Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Stop! AIDS



I have written much about the HIV/AIDS situation here in Japan for deaf and hearing people. The other night I found myself walking through Ame-mura ("American Village") in Shinsaibashi, Osaka and was surprised to see a flashing neon sign with condoms and the message Stop! AIDS. One major problem in Japan is the lack of communication and information about HIV/AIDS. The sign seems to combat this problem. I immediately photographed and videotaped the sign. I have yet to learn who put it there. I was informed by a colleague that there used to be a health clinic in the area that did HIV tests (the clinic has since moved to Namba). Anyway, as I watched the flashing condoms, the condom ringtone song (part of the campaign by the BBC World Service Trust to prevent the transmission of AIDS in India) played in my mind. Thus this short video. Comments?

1 comment:

DJ said...

I saw this while I was in Osaka last Summer. I thought that it was a clever way to spread the message, and the smiling condoms were adorable!