So, here I once again invite you to share your stories with me so that I can frame them into articles and we can together spread the awareness.
In the meanwhile, I was brainstorming over the ideas for the campaigns that can be effective in the long run. Apart from spreading the awareness through street-shows, TV, Radio and internet, I have come across this thought. How about going to schools and organizing the speech competitions for school children - who are grown up enough to take the help of their parents or their teachers in getting the speeches written and can speak in front of their school - like they do in the case of Independence Day speech?
Here is the plan in points:
1. Select a town
2. Approach all the leading schools in the town
3. Organize the speech competition in each school with the topics related to "Dowry and Domestic Oppression"
4. Make the students of that school listen to their school participants (2-3 speakers from one class)
5. Select a few top speakers from each school, make them participate in the town level competition
Benefits of this approach:
1. Parents are usually the ones who prepare the students for participation in different activities - so while they are preparing their kids for the competition, this will make them also think about the topic
2. Children will have to work for some 10 days to prepare for the speech - a good enough time for making them indulged in the thoughts about this topic - which will accompany them for a lifetime
3. When parents will listen to their own kids speaking on this topic during the town level competition, they will be made to think again
4. In future competitions also, those kids will think about selecting this topic as a topic of their speech as they already have knowledge about this issue now
5. The winners of these competitions will be the potential leaders from these towns and cities to lead the campaign against the Dowry & Domestic Violence in that town
Organizing this competition every year in these towns will help spread the awareness and inculcate the spirit of compassion for relationships in the minds of the youth. In terms of leadership and logistics, it only needs some motivated individuals as and when available in different towns, lead this campaign, arrange for some token funds locally - some 4000/- for distributing as cash prizes for school children in different schools (who are more than happy to receive even 200/- as prize).
One more way of organizing these competitions can be to take the help of the organizations who already have a big network in cities and towns in India - like Rotary Club, or Lions Club.
Such an effort, at the grassroots level, will not only help in spreading awareness about this cause, but also strike at its roots. This will certainly make a lasting impact on the society and help eradicate the curse completely.
Would like to know all of yours views on the same..
