Disability Awareness for Excelsior Rotary DEI Committee 1
Disability
Awareness Learn about disabilities and disability history!
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Why is Disability Awareness Important? Disability awareness is about being mindful of disabilities that people have, educating society regarding disabilities and learning how we as individuals can bring about necessary changes for greater acceptance and inclusion. Disability is very prevalent in our society, so it’s not enough to just know that discriminating on the basis of disabilities is unlawful. We must learn more to combat the stereotypes and prejudices that people with disabilities face.
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Disability Rights vs. Disability Justice 1960s A global social movement that seeks to secure equal opportunities and equal rights for people with disabilities.
Early 2000s A framework that examines disability and ableism as it related to other forms of oppression and identity, with a focus on dismantling systems that cause injustices.
Key Points: • Legal-based framework inspired by civil rights movement
Key Points: • Based around transformative change with focus on intersectionality
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Equality model that addresses symptoms, but not root causes (focus was first on physical disabilities)
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Disabled people of color, queer, trans and gender non-conforming people with disabilities at the forefront
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Focus on rights without a broader examination of systems of oppression (right to education does not mean education will be equitable)
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Seeks to spread awareness on how ableism is much more complex than people struggling with a disability
Founders - Patty Berne, Mia Mingus, Stacey Milbern 4
Are “Impairment” and “Disability” the same? Sometimes, but not always!
A disability is the impact of a condition (physical, attitudinal, environmental, etc.) that significantly impairs, interferes with, or limits a person’s ability to engage or participate in certain tasks or actions in daily activities and interactions.
An impairment is an injury, illness, or congenital condition that causes or is likely to cause a loss or difference of physiological or psychological function.
@belonging.table
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The flu Ableist attitudes
Sprained ankle Appendicitis
Deafness Epilepsy Down syndrome
Impairments Torn ligament
20/200 vision
@belonging.table
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Spina Bifida
Inaccessible buildings
Disabilities/ Disabling Conditions Inaccessible information
HIV/AIDS Ableist laws
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Models of Disability Models of Disability seek to answer the question “Who or what is disabling to people with impairments?”
Medical Model
• Impairments alone are disabling to people with impairments
Social Model
Rights Model @belonging.table
• Non-impairment disabling conditions alone are disabling to people with impairments
• Both impairments and non-impairment disabling conditions are disabling to people with disabilities 7
Developmental Disability Defined Developmental Disability (DD) An umbrella term including intellectual disability but also includes other disabilities diagnosed during childhood. DD are chronic disabilities that can be cognitive, physical or both. The disabilities appear before age 22 and are typically lifelong.
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Types of Developmental Disabilities
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Down
Cerebral
Syndrome
Palsy
William
Angelman
Syndrome
Syndrome 9
Intellectual Disability Intellectual Disability (ID) Characterized by significant
limitations both in intellectual functioning (reasoning, learning, problem-solving) and in adaptive behavior, which covers a range of
everyday social and practical skills. Disability originates before age 18.
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In Minnesota,
Around the world,
1 billion
200 million
people around the world live with some form of a disability (15%)
people have
1 in 6 children in the U.S. have
147,000 students currently get special education services,
intellectual and
developmental
accounting for
developmental
disabilities
16.3% of the
disabilities
student population11
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Inclusion
Basics Simple steps you can take to be more inclusive!
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Inclusion Basics Educate Interact Engage
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Educate Yourself Educate yourself about disability history and issues faced by the disability community.
Films/TV Shows
Social Media Accounts
Activists w/ Disabilities
Crip Camp
@valuable500
Haben Girma
Peanut Butter Falcon
@upgradeaccessibility
Melissa Blake
Where Hope Grows
@advocatesworld
Eddie Ndopu
Born This Way
@disabilityreframed
Jillian Mercado
Fundamentals of Caring
@theluckyfewofficial
Alice Wong
“Nothing about us without us.”
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Interact with Peers with IDD Disability Etiquette
▪ Be a friend ▪ Speak to the individual directly and avoid baby talk ▪ Excessive praise isn’t necessary ▪ Stop using ableist slurs and euphemistic language • • • • •
Differently abled Diverse abilities Handicapable Special needs NEVER say the “R” word
Disabled and disability are not bad words!
These phrases imply that a disability makes a person less than, and that disability is bad, negative, problem to be fixed, rather than a normal, inevitable part of being human. “That guy is crazy.” “You’re acting so bi-polar today.” “It’s like the blind leading the blind.” “I’m super OCD about how I clean my room.” “She’s such a psycho.” ---------Handicapped parking → accessible parking Psycho / Crazy → wild, bizarre, chaotic Lame → awkward, uncool
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Interact with Peers with IDD The language we use matters!
Derogatory slurs → Euphemistic language → Person-First → Identity-First Person-First
Identity-First
Best to start with this if you don’t know what people prefer
Some people prefer this, becoming more common
Centering the person ahead of their disability
Validating disability as part of someone’s identity
Examples:
Examples:
People with disabilities
Disabled people
Woman with autism
Autistic woman
If you don’t know what someone prefers, just ask! 17
Engage with the Community Opportunities to create inclusive schools, workplaces and communities: • Make your content and events accessible
• Talk about disability with children and young people • Hire disabled professionals • Listen to and defer to disabled voices • Work with Best Buddies!
If we are not intentionally creating cultures of inclusion, then by default, we are creating cultures of exclusion. 18
Additional Topics to Explore ❖ Ableism ❖ Intersectionality ❖ Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging Thoughts to leave you with: Understand that not everyone is the same Dig deeper to understand better Avoid making assumptions
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