Australian children send messages to refugees in new Act for Peace campaign
Australian children are being asked for their thoughts on refugees as international aid agency Act for Peace kicks of its annual campaign for its Ration Challenge.
Created by an in-house creative team, the new digital marketing campaign has launched ahead of Refugee Week on June 18, to promote the Ration challenge, which asks Australians to eat like refugees in order to raise money and awareness for communities threatened by conflict and disaster.
The content piece sees Australian children being asked about refugees, and how they would feel in the same situation as other children their age.
Each child then sends their own message to the refugees, aiming to highlight the spirit and compassion of the young Australian community/
The messages include comments such as “Come with me and live in my house” and “I will teach you English. I will find a company that needs a new person and get you a job”.
Karen McGrath, marketing co-ordinator at Act for Peace, said the campaign highlighted “shared humanity”.
“We sat down with young Aussie kids and asked them some simple questions about refugees. Their answers were compassionate, kind and genuine, preferring to point out the similarities between us rather than talk about our differences,” she said.
“When asked why they thought it was important to help others they were quick to answer ‘because we can’, and simply because if that were you, you would want someone to do something too.
“Before kids learn that where you come from is political, they see refugees for what they are – just people, like you or I, who have been forced to leave everything and just want to feel safe again
“The video amplified the voices of children and reminds Australians of the human side of a highly political and controversial topic,” she explained.
