Every day is a disability awareness day for me

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Written by Christie Rogero

I have a disability, so I’m aware of it 24/7/365. I can’t get out of bed without first putting on a prosthetic leg and negotiating a bunch of extra steps (see what I did there?) that many people don’t have to deal with when they’re getting ready to start their day. Every day is a disability awareness day for me.

And it’s easy for others to be aware of my disability: it’s hard to miss my shiny blue prosthetic when I’m wearing shorts or a dress. People usually notice my lack of a left leg even more when I have to use my wheelchair. 

But did you know that 1 in 5 Americans, and 1 in 4 American adults, has a disability? That’s a big number to wrap one’s head around: 25% of adults. It might be hard to believe because so many disabilities aren’t super obvious. We’re not all missing limbs and running on cheetah blades. 

But it’s fairly likely that one of the next several people you see will have some sort of disability. The person could be very young or could be in their 90s. They could have an “invisible” disability (like some forms of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome), or they could be utilizing a complex mechanical system that allows them to ambulate or communicate. 

1 in 5 Americans have a disability

Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which is celebrating its 30^th anniversary this year, people with disabilities have more access than ever before to physical spaces, education, good jobs, better healthcare options, improved accommodations, and more representation and advocacy for their needs in political arenas (one of the most prominent examples of political representation being Tammy Duckworth).

And that’s wonderful! 

But I can tell you from experience that it’s not enough. Just from the standpoint of personal biases and discrimination, to say nothing of actual laws and enforcement.

About four or five years after I lost my leg and got my prosthetic, I attended a major annual conference as part of my work for a national animal welfare organization. This was the big one, where professionals from shelters and rescues all over the country come to learn best practices, network, and see the latest and greatest in animal welfare innovation. My favorite conference of the year. 

I was a room monitor for a great workshop about progressive adoption practices that center on a conversation-based approach for making adoption matches rather than what was then a relatively standard interrogation-esque approach. During a question and answer period, a woman in the workshop a raised her hand and (I’m paraphrasing a bit here) said, 

“Well, what if a person in a wheelchair comes into my shelter and wants to adopt a big dog that we know has a lot of energy and requires a lot of exercise, and we think that person won’t be able to handle the dog?” 

Oh, man. Rumblings and murmuring started in all corners of the room. Now, as a room monitor, I wasn’t supposed to get involved in the actual workshop. My job was basically to make some announcements at the beginning and make sure everyone turned in a survey at the end. But I knew the presenter pretty well, and he knew my story, so he looked right at me standing in the back of the room as I immediately raised my hand in a request to respond. He smiled knowingly as if to say, “Oh, here we go,” and didn’t hesitate to call on me. And I said,

“So, it’s not obvious to anyone right now because I’m wearing long pants, but I’m an amputee. {Shocked gasps from a few people} And I just have to say that when it comes to adopting a dog, I might be missing a leg but I’m not stupid.” {Applause, applause} 

The gist of what I was saying was,“Look, I know what my limits are, and a person coming into your shelter in a wheelchair knows what her limits are as well. If a person in a wheelchair wants a big, energetic dog, she is either fully capable of caring for the dog herself or she has people with her who can help her care for a big, energetic dog. A conversation-based adoption process means talking with her in a respectful, non-judgmental manner (the way you would talk with anyone else) about a big, energetic dog who needs a ton of exercise. If you find that she isn’t aware of that particular dog’s personality and needs, the adoption conversation is your opportunity to share that information, which will then further the discussion in pursuit of the best match for dog and person. You don’t get to make a snap decision against an adoption solely based on the seeing a person come into your shelter in a wheelchair.”

And so my point of sharing this story is this: we as a society, separate from our laws and policies, have a long way to go when it comes to disabilities. 

Universal accessibility, equity, and inclusiveness for people with disabilities has not yet been achieved despite all of our progress. Personal biases, discrimination, and barriers of all kinds exist and impact lives every day, all over the world. From housing, community infrastructure, and employment to education and access to health care programs. 

And I know it’s overwhelming to think about. There is so much work to be done for equity and inclusion on so many fronts. And perhaps disability issues don’t seem so urgent because they might not personally affect you. 

They didn’t used to personally affect me, either. And then on one totally ordinary, sunny day, an out-of-control car jumped a curb and ran me down on the sidewalk.  I was walking from my office to visit a new animal adoption center, and it was one month to the day from my wedding. I instantly became that one out of four adults with a disability. Just like that. 

Disability doesn’t care who you are, where you are, what your plans are. It comes in many forms and you can be born with one, slowly develop one, or one can come when you least expect it. Even if you think disability issues don’t personally affect you now, remember that one out of four statistic.

And, of course, it shouldn’t take becoming disabled to make one think a bit more about how disabilities affect over 25% of our fellow Americans. The International Day of Persons with Disabilities helps us pause to reflect and to take action.  

Imagine what it would mean to you to feel that you can’t apply for a job that you’re totally qualified for because a job listing says a company’s building isn’t ADA-compliant. Think things like that don’t happen? They do.

Imagine being told that you can’t fly on a plane because your wheelchair is too heavy. That policy was floated by a major airline recently, 30 years after the ADA was enacted. Thankfully it was quickly rescinded after outcry from the disabled community.

And these are just a couple of very basic examples that don’t even begin to touch on the unnecessary barriers to equity and inclusion faced by those with wide range of functional disabilities, both seen and unseen.  

Today, December 3^rd is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. Today is a great time to do something about these barriers. Are you interested in taking action for your fellow citizens or for yourself? Here’s a good place to start.