I think a lot of abled people get confused about ableism because they fail to recognize how diverse a category disability is. There are so many kinds of disabilities - intellectual, sensory, motor, chronic illness, neurodivergence, limb differences, to name a few - and people in these categories will have different needs.
Which is why you often end up with disability advocates saying seemingly “contradictory” things. One group may be advocating for more support while another wants increased independence. People with a terminal illness will fight for a cure and more research whereas some ND/sensory disabilities want to stop having their experience medicalized, and so on. The kinds of ableism that people experience will also vary for that reason.
And having one kind of disability doesn’t make you an expert on all of them! Which is why it’s important to have diverse disability rep within organizations and groups. I’ve encountered organizations in the past that claim to be accessible/disability friendly because they have one disabled person on their board, only to find them woefully unequipped to deal with my very different disabilities.
This disability pride month I really encourage abled “allies” to examine the ways they try to flatten disability into a monolith and to make an effort to listen to and uplift diverse disabled voices.
Not to get political but my philosophy is fundamentally that all people should suffer less. That it’s everyone’s responsibility to try to make the world a little better for everyone else. And anyone trying to do the opposite is an asshole who needs to stop.
people were writing “hot or not” lists on the bathroom stalls when i was in 8th grade and the dean of students came on the morning announcements and said something i will never forget “we’ve got some bad apples at this school… and it’s applesauce season"
