Opening
Three disability-related links for Tuesday, April 23, 2024.
1. What We Believe
Autistic Self Advocacy Network
“When non-autistic people make decisions about autism without Autistic input, those decisions are usually bad. This makes it harder for us to get by in the world. Decisions about autism need to be made with autistic people. That way, we can make policies that help us live our lives, and teach people how to be understanding and supportive of the autistic community.”
This is another helpful link for Autism Acceptance Month, and to keep on hand the rest of the year, too. It’s mainly the introductory page to a series of short position or philosophy statements on important autism-related topics. But the quote above is also a good explanation of why the disability rights principle of “Nothing about us without us” is important — especially for people who have been almost entirely left out of discussions about their own disabilities, because of perceptions people have about those disabilities.
2. Higher education was easily accessible to disabled people during Covid. Why are we being shut out now?
Rosie Anfilogoff, The Guardian - April 17, 2024
“‘I’d like the option for remote learning to still be given to students who ask for it,’ said one student in a report from the Disabled Students’ Commission. ‘As a disabled student, I have found remote learning – although challenging at times – easier than the challenges I would have to deal with if I had to attend on-campus teaching.’ Similarly, in a survey of 326 disabled students by Disabled Students UK, 84.5% said the option of online learning post-pandemic would benefit them.”
My somewhat limited but current experience as a part-time community college tutor in the U.S. is that colleges, (that is the faculty and staff), hate remote learning, and believe that it messed up a generation of current and income students. I’m not sure that even a majority of disabled students actually like remote learning either. My take is that remote learning as a solution to specific barriers with particular disabled students is great for people who want it, and therefore should be more available than it was before the pandemic. At the same time, we need to be careful not to allow remote learning, or remote working for that matter, to become a substitute for continuing to make college campuses, and workplaces, more accessible. Remote is good when it’s a liberation for disabled people, when it opens doors. It’s bad, obviously, when it restricts, short-changes, and closes doors on disabled people. So like most things in disabled people’s lives, it should remain an option, not a default solution for everyone.
3. How to Address Health Iniquities for Disabled People
Kelly Mack, Rolling With It - April 18, 2024
“Perhaps the most powerful way to get started is to ask disabled people. Ask them about their experiences, listen (even though it may be painful), then take action to correct problems. I’ll be honest that I have not always complained after a poor experience, because I was just glad I survived it and am in a hurry to leave. If you gave me a couple days to recover, then asked me—I might be more forthcoming and would have suggestions on what to do better.”
There is good, common-sense advice here on how to start improving the way the medical profession serves disabled people. By and large it doesn’t completely depend on deep institutional change — like building renovations, more training, and changes in rules and procedures — although those things eventually have to happen too. It really can begin with individual doctors, nurses, and other technicians, and with us as disabled patients. It’s frustrating that it always seems to be disabled people who are responsible for fighting ableism. But as that does seem to be the case, those of us who can probably should take it upon ourselves to advocate not just for ourselves in hospitals and doctors’ offices, but also help medical professionals serve all disabled patients better.
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Thanks so much for the mention Andrew! Big fan of your work so it’s a real honor!