How can we think about disability?

Disability is a normal part of society. A society is a big group of communities. The United States is one example of a society.

Society is supposed to help everyone get what they need, but society doesn’t always do that. Our society hurts people with disabilities, and says that disability is a problem. It says that people should try to cure disability, and that people should try and be less disabled.

People with disabilities are not the problem. Instead, society is the problem. Society needs to help people with disabilities, not hurt us. Society shouldn’t try to change disabled people. We should work to make sure people with disabilities can get what we need.

Disability isn’t as big of a deal if things are accessible. Accessibility means disabled people can easily use something, get around somewhere, and feel like we belong there. For example:

Charlene is blind. She goes to a restaurant, but the restaurant does not have a menu in Braille. The restaurant is too crowded to get around easily. The waiter doesn’t try to help Charlene, and people nearby talk about her disability while she eats. The restaurant is not accessible to blind people.

Charlene goes to a different restaurant. The restaurant has bumps on the floor to help Charlene find a seat. They have a menu in Braille, and the waiter also says he can read the menu to Charlene. People nearby make friendly conversation with Charlene, and they don’t ask rude questions about her disability. This restaurant is accessible to blind people.

There are things about some disabilities that can be hard. For example, autism is a disability, and might make it harder for someone to talk or get dressed by themselves. Accessibility doesn’t make disability go away, but it still helps a lot.

Disability is a part of life, and disabled people will always be a part of the world. Many disabled people will always need help to live our daily lives, and that is okay! Disability makes us different and interesting people. We need to talk less about fixing people and more about fixing the world!