If there’s something strange
in your neighborhood
Who you gonna call?
Mr. Poo!
If there’s something weird
and it don’t smell good
Who you gonna call?
Mr. Poo!
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With apologies to Ray Erskine Parker, Jr., ghosts aren’t real, but taking a dump in public in India is. In response, UNICEF has launched a new campaign called “Poo2Loo”, which features as its mascot a giant pile of feces named Mr. Poo (h/t Washington Times).
According to the Facts and Stats provided at the website:
- 620 million Indians, half the population, defecate in the open.
- 65 million kilos (143 million pounds) of poo are dumped in public venues every day.
- 28 million school children lack access to a toilet in school.
- Females often avoid defecating until nighttime to avoid shame and possible assault.
In short this is a serious public health problem. But Mr. Poo? The unusual creature pops up all over the website in photos and even in a music video that features rapping in Hindi (warning: mild profanity):
There is even a video game called “Toilet Trek,” which enables players to experience the challenge of finding a public toilet in India.
The campaign is evidently working. According to the website 1,14,565 (which is either missing a digit or has an extra comma) Indians have taken a pledge to stop dropping their load in public.
Mr. Poo is not the only unusual mascot created to promote a public health message. In 2013, Brazil’s Association of Personal Assistance for Cancer (AAPEC) devised a campaign to increase awareness of testicular cancer. The mascot was Senhor Testiculo.
