There are loads of petitions out there concerning inclusion, or lack thereof, for our kids and adults alike – so if you are fed up with a current situation in your local community, setting up an online petition is a great way to get the ball rolling with spreading awareness. You can set one up through Change Org
I started my own Change Org campaign in December 2014 after my own experience and frustration of not being able to put my son safely in a shopping trolley and the lack of response I received weeks after from both store managers of Australia’s 2 largest supermarket chains.
I then shared the campaign on Facebook, hounded people to sign and share – and it spread like wildfire. It appeared on loads of Facebook sites of organisations that were also campaigning for change for special needs. We had over 37,000 signatures. I then contacted multiple media outlets for assistance to run the story. My local newspaper ended up running the story – Gold Coast Bulletin – Special Needs Trolley. The trollies were then rolled-out (sorry, couldn’t help it!) across Australian stores in May of 2015.
So much more awareness is needed for issues in our local communities surrounding inclusion – we have come a long way in some areas but we still need to improve in many others!