I’m The Mountain That Never Moves I’ve been forever I’ll be here forever I’m the Gimp I’m the Cripple I’m the Crazy Lady I’m the Woman With Juice This is the ending of the poem I Am Not One of The by Cheryl Marie Wade. According to New Mobility which is “The magazine for active wheelchair users, Cheryl Marie Wade was “The Mother of Gnarly” who was an acclaimed playwright, poet, performer, filmmaker, and disability rights activist who died in Berkley, California on August 21, 2013 due to complications of rheumatoid arthritis at the age of 65. Why do we need disability rights activists like Wade? What in our history and perhaps our future makes it necessary to
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(Covey, 1998). In Smart Chapter 5, it gives examples of how the medical model of disability has contributed to the labeling of People with Disabilities as deviants, because PWD’s need to “be fixed” so they can “fit in.” Also, because the medical model views the person with the disability as the problem, it insinuates that it is that person who needs to change, and not the environment. People without Disabilities (PWOD) also make judgements about who is worthy. For example, someone who is disabled because of his/her service in a war, or who have made great achievements to the world, is looked upon as a hero. Someone who may have been born with a disability, not so much. Also, as a society, we are influenced by the way people look, as well as their education, and social status. Those who do not have a good post-secondary education, and who are underemployed or not employed, are seen as a burden, and are inferior to the rest of …show more content…
Society (PWOD) misses out on the skills and the perspectives that PWD’s bring to the table if all they see is the medical definition of disability. An example of this from Smart Chapter 5, is that of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Most people knew that he was a polio survivor, and that many helped him hide the effects from his disability. In the past, he was said to have made his great accomplishments despite his disability. Now historians make the case that because of his disability, he became a great leader, because “he had to develop patience, application, recognition of his own limitations, and a willingness to fail in front of others.” (Geoffrey Ward, 1989.) Today, I think about the accomplishments of Temple Grandin. She was diagnosed with autism at an early age, and her parents were encouraged to institutionalize her. What knowledge would we have missed out on, had she been shut away. Much like FDR, she may have developed her inventions for humane animal handling because of her disability, and the perspective that it gave
(Covey, 1998). In Smart Chapter 5, it gives examples of how the medical model of disability has contributed to the labeling of People with Disabilities as deviants, because PWD’s need to “be fixed” so they can “fit in.” Also, because the medical model views the person with the disability as the problem, it insinuates that it is that person who needs to change, and not the environment. People without Disabilities (PWOD) also make judgements about who is worthy. For example, someone who is disabled because of his/her service in a war, or who have made great achievements to the world, is looked upon as a hero. Someone who may have been born with a disability, not so much. Also, as a society, we are influenced by the way people look, as well as their education, and social status. Those who do not have a good post-secondary education, and who are underemployed or not employed, are seen as a burden, and are inferior to the rest of …show more content…
Society (PWOD) misses out on the skills and the perspectives that PWD’s bring to the table if all they see is the medical definition of disability. An example of this from Smart Chapter 5, is that of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Most people knew that he was a polio survivor, and that many helped him hide the effects from his disability. In the past, he was said to have made his great accomplishments despite his disability. Now historians make the case that because of his disability, he became a great leader, because “he had to develop patience, application, recognition of his own limitations, and a willingness to fail in front of others.” (Geoffrey Ward, 1989.) Today, I think about the accomplishments of Temple Grandin. She was diagnosed with autism at an early age, and her parents were encouraged to institutionalize her. What knowledge would we have missed out on, had she been shut away. Much like FDR, she may have developed her inventions for humane animal handling because of her disability, and the perspective that it gave