Editorial December 30, 1996 Issue

Whose side are you on?

Mark Swinney

Is active, conspicuous love for children and teenagers a top priority? Are we willing to make a long-term commitment? Children, teenagers, young adults—all young people require advocates. In coming years throughout the United States, over a billion dollars' worth of public service advertising will be spent annually asking "Whose side are you on?" That's more than for any other Advertising Council campaign ever.

Education and opportunities for young people, violence and abuse, health care and maintenance, economic growth and the deficit—these are just some of the issues behind the question "Whose side are you on?" More than just a noble appeal for people to stop abusing children, to stop exploiting them, to cease resenting them, the question impels people to reassess their priorities.

Consent to making the well-being of children, teenagers, and young adults an ongoing priority takes some courage and persistence. The demands of our lives are sometimes so absorbing and things so complicated and difficult that it may seem we can barely hold our own head above water much less help others. Often, though, people have found that helping others offers benefits and dividends that go far beyond the effort and time invested.

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