Spring Break
Living consequences prevent drunk driving
Megan Lynch
Issue date: 10/9/08 Section: Commentary
Last week there was a story in the news about Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) banning an accident victim from volunteering at their events because her disfigured appearance was too offensive. A 16-year-old drunk driver hit Rose Harn 20 years ago and now she is left brain damaged and paralyzed. Her husband, Michael Harn, has taken her to about a dozen MADD events in Idaho as a volunteer to show people the real-life consequences of drunk driving. However, because of people's appalled response, MADD officials dropped her as a volunteer. Now Harn's horrifying story will never be heard, and this should be viewed as a huge insult to her legacy.
MADD is a great organization and contributes so much to deterring drunk driving, which makes this issue so much more shocking. While the sight of Harn is indeed shocking, she can be used as a successful scare tactic to prevent drunk driving. At the last fair she attended, the sight of her almost caused a riot, which is why MADD officials asked her husband to take her home. People are obviously afraid of Harn, but they need to imagine how they would feel if they were the ones to cause it. Anyone who makes the decision to drive while intoxicated, needs to know the consequences. The boy who hit Harn was only sentenced to 90 days in jail, but he will know what he did to this woman for his whole life.
One of the questions MADD raised was whether displaying survivors was in the best interest of the family. Michael Harn believes his wife knows what is going on around her, but she can only respond by blinking her one working eye. He brings her to fairs and court ordered classes to show people how this accident basically ended his wife's life and totally changed their marriage and family life in an instant - one which could have easily been avoided. He wants to warn people about the dangers of drunk driving. In addition, he wants to use his wife as an educational tool to help prevent this terrible accident from happening to any other family.
MADD is a great organization and contributes so much to deterring drunk driving, which makes this issue so much more shocking. While the sight of Harn is indeed shocking, she can be used as a successful scare tactic to prevent drunk driving. At the last fair she attended, the sight of her almost caused a riot, which is why MADD officials asked her husband to take her home. People are obviously afraid of Harn, but they need to imagine how they would feel if they were the ones to cause it. Anyone who makes the decision to drive while intoxicated, needs to know the consequences. The boy who hit Harn was only sentenced to 90 days in jail, but he will know what he did to this woman for his whole life.
One of the questions MADD raised was whether displaying survivors was in the best interest of the family. Michael Harn believes his wife knows what is going on around her, but she can only respond by blinking her one working eye. He brings her to fairs and court ordered classes to show people how this accident basically ended his wife's life and totally changed their marriage and family life in an instant - one which could have easily been avoided. He wants to warn people about the dangers of drunk driving. In addition, he wants to use his wife as an educational tool to help prevent this terrible accident from happening to any other family.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
They're people not tools
posted 10/09/08 @ 9:23 AM EST
It may be the way the article was written, but the fact that the husband refers to his wife as a "tool" when she is still alive and apparently aware of her surroundings seems inappropriate. (Continued…)
Lisa Pane
posted 10/09/08 @ 10:07 AM EST
I'd recommend bringing her to campus to speak.
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