Last Thursday, 80 senior executives across the industry raised $151,000 after spending the night in prison to raise awareness and funds to break the cycle of youth incarceration.
Taking part in UnLtd’s Adland Bail Out, the ‘inmates’ were lined-up, shouted at, finger-printed and interrogated, before sleeping on the cold hard floors of their cells.
The Top 10 Fundraisers were Greg Kearney, Jason Tonelli, Georgia Brammer, Emma Beaumount, Aaron Boekestein, Dan Brown, Amy Bradshaw, John Harvey-Faurholt, Matt Turl, Franky Ryan and Josh Faulks.
Many inmates went the extra mile for their fundraising efforts, with OMD gang hosting a 24hr meeting walkathon to raise funds and VaynerMedia’s Denny Handlin auctioning off tattoos on his body for the cause.
The event is designed to give participants a glimpse of what it feels like for a child as young as 10 going to prison and the vicious cycle that youth incarceration creates for children and communities.
Participants, including B&T’s David Hovenden and Oliver Cerovic, heard from many young people with lived experience who bravely shared their stories, as well as many organisations such as MMAD, ACMF and Backtrack, offering better alternatives to prison.
Check out: Oliver’s reflections about his night behind bars here.
It was the first time that AANA chief executive Josh Faulks (pictured above) had been locked up.
“Last night was incredibly confronting and inspirational at the same time. I am still shaken by the experience, and I can’t imagine how much more this would have affected me if I had kids of my own,” he said.
“I still can’t believe as a society, we think it is ok to lock up kids that are 10 years old. This requires a movement of people saying ‘enough is enough, it is time for change’.”
The event also featured many returning ‘inmates’ taking on the role as Guards, getting into character to help create a realistic and unique experience for the participants.
Nova chief commercial officer Nicole Bence, who has experienced Adland Bailout before as an inmate volunteered to be a guard this year.
“Having experienced being an inmate, I understand how crucial it is to have a genuine experience and feel what it’s like to have your rights stripped away. Happy to help in any way I can to Raise the Age,” Bence said.
Philippa Moig, who became the chief executive of UnLtd just over a year ago, explained why it is important for the industry to get behind the cause
“The evidence is clear – locking up 10 year olds does not work – it doesn’t reduce crime and it’s terrible for the children. We work in an industry that specialises in raising awareness and changing behaviour and this is a perfect example of the positive change our industry can create. The Raise the Age NSW campaign is working – but there is more work to do, and Adland Bail Out is a big part of creating that change and awareness.”
The fundraising platform is still open until the end of the week at: UnLtd Adland Bail Out
