MY WORD

Many of you have heard me beating this drum before – but there are some messages worth repeating, particularly when the issues at hand are as vital as disability and identity.

At this time, perhaps more than any other, people with disabilities are coming into their own. In increasing numbers, they are taking their place within sectors that have been traditionally regarded as the exclusive realms of able-bodied people. Disabled people are going to school, standing them in good stead to enter virtually any field that captures their interest. Disabled parents are raising children and enjoying family life, areas that, in the past, were not regarded as being within the realm of possibility. Disabled entrepreneurs are opening businesses and competing with others engaged in similar fields, preparing to help take up the slack that our entire society will experience once the baby boomers enter retirement in greater numbers. Disabled artists are benefiting from the same critical acclaim that their able-bodied counterparts have been experiencing since forever, and disabled athletes, at the time of this writing, are packing up to go to Beijing to participate in the Paralympics.

So, why is it that so many people, including those with disabilities, still insist on doing what I did throughout most of the last paragraph? Why is it that people who are accomplishing so much are 1) being referred to as “disabled” and 2) allowing the “D-word” to take precedence over both their identities and their accomplishments?

In my view, people with disabilities – and they are people with disabilities (not disabled people) – need to take an active stance at every opportunity and correct misnomers regarding who they are and what they do. In fact, not doing so is to risk peril.

 The mainstream media are the guiltiest in this regard. They shape the public’s perceptions and, therefore, public opinion with their word choices. The story of Tracy Latimer remains an important example. Would the 70 percent of our fellow Canadians who are sympathetic to Robert Latimer still feel that way if Tracy had been described as a young girl with a disability, a person who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair, as opposed to “a disabled girl who was confined to a wheelchair and suffered from cerebral palsy”? Methinks not!

On the day that The Honourable David Onley was sworn in as Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, I found myself on a popular CBC radio show, being interviewed about Abilities’ interview with Onley (conducted by yours truly), which had taken place earlier that week. The interviewer felt a need to take what could only be considered a good news story and, even after being corrected by me, insist on referring to His Honour as a “disabled lieutenant-governor.” For some reason, this took priority over Onley’s numerous charitable activities, his literary accomplishments, his distinguished career in the media, and the fact that he had just become Queen Elizabeth II’s representative in Canada’s largest province. He was still a disabled person first, and a lieutenant-governor second.

So, let’s get conscious, people. Let’s admit that words do matter, they do shape the public’s opinions and attitudes, and this has a direct impact on the lives of many people with disabilities, keeping them on the margins. Our communities are so much richer when they are diverse and inclusive – when belonging is the norm.

So, take a stand! And, if you don’t agree, if you prefer “handicapped,” “otherwise enabled,” “physically challenged,” etc., then let us know – and tell us why! If, however, you agree with us here at Abilities, do your bit and confront words that confine and stereotype, whenever and wherever you find them!