Calling on all Australians to don a thong!
A new campaign which centres around a ‘National Thong Day’ has been launched to raise community awareness about the thousands of young people currently living in aged care facilities.
A young people’s advocacy group has embarked upon a recent aged care media campaign to raise the awareness of and facilitate support for the 6,500 young people who currently live in facilities across the country.
The Queensland-based charity, Youngcare, launched its new campaign this week with the announcement of its first ever national awareness day, a new television advertisement and coverage on Channel 9’s Today show.
The organisation has called upon all Australians to pay attention to the plight of young disabled people who live in facilities by donning a pair of thongs for the charity on ‘National Thong Day’ on Friday 1 October.
Although the idea behind the national day is a little left of centre, the humble thong was chosen to reflect the sense of fun and freedom that all young people should be experiencing.
“Australians love nothing more than the feeling of the wind in their (toe) hairs so what could be better than a national Thong Day?,” a Youngcare statement said.
“Release your feet from their footwear prison for a day and raise money [for the cause]…”
CEO of Youngcare, Marina Vit, explained that although the day will raise money to fund more appropriate care and accommodation options for young Australians with round-the-clock care needs, the main point of the campaign is to raise awareness of the issue.
“Disability is an issue that as a society, we don’t talk about,” said Ms Vit.
“It’s something that we all have to be aware of and be aware of how it is treated in this country.
“Young people with 24/7 care needs are falling through the cracks in the system. When it comes down to how they should be cared for, there are only two solutions and they are not solutions.
“Aged care is an appropriate solution for aged people but it is it is not an appropriate solution for people with 24/7 care needs. Young people require a solution that is dignified, that addresses their individual care needs.”
The other care alternative, Ms Vit explained, was to provide for a young person in their own home. Although this is a favorable option, she said, it is not a realistic one due to the huge emotional and financial pressures that this places on individuals, carers and families.
“Young people deserve to live a life that is for young people,” she said.
“As a society we need to be looking at providing choice for young people. Just look at the numbers. It is a crisis.”
“It is normal human rights we are talking about here. This is an important issue.
“And it’s wrong. Let’s work together to get them out.”
Ms Vit invites all Australian’s to join in the fun of Thong Day, while remembering the Youngcare cause.
To find out how you can participate, host a Thong Day event or for more information about the issue, click here.
Residents at Youngcare’s apartments in Brisbane.
