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The
National Day of the Person with Down’s Syndrome
By Carla Fermariello, published on ‘Sindrome Down
Notizie’ n.2-2003
The
12th October 2003 will be the National Day of the Person
with Down’s Syndrome. Once again, all the Italian
Associations involved in Trisomy 21, urged by the nomination
of 2003 as the European Year of the Person with Disability,
have joined together to create a big national event of information
and fund raising.
The National Day, indeed, comes from a big desire of unity
and cohesion among associations and from the aspiration
to involve as many people as possible. Events like this
are very successful between the most important and active
associations. This is the reason why the working group for
the Day is convinced that organising a big national event,
in town squares, should be the best way of giving us visibility.
On the 12th of October in every Italian city where an association
involved in DS or a section of AIPD (Italian Association
of Down’s Syndrome) is active, there will be stalls
where information on DS or on real abilities of people with
DS will be given.
And this is not everything.
The National Day also offers us a big opportunity to organise
a fund raising. This is fundamental for our Association
(AIPD) that, with some of its services, carries out a real
social activity, very useful but also very expensive. This
is why, during the Day, volunteers in the town squares will
offer, for a donation of 5 euros each, powdered biological
soups (one type flavoured wheat, the other one flavoured
pulses) in a comfortable and nice packaging.
Metaphorically, the variety of the product symbolises the
variety of the human being, emphasising diversities as a
characteristic element of our species.
The entire event (a project which has won the selection
for the fund, reducing a lot the costs for the participating
associations) will be supported by a massive information
and advertisement campaign on newspapers, radios, television
channels and on the internet. Any means of communication
will be involved to inform people that on that Day they
can support our activities with a simple gesture. Nevertheless,
to make everything possible and useful and to make the 12th
of October become an unforgettable day, it is necessary
to involve all the forces operating on the territories.
This should happen for three good reasons, all with short
medium and long term effects.
The first reason, as I said, is the importance of giving
a clear and unique message to public opinion in order to
follow a common policy, avoiding provincialism and ready
to fight any prejudice now and in the future. People with
Down’s Syndrome are 50,000 just in Italy and the discrimination
towards them is still widespread (as the one towards people
with disabilities in general).
The second reason is the importance that the human contact
still has. Being able to communicate information and experiences
to each other is such a complex operation and it cannot
be given just to mass media. Even if just for a couple of
minutes, it is very important to communicate in the flesh.
This will help to understand that disability is not an abstract
concept but a reality that affects thousands of people.
Thousands of people are “People with disabilities”,
do we really want to ignore the matter? Or do we want to
get back into the idea of a Person not anymore based on
the concept of “skills”, but on what you have
been put into a condition of doing?
The
third reason is the fund raising. This is the opportunity
to prove that solidarity can do a lot.
It is not necessary to live an experience directly or to
feel a problem strongly as yours to do something positive
about it. Everybody can contribute in a very useful way.
In this case, participation is decisive, both from Associations
and people. The participation of those who everyday spend
part of their lives to try and give to people with DS better
possibilities and the participation of who usually don’t
even think about it. Better still I think that the conviction
of the first is decisive as the motivation of the latter.
The 12th October 2003 is a great opportunity for people
with DS, for their families, for the operators and for the
volunteers to share with the nation a daily and constant
commitment. A commitment that in the future will not fail
to give its rewards.
Carla
Fermariello
Sister of Giulia
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