An estimated 50,000 people live with Down syndrome in Germany, and many of them feel marginalized in their everyday lives. Now a famous German TV host is working to raise awareness for them.
German TV host Kai Pflaume is on a mission - he wants to raise awareness for people with trisomy 21, or Down syndrome. In a new four-part TV series to be broadcast in June on Germany's main network ARD, he visits people living with Down syndrome and provides insight into their everyday lives. Called "Show Me Your World," the project aims to show how people with Down syndrome can live very normal lives.
Happy in their own world
Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21, hence the name trisomy 21. Since the strength of this disability can vary, many people with Down syndrome live completely normal lives with their families, while others need more help.
Support is provided for them and their relatives by the German Down Syndrome Network, whose chairman is Heinz Joachim Schmitz. He often notices how people without a disability react when they meet someone with trisomy 21. "At first, they're a little afraid," he said. "They take two steps back, then three steps forward - once they've made contact with them."
That's because people with Down syndrome are often noticeably cheerful, with fewer hang-ups than others. "They have their own world, and are settled and happy inside it," said Schmitz, who thinks it's a shame that so many have such a stand-offish initial reaction. "People with Down syndrome belong to our society, and should not be marginalized."
Happy in their own world
Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21, hence the name trisomy 21. Since the strength of this disability can vary, many people with Down syndrome live completely normal lives with their families, while others need more help.
Support is provided for them and their relatives by the German Down Syndrome Network, whose chairman is Heinz Joachim Schmitz. He often notices how people without a disability react when they meet someone with trisomy 21. "At first, they're a little afraid," he said. "They take two steps back, then three steps forward - once they've made contact with them."
That's because people with Down syndrome are often noticeably cheerful, with fewer hang-ups than others. "They have their own world, and are settled and happy inside it," said Schmitz, who thinks it's a shame that so many have such a stand-offish initial reaction. "People with Down syndrome belong to our society, and should not be marginalized."
