Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith

Ability Advantages

There are advantages to having an ordinary level of mobility.

But you know what I noticed?  Many of those advantages are frangible.  It's easy to lose them, not just by being disabled, but also by being ... female, brown, poor, short, Pagan, queer, fat, old, or all sorts of other groups that are outside the core of what is considered most desirable and powerful.  All the statements are true if they include "because of my ability level."  But take that out, and many of those are things I constantly hear about people being denied for many other reasons.

If you are able-bodied, try not to assume that disabled people share all the same advantages you do.  There are things you probably won't notice or think of given your differing life experiences.

If you are disabled, try not to assume that able-bodied people all have the advantages you're missing out on, because plenty of folks will have lost those and/or others for reasons that may not be obvious to you.

In other words, treat each other gently and respectfully, and don't act like a jerk.  As best you can, try to compensate for each other's strengths and weaknesses.
Tags: activism, networking
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  • 2 comments
fmanalyst

fmanalyst

December 6 2011, 12:32:04 UTC 9 years ago

I straddle the line of mobility. On any given day my foot, ankle or knee problems can cross the threshold, and I'm limping along with my cane. The next day they can be pretty good, and I'm walking briskly. Often it depends on the weather.
ysabetwordsmith

Yes...

ysabetwordsmith

December 6 2011, 17:44:12 UTC 9 years ago

That's a whole little sub-issue unto itself, because like bisexuals, semi-mobile people are often rejected both by able-bodied and by handicapped people. Navigating that terrain comes with a unique set of challenges and pressures that draw from both sides.

Been there, done that. There are plenty of things my body won't do, or won't do an average amount of -- but that varies, which makes it hard to account for, which is a pain in the ass.

But as I mentioned elsewhere, the thing I'm most likely to be surprised by? Is suddenly not being the limiting factor, just because I usually am. Being around people with different dietary needs, or different mobility levels, or sundry other limitations makes me more aware of the world around me. So that's a good thing.

This is what leads me to read any given list of advantages or disadvantages and immediately compare it to all the other mental lists I've stored, to see where they overlap or diverge. What will society take away if you annoy it at all? What will fall out of reach most easily due to practical reasons and natural laws? Which of those are most crucial to protect, and how can we do that? So I'm always groping my way around the whole elephant.