A Capable Disabled Group Community Group
We would be delighted to have you join our group. A Capable Disabled Group is a mutual support group for persons who are disabled, handicapped, differently abled, or have other conditions, along with our friends and caregivers. We discuss what matters to us, learn from each other, and strive to improve our lives.
Not so very long ago, it was: cripple, gimpy, clumsy, slow, sick, crazy, nut, peg-leg, stumpy, spaz,...accompanied by the attitudes and beliefs that underlie such stigmatizing labels: those kind of people are a burden on their families and society, yet they must not be allowed to do many of the things that 'normal' people do, even if they are capable of doing them: holding a job, being seen in public, going to college, having their own homes, owning a business, marrying and having a family, owning and driving a vehicle, working in a professional capacity,...
Now it is increasingly: physically challenged, psych disability, mentally challenged, handicapped, differently abled,..it matters what we call things and people, because words are much more than just letters and sounds - words contain and convey meanings, attitudes, perceptions, expectations, and so much more.
Someday it may be: equal consideration with every other person, a society in which the only labels that need to be applied to people are their names and accomplishments...and the stigmatizing, limiting labels can be relegated to a time in the distant, fading past in which people and society didn't understand that those 'different' people are not their disabilities alone, and sometimes not at all...and those different people really aren't so different, because every person is a unique individual even if they aren't categorized and put into a box with a label on it.
A Capable Disabled Group would like to encourage you to try on some new labels and step outside the box you've been placed in. Think now of yourself as Ready, Willing, and Able. You can say it right out loud or silently to yourself if you like. You can have hopes and dreams and plans, and you can pursue them. It's never too late or too early, you never have to worry that you've got too little or too much, to take some kind of first step. Think about your goals and make a link between them and yourself, perhaps by putting words on paper or saying words to people who believe you can do it. Words like: college degree, a profession, my own business, my own car, my own home,...
What are your thoughts?
Now it is increasingly: physically challenged, psych disability, mentally challenged, handicapped, differently abled,..it matters what we call things and people, because words are much more than just letters and sounds - words contain and convey meanings, attitudes, perceptions, expectations, and so much more.
Someday it may be: equal consideration with every other person, a society in which the only labels that need to be applied to people are their names and accomplishments...and the stigmatizing, limiting labels can be relegated to a time in the distant, fading past in which people and society didn't understand that those 'different' people are not their disabilities alone, and sometimes not at all...and those different people really aren't so different, because every person is a unique individual even if they aren't categorized and put into a box with a label on it.
A Capable Disabled Group would like to encourage you to try on some new labels and step outside the box you've been placed in. Think now of yourself as Ready, Willing, and Able. You can say it right out loud or silently to yourself if you like. You can have hopes and dreams and plans, and you can pursue them. It's never too late or too early, you never have to worry that you've got too little or too much, to take some kind of first step. Think about your goals and make a link between them and yourself, perhaps by putting words on paper or saying words to people who believe you can do it. Words like: college degree, a profession, my own business, my own car, my own home,...
What are your thoughts?
Thank you.
I have a permanent handicap license plate and when we park my car to get groceries, I get very dirty looks and peope start talking about me, and at times right in my face. As my husband states, for all they know I could be a veteran (even though I look like I'm 27 but I'm older). Then when I shop for clothes (which is very rare) the sales clerk asks if I want a scarf to cover up my neck, which is where my trac scar is located.
People can be so judgemental and assume so much when they should be minding their own business - sorry for the rant...it just part of my life for over 8 years now and I still can't get use to it. I mean really when did being nice, kind, and helpful become a rareity in our society.
Thanks for adding this topic to our group! I hope it helps others!
Thank you!!
I had been somewhat involved in special education before I left the teaching field. One of the main reasons that I enjoy special education (it is not my primary field) is because (a) learning how to teach those students who have the most difficult time learning makes you a better teacher and (b) students with learning disabilities are the underdogs, often exist on the fringes of social groups, and need someone to stick up for them. There are a couple of issues (well, much more than a couple, but we'll just focus on two right now) related to spec. ed. that's relevant to this topic.
