Children Only

Gizmodo wrote about a poster commissioned by an agency in Spain that manages a hotline for kids and teens who are experiencing abuse. The poster has two different messages. The first one is directed at adults and includes a picture of an average-looking young boy. The SECOND message shows the same boy, but beat-up and bleeding. Under this picture it says, “If somebody hurts you, phone us and we’ll help you,” with the number to the agency’s hotline. The thing about this second image/message: It’s only visible to children under the age of about 10 (or anyone shorter than 4 feet, 5 inches), based on some kind of craaazy technology that alters a picture depending on which angle you see it from. I CANNOT STOP WATCHING THIS VIDEO and turning it over and over in my head. What a great idea! What if there were MORE ways to empower children experiencing abuse (instead of trusting adults to “notice signs” and report suspicions)? How could we help, say, even younger kids or ones who otherwise don’t fit the “under-10-and-reads-well” demographic? What about for teens? What about for kids experiencing abuse with no outward physical signs, like sexual abuse, for instance? How could we send secret messages to THEM? AGGGH, THIS IS BRILLIANT.