I think this may be the perfect combination of awesome and ridiculous. Lady Gaga take note.
May 25, 2012
May 10, 2012
Feeling the Weight: Some Beginning Notes on Disability, Access and Love
“I have watched ableism tear apart relationships with people I love. I have seen access be too much of a barrier for people to be in relationship with each other. I have made excuses for inaccessibility because I loved people and didn’t want to lose relationship with them. I have excused racism, sexism, violence, homophobia because I didn’t want to, couldn’t afford to, lose access. I have asked for access or raised ableism in relationships, only to have those relationships end abruptly. I have stayed in relationships for access and I have been too afraid to enter into relationships because of access. I have had access held over my head, leveraged for able-bodied supremacist means, or treated like a reward for good behavior. I have had access made invisible or belittled by loved ones; I have had to make access happen so the person providing access didn’t know they were. I have kept parts of myself from people I love because I was afraid to, didn’t know how to, be whole and complex in the context of needing access.
This is the cruelty of ableism: it robs us from each other. This is the weight of access.”
May 2, 2012
A LESSON IN ILLUSTRATING WHEELCHAIRS FROM SOMEONE WHO USES ONE
by Jill Pantozzi
Not too long ago I asked a famous comic book artist to draw me a picture of Oracle and what I got was not at all what I expected. Barbara Gordon was depicted in a hospital wheelchair with a blanket over her legs, certainly not the Oracle I know. “How could big name-so-and-so not know how to draw someone in a wheelchair?” I said to myself but then I thought, “Probably because they aren’t in one.” That’s just one possible scenario of course, there are plenty of artists out there who get it right. But if there’s a problem we all suffer from at times it’s ignorance. Yes…all of us. Some more than others of course but even the most learned of us could do with a bit of education now and then and that’s my goal today.
April 23, 2012
"When men say “most women are crazy, but not you, you’re so cool” the subtext is not, “I love you, be the mother to my children.” The subtext is “do not step out of line, here.” If you get close enough to the men who say things like this, eventually, you will do something that they do not find pleasant. They will decide you are crazy, because this is something they have already decided about women in general."
—
Lady, You Really Aren’t “Crazy” Page 2 |
I hate that this is a thing. It’s on my list of OhHellNoCupid don’ts. Do not say “I’m a nice guy not looking for any drama” or “please don’t b crazy” or “ideally you’re down to earth and not uptight, unlike other people i’ve met on here.” It just reads as “I don’t want to deal with women’s emotions because they’re not really people.”
(via em-dash)
To add a disability spin on things, I recently received the following messages on Facebook (what is this, 2005?) from a 42-year-old man whose friend request I accepted because of his association with an arts organization my employer was working with. Classy, ain’t it?
(via emm-dash)
March 30, 2012
Google’s self-driving car allows legally blind man to order a drive thru burrito. The future is now!
March 19, 2012
From Gizmodo:
This Amazing Device Just Made Wheelchairs Obsolete for Paraplegics
The young man in this video looks like he’s riding a Segway. But Yusuf Akturkoglu was paralized after falling from a horse five years ago, and he’s being mobilized by an amazing device invented by Turkish scientists. It’s going to change lives.
It’s called the Tek Robotic Mobilization Device, and it not only allows people who can’t walk get around more independently than any device has before, but it also helps them stand up on their own, which is crucial for maintaining basic health functions in people who have spinal cord injuries.
Crucial Standing Assistance
Instead of entering from the front like a normal wheelchair, people using the Tek RMD enter from the back of the device. That way they don’t have to hoist themselves with a momentum that can be dangerous and is next to impossible to do alone. By attaching a thick padded strap around the hips, Yusuf maneuvers himself into the Tek RMD on his own. The device uses a suspension system that balances the weight so he can stand up with just a gentle pull. Standing for an hour or more every day is important for people who have lost movement in their legs; without the weight-bearing effect of standing, they can develop cardiovascular problems, brittle bones, pressure sores not to mention the psychological importance of eye-to-eye interpersonal contact.
