Emily Choi/ Edge columnist
In the twenty-first century, we still live in an ableist society that still remains uneducated towards people with disabilities. People need a reminder to recognize their behavior and mindset to learn the right way to interact with them.
According to Healthline, “the Americans with Disabilities Act [states that], a disability can include any physical or mental health condition or symptom that significantly affects at least one major activity of daily life”. This can be the ability to see, walk, or leave the house.
To address internalized ableism, an individual must first identify the current mindset they have regarding people with disabilities. Without acknowledging bias, prejudice or discrimination, they won’t be able to address it.
Stated from Very Well Mind, there are different signs of ableism. When people think of ableism, the most obvious image that comes in their mind is someone using discriminatory behavior, or derogatory language.
It can look like someone asking invasive questions, exclusion, or humiliating them and their families. However, there are also microaggressions that are less obvious than outright discrimination, but are still harmful.
Furthermore, small acts of prejudice can easily be overlooked. This can be thinking that a disabled person needs their pity or saving. They might even say ignorant comments.
As someone who has a disabled family member, we repeatedly get ignorant comments.
My family constantly received messages like, “How are you so happy when your daughter is like this?”, or “You look like you’re in a bad mood, is it because of your sister’s situation?”. A person even said a product would “heal my sister”, with intentions to try and profit off my mom.
Many may not have malicious intentions in mind; however, these are still examples of subtle microaggressions that can be harmful to disabled people.
To learn how to treat a person with a disability correctly, properly educate yourself to not discriminate towards them.
Be mindful of the language you’re using and do not use slurs; try to speak like you’d speak to anyone else.
Additionally, many are unaware of how to act around disabled people, so they often think that it’s ok to be pitying them. Examples of pitying can be “How can you be so brave”, or “I’m so sorry this happened to you”. However, instead of sympathizing, which promotes a disconnection, society needs to learn how to imagine being in a disabled person’s shoes to stay out of judgement and fuel a connection by empathizing with them.
As the world evolves, we should move away from an ableist society, and learn to treat everyone with respect. In order to do that, make sure to recognize your mindset and behavior towards people with disabilities, so everyone can live in a world that makes them feel welcome and respected.
Sources
Disability and the battle of Sympathy and Empathy
Disability Etiquette- How to Treat and Respect People with Disabilities?
How to Spot & Avoid Casual Ableism When Speaking About Disabilities