Whilst everyone can agree that the recent spate of aggressive behaviour towards emergency personnel has been horrific, one year 6 student has decided to take matters into her own hands – literally, Queensland Police say.
Maddy’s goal is simple. The John Paul College student aims to reassure all emergency service front line operators that the daily struggle they undertake is valued and appreciated.
To accomplish this, Maddy has taken the initiative to develop a "Hug the Helpers" campaign, where both emergency services personnel and members of the community unite together by sending ‘virtual hugs’ to the "Hug the Helpers" Facebook page.
This involves people capturing a photo of themselves displaying a love-heart shape with their hands, with all messages of support to be passed on to emergency services. Maddy’s original goal of reaching 10,000 people was quickly obliterated, with her main post currently viewed by over 110,000 people and counting.
The campaign has proven receptive among appreciative emergency services workers, as highlighted by officers from Logan police below.
This call-to-action derives from stories flooding the news of members from public services receiving violent and belligerent behaviour from the very people they are trying to assist. Maddy says this spurred the thought of what potential environment we would live in, if the trained workers who protect and assist the community were too afraid to go to work?
"It scares me because if these wonderful helpers stop wanting to do these jobs because of the assault and abuse, then who will protect and look after us?" Maddy said.
"On any given day, they may be spat on, punched, kicked, threatened or sworn at – just for doing their job."
All of this has been accomplished by a young girl who is to young for unsupervised access to the very page she has created, with Maddy’s mother assisting her with administrator duties.
So show your support by sending a virtual hug to Hug the Helpers, or alternatively like, comment or share Maddy’s post below.
