It’s July, and that means it’s Disability Pride Month! And what better way to honor the month then by calling it what it is, without euphemisms or supposedly “feel good” alternatives.
Not Special Needs
Many people seem to be under the mistaken impression that “disability” is a dirty word, or at least one with negative connotations. Instead of “she has a disability” you’ll often hear “she has special needs”. But here’s the problem: those needs aren’t special. People living with disabilities need access to public spaces and services, we need to feel included and heard, we need employment, we need social activities, we need a lot of things but none of these things are special. These are the same needs experienced by everyone, whether they’re living with a disability or not.
Not Differently Abled
This probably isn’t the most appropriate place for a barf emoji, but I am sorely tempted. “Differently abled” is at best patronizing, and at worst ignores the impact of real world barriers on people with disabilities. “He’s differently abled” sounds like someone has a fun quirk or is at most left-handed, when in reality they have a disability that requires real accommodation to overcome real limits to access.
Not A Disability, But A Superpower
Certain disabilities can help people to be better at doing certain things. For example, a person with ADHD likely has better pattern recognition skills. They’re also more likely to burn out and feel completely overwhelmed by the end of a long work day. Some superpower!
This terminology can be complicated because some people living with disabilities do consider it a sort of superpower. And that’s their call to make, because it’s theirdisability, and they can define it any way they want.
Not A Contest
Sometimes people living with disabilities are the ones who don’t want to say it. For some this is out of shame or resistance to accepting a new diagnosis. But for others it’s a matter of not feeling disabled enough. Some people living with cognitive or invisible disabilities can be resistant to labeling themselves as such because they don’t feel they have a “real” disability, a condition that’s more visible to people around them like needing a wheelchair or having low or no vision. It’s up to each individual to decide how they identify, but if a condition limits your ability to participate in public life, and those limitations can be eased by accommodations, then that disability is just as real as any other.
Not A Dirty Word
So why are some people so afraid to say “disability”? Because to them the very idea is often terrifying. They see disability as a curse, something to thank their lucky stars they don’t have. This is self-defeating, because if we’re lucky enough to live a long lifespan, virtually all of us will have some sort of disability some day. It’s also pretty offensive to the estimated 1.3 BILLION people living with disability around the world. Many of these are people living happy, fulfilling lives, and many more could do the same if those around them would stop treating disability as something so scary that they can’t even bring themselves to say the word.