1. The Student First movement in special education: Usually kids who have a learning disability are referred to as LD students (learning disabled students). There was a movement a while back to change the emphasis of learning disabilities on a students life by saying "students with learning disabilities" instead of LD students. The idea was that a student should not be defined by his or her disability--they were students first who just happened to have a learning disability.
2. The idea of the "Super Crip." One author of quite a few books of special education introduced the idea fo the "Super Crip." Basically, he was saying how unfair it was that we expect disabled people to compete/accomplish the same things that non-disabled people are able to do. The example he gave was the blind man who climbed the Himalya mountains.
Now, regarding language and labels. I am a huge proponent of using words that don't hurt. I agree completely with Beaumont: Words are not words. They are the spirit and essence of our actions, and they can wound very deeply. And labels can be like self-fulfilling prophesies--we often live up to or down to what we call or think of ourselves. But here's the thing I worry about: I don't want to our words and what we call ourselves to be so watered down that the impact of our disabilities are just forgotten. Yes, I want to live up to my potential. Yes, I want to accomplish my goals. Yes, I want the same rights that are enjoyed by non-disabled people. No, I do not want people to just see me as a cripple. HOWEVER, I don't want people to forget that I am disabled. I am not "differently abled." There are things that I cannot do that I could do ten years ago. There are things that I would really like to accomplish but know that I will not be able to do. It sucks, yes, but it's just a fact of life. I am limited by my disability, and I think if we constantly try to wash out the pain of that situation by coining terms that don't reflect the reality of our struggle, we do ourselves and society a disservice. There are days when I feel crippled, I am crippled, and when I hobble down to the mailbox and a car passes me, I don't want them to think, "Wow, there's a differently abled person getting his mail." I want them to realize that there are people out there who are less fortunate and who need help--even if it doesn't do me a lick of good, maybe it will spark a little compassion and awareness in their hearts.
To put it another way, I taught many students who were what some people might call "economically challanged" or who came from a "lower socieconomic class." Horseshit. They were poor. They were born poor, they grew up poor, and many of them will stay poor because they didn't have near the same amount of opportunities as someone who came from a more affluent background. To use language that has no teeth, no spirit, that lacks the essence of their situation makes us forget that as a society, our job is not done and there is much more that we need to do to ensure that everyone gets a fair shake.
Regarding the "Super Crip." I tutored a graduate student who was working on her master of education. She was also learning disabled--dyslexic and dysgraphic, which is a writing disability. This young lady is brilliant. Very smart and on top of that, an outstanding teacher. However, without an incredible amount of help (more help than the university was legally required to give), she never would have made it through grad school. It has been a very long and frustrating process, and while she has succeeded, she is the exception to the rule and she knows it. She has been very fortunate to have extraordinary support that simply is not available to every learning disabled student. To hold every learning disabled student to the same standard simply is not fair; I believe it would do more harm than good. My point is that if the "Super Crip" were the reality, if disabled people could do anything and everything just as well or better as their non-disabled counterparts, we would see more of us playing professional sports, holding positions of authority, running for political office, acting, entertaining, teaching, etc., and less of us would be unemployed or on social security. And quite frankly, why should I have to climb the Himalayas to be respected/recognized/accepted? I am who I am, and my body is the way it is. This should be enough. Sometimes I think the idea of the super crip is an awfully convenient idea for society to encourage because it takes the burden of responsibility off of its shoulders and places it on those who are least prepared to handle it: The disabled person.
Anyway, that's my 2 cents. Don't misunderstand me. I'm not saying we can't accomplish things, that we can't find happiness or fulfillment, or contribute something important to the world. I'm just saying this: Our society can do incredible things. We can send people into space, we can create technological marvels, and we can map the human genome. But we're also very good at ignoring the suffering of others. You would think that eliminating suffering would be one of our top priorities.
Hope this all made sense.
However, as far as the work situation goes, I hear you loud and clear. I was always under the impression that people were basically good, kind, and patient. Not so much, I discovered. I'm not sure how things work in Canada, but you might want to talk to a lawyer for a wrongful discharge (?) case. It just doesn't seem right.