A young man on camera names the person who’s challenged him to dump the contents of a bucket over his head. But in a twist on the ice bucket challenge, this man is soon drenched in frothy, soapy water — part of a campaign to raise awareness about Ebola prevention in West Africa.
Ivory Coast’s “Lather Against Ebola” campaign, catchy songs and comedy are being used by West Africans to educate people on how to avoid getting the deadly disease, which has infected more than 2,600 people and killed more than 1,400 in four countries across the region, according to the World Health Organization.
From Nigeria to Sierra Leone, songs and sketches have supplemented traditional media and government campaigns to educate the public about Ebola, which is spread through contact with the bodily fluids of infected people and can be partly contained by simple measures like regular hand-washing.
The “Lather Against Ebola” campaign was inspired by the ice bucket challenge that has generated tens of millions of dollars for the ALS Association, which raises money for Lou Gehrig’s disease research.
Ivorian blogger Edith Brou knew the ice bucket campaign was getting lots of attention and wanted to make it more relevant in her home country. Despite bordering Guinea and Liberia, two countries that have been hit hard by the Ebola outbreak, Ivory Coast has yet to record a single case, and Brou wants to keep it that way.
“Our greatest threat right now is Ebola,” she said.
Those who accept the “Lather Against Ebola” challenge — searchable on Twitter using its French name, #MousserContreEbola — are expected douse themselves with soapy water and hand out three bottles of hand sanitizer. Those who reject the soaking are expected to distribute nine. Since it launched on Aug. 18, dozens of participants have posted soap-soaking clips to social media.
“Ivorians take the drama out of everything through humor,” said Brou. “But in spite of the funny aspect of it, the message is forwarded on and listened to.”
Liberian rappers Shadow and D-12 recorded several Ebola-related tunes. Their hit song, “Ebola in Town,” was intended to counter early skepticism of the threat posed by the disease, which has infected more than 1,000 people in Liberia and killed at least 624. The disease has also his Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
“No touching! No eating something!” the rappers warn listeners, playing up the disease’s dangers. What the song lacks in specificity it more than makes up in catchiness.
Earlier this month, Liberian soccer star and former presidential candidate George Weah added his own song, “Ebola is Real,” to the line-up. In Sierra Leone, rapper Special C’s song “Ebola Does Not Discriminate” and music video portray the dangers of hiding sick patients, a practice Sierra Leone’s parliament outlawed last week because of its potential to spread the disease.
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在科特迪瓦阿比让(Abidjan)，一个年轻人对着镜头说出挑战者的名字，并高举水桶将水倒向自己——这并非冰桶挑战，因为湿透的年轻人身上是充满泡沫的肥皂水——这是日前西非呼吁提高埃博拉预防意识运动的一部分。
在科特迪瓦进行的“泡沫抵御埃博拉”运动中，西非人民用朗朗上口的歌曲和喜剧向大众传播如何预防这种致命疾病。根据世界卫生组织的数据，在西非四国中，已有超过2600人感染埃博拉病毒，死亡人数超过1400人。
从尼日利亚(Nigeria)到塞拉利昂(Sierra Leone)，不论是在传统媒体上，还是在政府发起的运动中，歌曲或漫画正被用来向公众宣传埃博拉相关知识——埃博拉通过感染者的体液传播，但像勤洗手这样的简单措施在一定程度上能保护自己免受传染。
“泡沫抵御埃博拉”运动从冰桶挑战中汲取了灵感。目前，冰桶挑战已为侧索硬化症协会(ALS Association)筹集了超过千万美元，用于资助针对葛雷克氏症(Lou Gehrig’s disease)的研究。
科特迪瓦知名博主伊迪斯•布鲁(EdithBrou)知道冰桶挑战引起了很大的关注，因此她希望能通过这种活动为自己的祖国做些什么。尽管与两个埃博拉疫情严重的国家——几内亚(Guniea)和利比里亚(Liberia)接壤，科特迪瓦目前还未有感染案例，而布鲁想让这继续下去。
布鲁说：“我们目前最大的威胁就是埃博拉”。
“泡沫抵御埃博拉”——它在推特(Twitter)上使用的是法文名字
“MousserContreEbola”，接受挑战的人要将肥皂水倒在自己身上并捐出3瓶洗手液。不愿被水浇湿的人则要捐出9瓶。从8月18日开始，已有数十位挑战者将全身浇透肥皂水的影片放在社交媒体上。
“科特迪瓦人喜欢将每一件事情都灌输上幽默二字”，布鲁说，“除开这活动有趣的部分，更重要的是能够传达我们希望表达的信息，能让更多人听到。”
利比里亚的饶舌歌手Shadow和D-12录制了几首关于埃博拉的歌曲。他们最红的歌曲——《埃博拉来了》(Ebola in Town)——原是为了还击早期对埃博拉带来威胁的怀疑态度。目前在利比里亚，已有超过1000人感染埃博拉病毒，疾病造成至少624人死亡。几内亚、塞拉利昂和尼日利亚均有埃博拉疫情。
“不要摸!不要吃!”——说唱歌手通过这样的歌词来警告听众警惕疾病的危险。尽管歌曲缺少具体说明，它并非只为了易记而创作。
在本月早些时候，利比里亚足球明星和前任总统候选人乔治·维安(George Weah)在他自己的歌曲中加入了“埃博拉是真的”(Ebola is Real)这一句歌词。在塞拉利昂，饶舌歌手Special C的歌曲《埃博拉是公平的》(Ebola does not discriminate)及其音乐录影带描绘了藏匿患病人员的危险性。塞拉利昂议会上周将“藏匿患病人员”定为违法行为，因为该行为非常有可能引发疾病传播。
