Cerebral Palsy Alliance ad raises concern

Cerebral Palsy Australia is aware of a recent TV advertisement by the Cerebral Palsy Alliance and the distressed reaction to it from people with disability and their families.

We understand the intention of the NSW-based Cerebral Palsy Alliance (which is not a member of Cerebral Palsy Australia, the national voice for cerebral palsy). However, we believe that the advertisement takes the wrong approach. Our concern is that it risks reinforcing negative stereotypes of people with cerebral palsy.

While the issues raised in the advertisement are important we believe there are more effective ways of getting the message across.

Examples of a more positive approach can be found in the personal stories profiled in the Share Your Story portal.