NGO Proposes People, Not Symbols as Street Signs

Big cities around the world have plenty of parking spaces for disabled people, which are generally located as close as possible to entry/exit areas of important institutions. Unfortunately, perfectly healthy people frequently (ab)use many of these places. Not surprisingly, they usually have a ‘good’ explanation for their ‘short’ stay. From “I’ll only be a second,” “I’m just picking up my wife,” to “What’s the rush? You’re sitting in a wheelchair anyway,” we’ve heard such absurd excuses at least once in our lifetime.

But disrespecting people with disabilities has to stop. How can the authorities make healthy people think twice before parking on such spots when not even fines scare them away? What can one possibly do to keep the perfectly healthy people away from abusing these dedicated places? For starters, you put them face-to-face with the ones who have the right to park there. Well, not per se because that would be a too much of a cliché…

According to Access Israel, a non-profit organization that fights to improve the life quality of disabled and elderly, this encounter should to be both creative and impactful. To raise awareness about the severity of this issue, Access Israel joined forces with Leo Burnett Israel and thought of replacing the actual street icons with pictures of real people, in an initiative dubbed as “People, Not Symbols.”

The operation unfolded over the span of one night during which thousands of disabled parking signs in over 17 Israeli cities were replaced with the pictures of real disabled persons. The ‘sign stars’ included members of parliament, Paralympic medalists, and also celebrities. The images were processed in such manner so as to look exactly like the international symbol for disabled parking sign.

The campaign has brought incredible results: the NGO’s message reached the Israeli parliament that promised to get justice for disabled people. Thus, by the end of 2018, the authorities said they will change the law and increase the fines for illegal parking in such places by up to 100%. The word spread even further and reached some of Europe’s largest accessibility organizations which, inspired by this act, declared that they are about to launch their own version of the clever initiative.

“Next time you have the urge to park in a reserved space for disabled. Think. Because there are real people behind the sign,” says the Tel Aviv-based agency. Do not take advantage of a parking spot that is not designated for you. Others might really need it…