Independence
In the video, Yusuf calls the device to his bedside with a remote-control, gets himself out of bed, goes grocery shopping, maneuvers around a bookstore, and even does some things in the bathroom that we thankfully don’t observe to completion. But these these abilities that most of us take for granted every day are key to the emotional well-being of paraplegic people. The ability to squat down and easily come back to standing is key. And while standing, Yusef’s hands are free to carry groceries or do whatever else he might need them to. Before trying out the Tek RMD, Yusuf, who was a student before his injury, rarely left his home where he lives with his parents.
Smallest Dimensions
The makers of Tek RMD says it’s the most compact device of its kind, which allows Yusuf to navigate crowded grocery aisles, libraries, and who knows, Coachella, maybe? All without knocking into the people and things around him. Users still need ramps in place of stairs, but the device eliminates the need for special bathroom stalls and other facilities that allow space for bulky wheelchairs.
The Tek RMD comes in five sizes. and is still undergoing clinical trials. Here’s hoping it’s on the market stat. UPDATE: It will be on the market in Turkey this week, and the company is looking for outlets in Europe and the United States, where it will cost about $15,000. Here’s hoping insurance will cover it. [Tek RMD and Reuters]
February 3, 2012
I wish I were nerdy enough to fully appreciate this.
January 30, 2012
Adventures in Feministory: Juliette Gordon Low, Founder of Girl Scouts, Disabled Activist
In honor of the recent wave of support for transgender inclusion in the Girl Scouts, let’s delve into the history of Girl Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low. You might know her for leading a life of activism and creating opportunities for women, but did you know she spent the majority of her life with severely impaired hearing? Although trans activism like the recent support for the GSUSA cookie drive most likely was not on Gordon Low’s radar, she fought for the inclusion of girls of all abilities in the Girl Scouts of USA.
Born in 1860 in Savannah, Georgia to a Confederate captain and the daughter of one of the first settlers of Chicago, Juliette Gordon Low enjoyed a life full of restless activity and opportunity. She headed the rowing team as a girl, loved tennis, painted, sculpted, wrote plays, and became notorious for her ability to stand on her head. Once she reached the appropriate age, she went off to the prestigious Virginia Female Institute boarding school, and then capped off her education at the Mesdemoiselles Charbonniers, a French finishing school in New York City. Not too shabby, Gordon Low.
In her young adulthood Juliette Gordon Low suffered from chronic ear infections, and an experimental procedure left her with significantly impaired hearing in one ear. Then, on the day of her wedding, a well-wisher accidentally threw a grain of good-luck rice into Gordon Low’s ear canal. When the doctor attempted to remove the grain, he accidentally ruptured Gordon Low’s eardrum, causing her to lose all of her hearing in the other ear.
The foundation for the Girl Scouts likely came from Gordon Low’s active role in the Spanish-American War. Along with her mother, she founded a convalescent home for soldiers returning home from the war. After her husband died (but not before attempting to divorce her, and then leaving the vast majority of his earnings to his mistress—he sounds like kind of a douche), she spent several years looking for a worthy cause to support. An encounter with the founder of the Boy Scouts enchanted her with the burgeoning youth movement, and in 1912 she organized the first two troops of what would become the Girl Scouts.
Keeping in mind her own disability, Juliette Gordon Low attempted to include girls of all abilities in her Girl Scouts. While the organization took the unfortunate tactic of sometimes creating separate troops for differently abled girls, their efforts toward inclusion differ from their brother organization even to this day. Gordon Low’s Girl Scouts welcomed troop leaders with disabilities, and created manuals for activities and opportunities for disabled Scouts.
The Disabilities Studies blog points out that the Girl Scouts still retains some regressive tactics—including WTF-inducing disability simulations—but that their policies set them apart from many other, less inclusive youth organizations. Even after all this time, Juliette Gordon Low still strikes an impressive figure, and one who fought for girls of all abilities.
January 23, 2012
'Push Girls,' Sundance Reality Show, Aims To Open Up Discussion About Disabilities
For the four paralyzed women starring in a new reality series, the show is about pushing right through stereotypes, disappointments and career obstacles.
