It has been one year since First Lady Melania Trump unveiled her new campaign. Her initiative called BE BEST promotes these three pillars which are centered around helping children: Well-Being, Online Safety, and Opioid Abuse.
Three Pillars
‘Well-Being’ is categorized as teaching kindness, respect, healthy living, and encouragement to kids for a strong foundation in life. With the basis of Well-Being, the First Lady’s platform states that “children will be able to better deal with the evils of the opioid crisis and avoid negative social media interaction.”
Online Safety ties in with the platform’s overarching theme of respect and compassion. This pillar is especially needed after cyber bullying has become more and more prominent in the age of social media. Social Media is a wonderful tool, but can often be used incorrectly where it can be hurtful and damaging to children.
The third pillar is Opioid Abuse. It is designed to educate and combat the stigma about opioid dependence, abuse, and the epidemic as a whole.
The First Lady also brings a special focus to the neonatal abstinence syndrome. These are a group of conditions a baby experiences when withdrawing from substances introduced during the pregnancy. The First Lady wants to bring awareness and teach people about healthy pregnancies.
Hard at Work
Since she has debuted her platform, the First Lady has been very busy. She has taken many trips around the world with her husband to educate those on state visits. Mrs. Trump has even gone on one solo trip abroad. She visited hospitals and schools in Ghana, Malawi, Kenya, and finally, Egypt. In Malawi, she said, “meeting those children and understanding their different way of life is why I wanted to travel here.”
While promoting her platform abroad, she also donated “BE BEST” soccer balls and teddy bears to children and school chalk to their teachers.
Here the First Lady passes out “BE BEST” teddy bears during a visit to Child Welfare Clinic in Accra, Ghana.
In between her trips inside and outside the United States and hosting events at the White House, the First Lady has maintained that everyone can learn more about the dangers of opioids, including her own son, Barron. She is committed to showing and teaching compassion to everyone, especially those who suffer from drug addiction, saying “drug addicts need help, not scorn.”
“We need to be there for them and talk to them and of course to get the professional help as well,” Melania Trump advised. She continued that it is important for friends and families of addicts “to be there for them and love them whenever they need you.”
Naysayers Can’t Deny
While it is hard to measure the direct impact the First Lady’s platform has had, no one can deny that it’s not helping. BE BEST has allowed the spotlight to shine on these often-ignored topics, like cyber bullying and how the Opioid Crisis affects children. Her platform has “helped raise awareness” to these important issues according to Stephen Balkam, CEO of the Family Online Safety Institute.
Watch as Melania celebrates the one year anniversary at the White House!
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