“Have you ever walked through the city and seen those people holding signs advertising something? They can be found on busy street corners or open air shopping malls. Their signs point the way to a restaurant lunch deal, the nearest bottle shop or cheap parking. You might have similarly seen someone outside a pizza shop waving a sign to passing traffic highlighting cheap lunchtime meals.
“I have a problem with this; in fact we should all have a problem with this. It is not a problem with advertising; it is a problem with the fact that people are being used simply as sign posts. Sometimes the people are handing out advertising material as well and this lessens (a little) the problem because at least there is interaction with people as part of the job. However to simply strap a sign to a human person and have them stand in one place or even walk around effectively treats them as an object; it is below our dignity as people.”
In a recent commentary, writer Bernard Toutounji reflected on human dignity and and its relationship to human work.
To access Mr. Toutounji’s complete post, please visit:
Ignitum Today: Can I Employ Someone as a Doormat? (21 SEP 13)
Background information:
Pope John Paul II: Encyclical Letter Laborem Exercens (14 September 1981)
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