Set to debut in April, “Push Girls” will give viewers an unscripted look into the lives of four gorgeous ladies who became disabled after enduring tragic car accidents or debilitating diseases, the Sundance Channel announced. Producers hope that by bringing the series into mainstream television, they’ll demonstrate how strong people with disabilities are — and that it’s OK to look and talk about their conditions.
“The indomitable spirit of this series will give viewers permission to stare at a world that they may previously have been too polite — or too frightened — to explore,” Sarah Barnett, Sundance Channel’s General Manager, said in a release.
When it comes to fear, that’s something these ladies refuse to cart around in their wheelchairs.
“Most people would want to give up,” Tiphany Adams, 28, the sole survivor of a car crash that claimed the lives of three friends when she was in high school, told the New York Post. “But all four of us girls chose to triumph over the tragedy.”
These girls — one was once a swim star, another a hip hop dancer — each left one dream from their youth behind, but is driven to pursue new dreams involving motherhood, relationships, athletics and stardom.
“Push Girls’” producer, Gay Rosenthal, has taken a cue from her past series about empowering those living with disabilities. Rosenthal worked on “Little People, Big World,” a show about a couple, each 4-feet tall, raising a family in Oregon and “Ruby,” the story of a morbidly obese woman trying to lose hundreds of pounds.
“Watching the Push Girls tackling life with spirit and confidence is not only inspiring but compelling,” Rosenthal told C21 Media. “The show challenges perceptions about life in a wheelchair, giving the audience an honest, no-nonsense look into their world.”
Pushing through stereotypes by embracing those created by reality TV? I don’t know how I feel about this.
November 19, 2011
Support the ABLE Act by Emailing Your Representative!
As a constituent and member of the MDA community, I’m writing to ask for you to support the ABLE Act of 2011 by asking your representatives to vote yes via the link above.
The ABLE Act will help Americans with disabilities save money for the future. Accounts with special tax advantages have helped people save for college, retirement and other life events — but people with disabilities have different challenges for the future and do not have an appropriate savings instrument.
Often times, saving over $2000 for future expenses will cause an individual with a disability to lose the very benefits they need to continue living independently. This creates a glass ceiling for those struggling just to get by.
Thus, the ABLE Act encourages and assists individuals and families in saving funds that can be used to support the health, independence and quality of life of the person with a disability.
In creating ABLE accounts, families will be able to overcome some of the financial struggles faced when living with a disability through tax-free savings accounts that can be used to cover a variety of expenses. The ability to plan for a loved one’s future and aid in his or her independence by not relying solely on a system of entitlements is empowering. Parents will be able to save for their children’s future without jeopardizing current benefits. The secure funding through the ABLE Act will supplement — not replace — benefits provided through private insurances, the Medicaid program, the Supplemental Security Income program, the beneficiary’s employer and other resources.
This added layer of financial support will aid in removing some of the barriers faced by families. It also will help provide the tools necessary to finance, for example, an apartment, transportation and the pursuit of higher education, without the fear of losing entitlements.
Some of these qualified disability expenses include:
• Education — including tuition for preschool through postsecondary education, books, supplies and other services
• Transportation — expenses for transportation, including mass transit, the purchase or modification of vehicles, and moving expenses
• Housing — expenses for primary residences, including rent, purchase of primary residence or an interest in primary residence, mortgage payments, home improvements, repairs, taxes and utility charges
• Employment support — expenses related to obtaining and maintaining employment, including job training, assistive technology and personal assistance supports
• Health and wellness — premiums for health insurance, mental health, medical, vision, respite care, nutritional support, adaptive equipment and a host of other services
• Assistive technology and personal care attendant support expenses
• Other approved expenses and miscellaneous expenses, including financial management and administrative services, legal fees and any other expenses approved by the Secretary.
These provisions will allow those living with disabilities to better plan for their future and reduce their dependence on public benefits while ensuring that Medicaid benefits (for those who are receiving them) are not jeopardized.
Please support the ABLE Act of 2011 by asking your representatives to vote yes via the link above— and in so doing, support our neuromuscular community.
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