Category Archives: Disability

Embracing My Differences

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Growing up I never saw myself as any different from everyone else. It was never a big deal to me that I simply sat and rolled while others stood and walked. I felt annoyed by, but quickly got used to children in public pointing at me and asking their parent what happened to me. It took me years to even realize that I am different. 

I’ve never seen the need to call attention to my differences. I am disabled yes, but I’m also just your average young adult with my own hobbies and aspirations, much like you may have. I have never attempted to consider myself as part of a “community” or felt the need to be celebrated for being “so strong” for the way that I live. 

When I randomly discovered that July was Disability Pride Month, I first felt silly that there even was a holiday celebrating people like me. But then, the story-lover in me did some research. Why is July “Disability Pride Month”? That’s because July marks the anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. I then recalled that I had once written on my blog about this very date.

Taking a second look at that date, astonishment set in me. It seemed so unbelievable to me that only 30 years ago, people like me were just granted rights that I have today. Today I can look around and see ramps at the end of many sidewalks. Because of what people of all different disabilities fought for, I was welcomed into public schooling because they are required to have wheelchair ramp access and elevators. What I had thought of as nothing more than a social media trend, now started to make sense. 

I now claim newfound pride to be a disabled person. I came to the realization that it’s okay to celebrate me and what I symbolize. This month gave me an opportunity to recognize how fortunate I am due to the plight of those who came before me. Although I refuse to let my disability entirely define me as a person, I took this month to recognize myself and embrace my position in a community of others like me.

I can do without the cliché, restrictive saying that I am “differently abled”. I know what I am capable of. My disability adds many challenges to my everyday life, but I’ve lived this way my whole life, and it is my normal. I’ve lived everyday simply accepting who I am, but now I vow to appreciate the things that make me, me. I have brown hair, brown eyes, and I have a disability in which I use a wheelchair to get around. From this month forward, I am embracing my differences.

Netflix Pick: Crip Camp

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From being confined to the four walls of our homes, if you’re like me, I’m sure you’ve binge watched just about everything on Netflix. Recently I’ve stumbled upon a documentary with an intriguing title, Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution. Little did I know it would hit so close to home with me.

Campers at summer camp, Camp Jened, located in New York

We all know figures such as Martin Luther King and Susan B. Anthony, but little is taught about the plight of another type of civil rights movement—the disability rights movement. This documentary begins in the 1970s and follows the journey of young disabled adults experiencing a summer camp like no other. While in the blissful, free-spirit era, campers forged friendships with those of a variety of disabilities and similar struggles while gaining the confidence to be more independent. These same peers soon became catalysts for the disabled community as they fought for their basic human rights that up until then had been neglected by society.

— Many Camp Jened campers, amongst other disability rights activists, went to San Francisco to participate in a 504 sit-in at a federal building

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 stated that no program receiving federal funds could discriminate against people with disabilities. But the law was never truly enforced and there were never set regulations. By April 5, 1977 still no action from the political administration had been taken. So, without worries about the lack of necessities, especially of essential medical supplies, hundreds of people with various disabilities gathered and sat-in at HEW offices around the country to protest and demand that regulations be implemented. In the now famous San Francisco 504 sit-in, it lasted nearly a month. On April 28, 1977, the Section 504 regulations were finally signed. While this was a significant step in the right direction, the disabled community would still face public discrimination until more intensive protections were placed.

A little over a decade later, on March 12, 1990, a group of disabled individuals determined to be heard decided to take a more instantaneous, eye-opening approach to their protest. After it had been stalled for months, they hoped to encourage the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This aimed at ending segregation of all disabled people, promising them equal societal opportunity. In what is known as the “Capitol Crawl”, many abandoned their crutches, wheelchairs, and other physically necessary medical equipment and began crawling up the stone steps of the Capitol building. Yet it wasn’t until four months later on July 26, 1990, that these efforts were deemed successful and the act was officially signed into law. Personally I credit the ADA for allowing me equal opportunity in places such as my previous public schools or for providing me wheelchair ramp access into many establishments. I thank these brave activists for fighting for the rights that I have today as a disabled person.

Inspiring images of the “Capitol Crawl” in Washington D. C.

While it’s easy to become distracted by Netflix’s guilty pleasures like Tiger King, during these grim days, I recommend taking the time to experience this uplifting story of these lesser known pivotal moments in American history.