Ways in Which You Can Recognize and Eliminate Ableism
Millions of Americans live with a disability. Most of the people with disabilities are often the old adults. Generally, people with disabilities struggle a lot in certain aspects of life and one of them is the stigma of ableism. Discrimination against people living with disability in favor of the abled is what is known as ableism. In this article, youre going to learn more about some useful tips on how to recognize and eliminate ableism.
One of the most common forms of ableism is abled language. Abled language is whereby people speak in a way that discriminates against disabled people. You should endeavor to eliminate abled language because it is offensive to people living with disability. Some of the words that can be used and portray ableism include moron, idiot and retarded.
Another common form of ableism is whereby people are called autistic is a joke. Because of the increased activity on the Internet, today we have a lot of memes that enable connection between people but at the same time, the people that do not understand the joke are called autistic. Autistic is used because it is associated with people living with autism who rarely recognize the social cues, including humor.
The other way you can recognize ableism is where there are inaccessible spaces. According to the regulations, all spaces must be disability friendly, but you will find that there are some shops or public areas that cannot be accessed by some people. It is important for you to make your store to be wheelchair friendly as this will make the people using wheelchairs to easily navigate the office. By purchasing ramps as stated by the National Ramp, you can make your spaces accessible because they can be used indoors and outdoors.
Inaccessible events are another common form of ableism because it denies disabled individuals access to the events. As you plan for your event, you should consider making it accessible to all the people that are living with disabilities and those people that cannot walk for a long distance. It is important to recognize that not all the people that walk without a mobility device are able-bodied.
You can also recognize ableism where you will find inspirational videos made about people living with disability. In most cases, such videos that feature disabled people are only meant to make other people feel better about their life. It is advisable for you to desist from sharing these videos recognizing that disabled people also enjoy their life. To find out more about the other top forms of ableism, click here.