Hey folks! This newsletter is about all things disability and allyship, to give you a fresh perspective and advice that you can implement immediately to make your world more inclusive of disabled people. As a disabled woman myself, I am on my own allyship journey and I am excited to have you come along with me.
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Action of the Week: Don’t Be A Pathway Blocker.
(Photo by Chris Benson on Unsplash)
[Image: a person wearing a blue skirt and fluffy jacket, with long black hair and Doc Martin boots, is standing with their arms crossed and a perturbed look on their face. They are standing on a footpath in a busy looking city.]
A simple action for you to consider this week, no matter where you are around the globe - don’t be a pathway blocker!
What do I mean by this? I mean don’t park your car on a sidewalk/pavement/footpath. It is something that we are all guilty of… yes, including me. (I will always be honest with you when I have made accessibility mistakes, remember, just because I am disabled myself doesn’t mean that I am a saint!).
Especially since driving in the UK, sometimes I have to go places where the streets are narrow and to keep the road clear you need to park either off or partially off the road, and in previous years I have parked up on the footpath. As I have grown my own awareness and lateral allyship, I no longer park on a footpath. Instead I will try and plan ahead and ensure, can I park in someones drive, is there a side street I can safely park on, or is there a car park close by I can use.
So what does parking on a footpath have to do with accessibility and allyship? These may be a bit of a no-brainer for you, but it is always worth a reminder on the odd occasion. Not parking on a footpath will give access to:
Wheelchair users.
Mobility aid users, such as those who use walkers and canes.
Visually impaired people.
Elderly people who maybe need support from another person to walk or who may be a mobility aid user.
Parents with prams.
EVERYONE!! Because everyone needs to access the footpath, it is safer than walking on the road).
And also, did you know that in London, in the UK (and I imagine it could be similar in other countries), it is illegal to park on a footpath. And in regards to the rest of the UK, whilst it is not illegal, per se, to park on a footpath, it is deemed antisocial and the police can still charge you with ‘unnecessary obstruction of the highway’ because this offence covers all parts of the street.
So as an ally, do please consider your parking habits. Be aware, plan ahead, and make sure you park in a safe way, not just for yourself, but others too.
Thought of the week: The slow moving dismantling of disability bias.
(Photo by Igor Savelev on Unsplash)
[Image: a red haired girl is reading a black shirt and bright pink and blue headphones. She is blowing her cheeks out in disapproval. Her hands are on her hips.]
This week, post doctorate researcher Tessa Charlesworth has released some of her research on implicit bias around disability and it is disheartening, to say the least. What Tessa has discovered is that implicit bias towards the disabled community has not shifted in 14 years and that it could take more than 200 years to reach neutral bias towards my community.
The interesting thing in Tessa’s research though, is that explicit bias towards disability has shifted more positively, with a 37% drop. I see this as a good sign, and I can certainly see where a reduction of explicit bias is reflected in the media that we watch, the profile growth of the Paralympic Games, and the growing awareness of disability in the DEI movement, particularly in the workplace. So, despite a shift in reduction of explicit disability bias, why is a shift so slow with implicit bias?
Firstly, let’s get our understanding of these biases clear:
Explicit bias - is the conscious beliefs and attitudes that we have towards people and communities. This often expresses itself when we feel threatened in some way by the individual or communities, and can express itself via hate speech, discrimination, exclusionary behaviours and practices, etc.
Implicit bias - is the unconscious attitudes, beliefs and stereotypes that we develop towards people and communities. These unconscious attitudes, beliefs and stereotypes are often a result of navigating the very systems that we live in. Media and culture also contributes heavily to implicit bias.
The massive shifts we have seen in reduction of implicit bias towards women, the LGBTQAI+ and Black communities comes from widespread movements that are actively changing the hearts and minds of the public. Charlesworth, herself, attributes these changes, including federal legislation in the US, to the Pride movement, the #MeToo movement and Black Lives Matter. As she states:
"My new research tells us that these are the kinds of social events that are prompting transformation not only in our explicit conscious values, but also in that cognitive monster of implicit bias."
This is what the global disabled community needs to positively impact a reduction in implicit bias. To even possibly speed up the reduction of implicit bias towards disability. Is it too much to dream that we could cut that 200 years down to a 100? Or maybe even down to 50?
As a disabled person with a deep desire to work collectively with other disabled and non-disabled people, to bring a more fair and just world for all disabled people into existence, it is with clarity that I see what we must do. Just as the disability civil rights movement in the US during the 60’s looked to other communities who organised for change for inspiration - such as the Black Panthers - so we must look to other marginalised communities for inspiration, for direction and support.
Implicit bias hits disabled people hard. I know it from my own experiences and from the discussions I have had with disabled friends. It can be hard for non-disabled people to really understand what we experience and how it makes us feel. The ‘kind act’ that actually make us feel belittled. The abuse hurled from cars passing us on the street that makes us want to hide away from the world. Dismissal of accessibility requirements that tell us we are not valid. Being stared at that makes you feel self conscious. Being told you won’t be employed because you’ll be too slow, a distraction, may need time off, you can’t communicate ‘properly,’ etc that makes you feel that you don’t belong… This is why we need to drastically reduce implicit bias as quickly as we can.
Essentially, disabled people need a global voice, and alongside us we need allies. Allies who represent not just the ‘norm,’ but other marginalised groups as well. And in having a voice that is heard and believed, (emphasis on believed here, as too often disabled people aren’t), can we then facilitate the deep, enriching inclusion and belonging that we all crave.
Do you belong to another marginalised community? What has your community done to activate change and engage inclusion? What advice would you give to disabled people to do the same?
Wrap up of the week: News, Books, and Podcasts.
(Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash)
[Image: a green Olympia typewriter sits on a marble desk top. In the typewriter is a piece of paper with News typed on it.]
Sports brand Nike is set to launch their FlyEase Dynamo Go and Play Pack collection. This sneaker and apparel collection is made with the ‘innovative’ FlyEase technology, developed in collaboration with the disabled community. With a particular focus on children, this collections aims to create inclusive play for disabled youngsters - Nike set to debut the kids exclusive FlyEase Dynamo Go
The CDC director in the US has apologised for dismissing the lives of many disabled people in her statement that “overwhelming number of deaths, over 75 per cent, occurred in people who had at least four, so really these were people who were unwell to begin with.” You can read more here - CDC director apologises in meeting with disability rights activists after frustration with policy response.
I came across Ancy Alexander on LinkedIn this week. An Indian, UAE-based public relations consultant and content writer, Ancy is also an inclusive performing arts advocate. Born with cerebral palsy, she started dance training as a child to gain strength and increase her flexibility. As an adult she now trains in and performs Bharatanatyam, a form of Indian Classical Dance - UAE-based Indian woman with cerebral palsy beats movement challenges through dance.
Nikki Lilly is a disabled YouTube with over a million subscribers, who is smashing stereotypes around what life is like for some with facial difference. She has been filming since she was 8 years old, and now as a 17 year old, she is sharing her day-to-day life, proving that disabled young women are just like young women everywhere - check out her latest video which is a day in her life, A Chaotic Couple of Days in My Life.
Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin. Also, if you would like to book a speaker or consultant on all things disability allyship pop me a line here: elizabeth@elizabethwright.net
*remember, for subscribers, I am offering a 15% off my speaker fees if you book me for a virtual session in January, February and March.
Magazines I edit that might also be useful to you - Disability Review Magazine, Not Your Monolith, and Conscious Being.
Liz x