in africa. It is a horrible problem which is very difficult to stop, but the organization i am about to talk about is a huge help in the effort against it.

The main group i found to prevent the use of child soldiers is The Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers. The main thing this organization does is they research the use of child soldiers around the world. With this research they inform people about the use of child soldiers and how bad it really is. The second, and more active thing they do is they rally the use of child soldiers. They create campaigns to stop the support of child soldiers, and try to get them back into their own communities. I would say that this organization is very effective, as it is the #1 non-government organization that deals with stopping the use of child soldiers. Since they are the top organization, they are very effective at gathering more followers to help the cause, but if i had to suggest one thing, it would be to advertise on tv about the problem... just think about how many child soldier commercials you have actually seen on tv, none im assuming.

A smaller organaization is the Child Soldier Relief organization. They hold fundraisers of many different items such as art, and the proceeds go to the support in stopping the use of child soldiers. I think this is very effective, because unlike the organization above that raises awareness and actively tries to stop it, this organization raises much needed money to help stop the problem. The only thing i would suggest to them is try to get their name out there more. A lot of people dont know about this organization and the problem it helps, so if more people knew then maybe more people would donate.

Anorexia Awareness

After doing research I have found various organizations and videos promoting the awareness of anorexia. One popular thing I found was many things that occur during eating disorder awareness week. During this week there have been walks, speeches, and presentations about the dangers of eating disorders across America. One Interesting article I found is of a girl who made a Life Size Barbie. Galia Slayen created the doll in an attempt to educate girls about eating disorders. The creation is 6 feet tall with a 39-inch bust, 18-inch waist and 33-inch hips; completely disgusting to look at. She hopes showing the unnatural proportions of the doll will help raise awareness of the unrealistic expectations of beauty.

There are also many videos on You-Tube. These videos display a strong sense of pathos with graphic images and a compelling story that make you feel for the victims. It gives you a sense of how bad anorexia is. I found two videos particularly motivational to me. First, is an actual commercial which shows an anorexic looking at herself in the mirror. Although she is disgustingly skinny and you can see the bones threw her skin she see's herself as fat in the mirror. This is a great representation of what the disease is and how it works psychologically.
Second is an individually made video. It is actually a video made up of other clips from anorexia videos in order to promote awareness. Although it just scratches the surface, the clips shown and the music in the background give you a sense of the seriousness of the disease. I think videos like these and the thousands of others that exist are very effect in promoting awareness cause they shed light on the problem in ways that words and statistics can't achieve.

Aid Vitcims Now

The Houston Rescue and Restore Coalition organized a nation wide Day of Action, November 17th, 2010 to call for support for the Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Deterrence and Victims Support Act of 2010.They gave out local representatives number sand urged people to call and let their support for the bill be heard. They also organized a petition that got 3,000 signatures that they sent to Congress so that that could be presented with the bill. A vote for the bill took place on Sept. 15 2010.
I think this is effective bringing attention to the issue. What I would have also done was organize a rally in front of Capital Hill in an attempt to not only get the media's attention but also show the representatives that this is an issue that people are aware of and care about.

NEDA and EDIN

There aren’t too many groups that I found for the prevention of eating disorders. However, I did find two. They are: The National Eating Disorders Association and The Eating Disorders Information Network, which is a group on face book. Both are non-profit organizations and they intend to prevent eating disorders through education, awareness, and action. The National Eating Disorders Association has an awareness week, and a walk in their efforts to prevent eating disorders. The EDIN helps people suffering from these disorders to find help and resources. NEDA also does research on eating disorders. NEDA also says things like “Do Your Part,” or “Help Fight Eating Disorders: Donate, Volunteer, Take Action.” The EDIN has values to try to persuade people to join their group, such as “We are committed to educating the community regarding the devastating effects and warning signs of eating disorders.”
These two organizations are doing a pretty good job of raising awareness and doing things to take action. They are trying to educate people, make people aware, and take action. However, I think that they could do other things such as involve the government and petition to implement awareness programs in schools rather than just having online organizations to try to raise awareness. They could fund these by having walks, which NEDA already does, fund-raising, etc. I think this would greatly help raise awareness, and prevent eating disorders in many people. They are both persuasive with their messages to get people to join these organizations. EDIN stated how they are committed to educating the community about eating disorders and NEDA says that a way to help fight the disorders are to donate, volunteer, and take action by joining them. I think their messages and efforts are overall well done.

Thankfully, there are many efforts by many different groups who make it their mission to end cyberbullying. Efforts range from online school activities to rallies to commercials. Specifically, ABC Family and Seventeen Magazine have joined forces in order to combat cyberbullying through their “Delete Digital Drama Campaign.” This campaign is brand new, having been started July 5, 2011. As of late their efforts include a rally in Glendale California, the creation of WebPages, a commercial, a facebook group, and a movie all addressing cyberbullying and its negative effects. Through the facebook group, people can get a digital drama badge to add to their facebook page. A recent ABC Family original movie-featuring actress Emily Osment followed the story of a teen girl who was harassed via her facebook page and demonstrates how it negatively impacted her life. In addition, ABC has aired a commercial depicting many young stars from its network speaking against cyberbullying. They are all seen wearing [delete] T-shirts (pictured above), representing their message to “delete digital drama.” This movie, coupled with the recent commercial, was viewed by many teens and preteens.

I think the efforts provided by this partnership will prove to be very effective. The slogan that they use in their campaign is easy to remember and spikes curiosity and interest. ABC and Seventeen were smart to use the media as a way to reach the masses and raise awareness. I also think that it was a very smart move to use so many different sources, like television, the Internet, and public speaking to get their message across to as many people as possible. The use of celebrities in both the movie and the commercial was a very effective move on their part, as the influence of famous people over their teenage fans’ mindsets is great. They certainly are aware of who their target audience is. The youth that they are targeting also happen to be a large portion of their fan base, making them an ideal network to raise awareness of cyberbullying. While the campaign is magnificent at raising awareness, it fails to touch upon the educational aspect of eliminating cyberbullying. I would provide more information through speeches, commercials, and websites about how to identify cyberbullying and what to do if it happens to you or if you witness it.