Global landmarks turn purple for disability campaign
adam&eveDDB has created a global campaign called #WeThe15 to highlight the 1.2 billion disabled people worldwide who are overlooked by the inclusivity agenda
The communications company adam&eveDDB will launch a human rights campaign which puts disability “at the heart of the inclusivity agenda” on 19 August, by illuminating 125 iconic landmarks around the world in purple light.
The #WeThe15 campaign, spearheaded by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and International Disability Alliance, takes its name from the 15% of the global population who have a disability, the world’s largest marginalised group, but overlooked by the inclusivity agenda. According to #WeThe15, basic human rights (such as healthcare, education and employment) are either limited or non-existent for people with disabilities. To date, 20 organisations, including UN Human Rights, UNESCO, Special Olympics, and Valuable 500, have united behind the movement order to “change the narrative on disability”.
The global initiative is set to last a decade. To mark the launch, a week before the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, a total of 125 iconic global landmarks, including the Houses of Parliament, the Colosseum, the Natural History Museum, and Toronto’s CN Tower, will be illuminated in purple light – the campaign’s colour. Meanwhile broadcasters around the world, including Channel 4 and NBC, will be showing a film during the Paralympic Games, whose athletes will wear temporary #WeThe15 tattoos, before a potential audience of 250 million people.
Filmed in Bogota, Bangkok, London, Johannesburg, Milan and Manilla, the launch film features nearly 40 persons with disabilities, and intends to shift the narrative around the subject. Rather than shown to be objects of pity, or put on a pedestal, it emphasises that disabled people are not “other”, but ordinary people who demand true inclusion. It also contains quotes that show the way that people with disabilities are framed even by well-meaning individuals – before some real-life disabled people challenge viewers to strip away the prejudices and stereotypes.
Said adam&eveDDB CEO Mat Goff, “#WeThe15 gives voice to the biggest unheard group in the Inclusion agenda. This Tokyo 2020 launch campaign is just the start of a movement that will drive real change for over a billion people worldwide. The more brands and organisations and people that get involved in this movement, the louder that voice will be and the faster the change will come.”
Added Chief Brand and Communications Officer at the International Paralympic Committee Craig Spence, “By partnering with multiple international organisations to launch #WeThe15 ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games we want to use the platform of the world’s third biggest sport event to spark a decade long transformation for the world’s largest marginalised group.”
The likes of Coca Cola, Facebook, Twitter, BP and Visa will also be showing their support with bespoke content and updated logos throughout the launch. Said Keely Cat-Wells, CEO of C-Talent and Zetta Studios, “#WeThe15 is a historic movement created for and by disabled people, it shows the power we have as a collective and through solidarity, allyship, and action we can build a kinder, more inclusive world.”
The campaign (and its accompanying film) was created by adam&eveDDB in partnership with Pentagram, Pulse Films, FleishmanHillard, Portland and Porter Novelli.