Punji
Daedric Prince of Secrets
Disability is a rough thing to have to live with, and while it can vary greatly it's always a detriment to a person's quality of life. It is however important for people to realize and understand the unique requirements disability may demand of people, which a little bit of awareness might help with. Unfortunately I know all too well of how difficult it can be for other people to understand what living with a disability can be like.
I am "fortunate" in the nature of my disability being purely physical and not at all apparent to others, so I face relatively little discrimination most of the time. Most of the time. I do get stared at a lot in public on certain occasions, ranging from concern to curiosity and sometimes not so much concern. People give harsh looks when I use a diability parking placard and when I start to limp a bit after walking for a little while. I have been fired from a job because of my disability, I guess me being crippled was too inconvenient for them. That happens a lot, I find, friends and even family being to be burdened by my limitations. My own mother isn't entirely supportive of me at times, she gets annoyed when I complain of my injuries or in the difficulty I have of completing some task. Everyone has their own pool of sympathy and tolerance for others and eventually it wears away.
Another big issue with society's views on the disabled is the concept best described as "the soft bigotry of low-expectations." A lot of good people really do mean well and can offer a lot of support in various ways, but too many more believe disability prevents productivity. I generally won't tell anyone about my disability in real life if at all possible, or unless I really trust them. The same is largely true for online as well, in that I don't speak of it unless it's required or relevant. The people I trust most get the specific name and nature of my disability. So as such, it truly comes as a shock to others when they learn of it. I was once asked by a man if I could walk up stairs. The first time I met him was on the second story of a building without an elevator.
This is a very common and in my opinion significant problem faced by people with disabilities. I'm disabled, not incompetent. Life is much more difficult with a significant disability and mine is admittedly quite severe, but I don't need pandering or pats on the back for doing exactly what everyone else is supposed to be doing. When people work and live around me prior to knowing of my disability their expectations of me are normal, yet when my difficulties come to light a switch is flipped where all the things I was doing before are suddenly out of my reach. This happens time and time again. Some people are really very kind-hearted and do their very best to be supportive, which is great and fantastic, but most people just act like I'm a toddler. I don't need special treatment and I don't need to be taught how to manage my own condition (which literally one person I have ever met knew about before being told it existed and have yet to ever meet someone who can understand exactly what it's like to have). If I need something I can ask for it, if I need to rest I will rest.
It's both demeaning and insulting that suddenly a person should think lesser of me or greater of my mundane "accomplishments" purely on the basis of having a disability. As I've said, it makes life harder. Of course it makes life harder. Life is hard enough for a healthy person, I know that too because a physical disability doesn't stop the rest of what life throws at a person. As I see it my disability is just a cross to bare and that is that. What really irks me most of all is that if I told someone I wasn't straight and they reacted this way it'd be Hell on Earth. Yet this identical response to a disability is not only accepted but common.
Disabled people face a lot of unjust prejudice. Simple understanding of people with disabilities of any kind can make a lot of difference. It can mean a lot to someone to know what their limitations are and not push them beyond what they can comfortably manage. E-hugs to all the furries living with or who have friends and family with disabilities!
I am "fortunate" in the nature of my disability being purely physical and not at all apparent to others, so I face relatively little discrimination most of the time. Most of the time. I do get stared at a lot in public on certain occasions, ranging from concern to curiosity and sometimes not so much concern. People give harsh looks when I use a diability parking placard and when I start to limp a bit after walking for a little while. I have been fired from a job because of my disability, I guess me being crippled was too inconvenient for them. That happens a lot, I find, friends and even family being to be burdened by my limitations. My own mother isn't entirely supportive of me at times, she gets annoyed when I complain of my injuries or in the difficulty I have of completing some task. Everyone has their own pool of sympathy and tolerance for others and eventually it wears away.
Another big issue with society's views on the disabled is the concept best described as "the soft bigotry of low-expectations." A lot of good people really do mean well and can offer a lot of support in various ways, but too many more believe disability prevents productivity. I generally won't tell anyone about my disability in real life if at all possible, or unless I really trust them. The same is largely true for online as well, in that I don't speak of it unless it's required or relevant. The people I trust most get the specific name and nature of my disability. So as such, it truly comes as a shock to others when they learn of it. I was once asked by a man if I could walk up stairs. The first time I met him was on the second story of a building without an elevator.
This is a very common and in my opinion significant problem faced by people with disabilities. I'm disabled, not incompetent. Life is much more difficult with a significant disability and mine is admittedly quite severe, but I don't need pandering or pats on the back for doing exactly what everyone else is supposed to be doing. When people work and live around me prior to knowing of my disability their expectations of me are normal, yet when my difficulties come to light a switch is flipped where all the things I was doing before are suddenly out of my reach. This happens time and time again. Some people are really very kind-hearted and do their very best to be supportive, which is great and fantastic, but most people just act like I'm a toddler. I don't need special treatment and I don't need to be taught how to manage my own condition (which literally one person I have ever met knew about before being told it existed and have yet to ever meet someone who can understand exactly what it's like to have). If I need something I can ask for it, if I need to rest I will rest.
It's both demeaning and insulting that suddenly a person should think lesser of me or greater of my mundane "accomplishments" purely on the basis of having a disability. As I've said, it makes life harder. Of course it makes life harder. Life is hard enough for a healthy person, I know that too because a physical disability doesn't stop the rest of what life throws at a person. As I see it my disability is just a cross to bare and that is that. What really irks me most of all is that if I told someone I wasn't straight and they reacted this way it'd be Hell on Earth. Yet this identical response to a disability is not only accepted but common.
Disabled people face a lot of unjust prejudice. Simple understanding of people with disabilities of any kind can make a lot of difference. It can mean a lot to someone to know what their limitations are and not push them beyond what they can comfortably manage. E-hugs to all the furries living with or who have friends and family with disabilities!
) by championing causes of which may not just be unwelcome but also have those with a disability to want them to fuck off.
