IHC’s new ad says thanks for taking a moment

MEDIA RELEASE

29 JANUARY 2009

IHC’s new ad says thanks for taking a moment

At first you wonder what’s going on – a man in a suit takes a seat on the bus, a younger guy on a skateboard picks up a dropped magazine, a little boy shows someone a bucket with a fish inside it.

Then it becomes clear. They are taking time to connect with someone who has an intellectual disability.

The message in IHC’s new commercial, which kicks off this weekend, is that all it takes is a moment to make someone with a disability feel a part of their community.

Funded entirely by donations, the commercial focuses on five situations that people face every day. At the end, it simply says: “For treating us like everyone else. Thanks.”

“People with intellectual disabilities tell us that people often ignore them, don’t sit next to them on public transport and generally pretend that they aren’t there,” says IHC chief executive Ralph Jones.

“This commercial has a strong message – that a moment is all it takes to make someone feel included.”

In addition to speaking with people with intellectual disabilities, IHC also undertook research into New Zealanders’ perceptions of people with intellectual disabilities.

The research showed that around two-thirds of respondents thought that people with intellectual disabilities aren’t well included in the community. They said the biggest obstacle is that they don’t know how to respond to people with an intellectual disability.

The research, done in June 2008, also showed:
- 96% think people with an intellectual disability are capable of making their own decisions
- 88% think a group home in their neighbourhood is NOT a negative thing
- 78% think that having a child with an intellectual disability in the class would benefit all students
- 56% think that having a child with an intellectual disability in the class would not make it harder for other students to learn
- 77% think that people with an intellectual disability are discriminated against.

“For 60 years IHC has been fighting to ensure that people with intellectual disabilities are included in the community. The last institution closed in 2007. People are living in communities, but they tell us they still don’t always feel welcome.

“IHC begins its next 60 years with a mission to help make New Zealand a fully inclusive place for everyone.”

ENDS

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