Dear Fellow Advocates,
The 2nd National Passenger Safety Week is behind us and, thanks to you – our partners in crash prevention -- it was a tremendous success!
Our friends at NHTSA gave us a big boost by including National Passenger Safety Week on their official calendar for 2023, while GHSA helped spread the word to state highway safety offices. The National Safety Council came through again with resolutions from members of Congress.
SADD and FCCLA did a massive social media campaign, and it was amplified by so many of their student members. Many of our partners developed their own outstanding passenger safety graphics and videos. We received hundreds of signatures on the Courage to Intervene Promise (CTI) and both the CTI Promise and the Parent Checklist received were a big hit with the media.
We did a media blitz, with news releases going nationwide and a 2-week virtual media tour with Candace leading, doing dozens of TV interviews. In a single day, thanks to Zoom, Candace was live on TV in New Orleans, Washington DC, Richmond and Roanoke VA, Chattanooga, Portland OR, Bakersfield CA and points between. SADD’s Rick Birt and Michelle and David from NRSF also filled in with additional interviews, including CBS in New York City.
We were thrilled to see many of our partners also did their own outreach to local media. We saw coverage on TV in San Diego, Cleveland, Hartford/New Haven, Providence RI and in Alabama and Louisiana with state police.
Now, it’s up to all of us to continue the momentum. While we focused on passengers speaking up during this dedicated week, it’s a message that is relevant all year long. We encourage you to incorporate the “speak up for safety” message in your outreach throughout the year. It can easily fit with Distracted Driving Awareness Month (April), Global Youth Traffic Safety Month(May), 100 Deadliest Days (June-Aug), and Teen Driver Safety Week (Oct).
We welcome any thoughts or suggestions to make National Passenger Safety Week even better in 2024 – Jan. 21 through the 27th.
Thanks again and stay in touch,
