wall of ignorance

by Chris Van Ingen
Andrew Peacock’s comment “you have to be handicapped to understand Labor polices.” highlights the wall of ignorance people with disabilities still face.
I have loved politics sens I met Paul Keating when he was prime minister and I was even a member of Mr Peacock’s own party but I haven’t heard ignorance like that sens primary school.
For anyone still living in the dark agers with Mr Peacock here my introduction to disability lecture.
I will baffle you, astound you and tell you the truth as I see it. Let me start by asking you this question – What is the difference between you and me? The answer is nothing, we are all human beings. What is a disability?
A disability is
“any restriction or lack of ability to perform an activity in the manner, or within the range considered to be normal for a human being.”
There are many different types of disabilities. I’ve had friends that have cerebral palsy just like me that are higher functioning than. I am I have also had friends that are lower functioning because like any thing in life every one is different, each disability is different. Unless you have lived with a disability you will never know what it’s like just as I will never know what it’s like dealing with the trials and tribulations of your life. I am only here as proof of what living with a disability is actually like, at least what it’s like for me. Every one on the face of this earth has their difficulties every day but for a person with a disability it can sometimes feel like these difficulties are magnified ten thousand times. Just to give you a small illustration of these difficulties I would like every person here to grab a pen in their opposite hand to the one you write with, hold it in a fist and then try and write your name.
Something as simple as writing your name can be this difficult for me and this is with my good hand. I’m not saying any of this to embarrass you or make you feel sorry for me these are just the facts. Every day I have to have someone dress me, feed me, shower me and even wipe my bum.

I have been incredibly lucky because at the stage that my brain damage occurred the doctors believed the areas of my brain that control speech and intellectual capacity were not developed that is why I’m able to communicate so clearly and because of this I have been able to function at a high level in society despite my physical difficulties. Even with my communication skills and normal intellectual abilities I have still been confronted with nasty stereo types and discrimination like all people with disabilities. Just the other day I was out with my fiancée having lunch and the waitress came up to the table and said “we have chicken nuggets and chips if he would like that” she didn’t even acknowledge my presence at the table. So naturally I replied “I’ll have the open steak sandwich, thanks.” This lady did not mean any disrespect, she just wasn’t aware enough. This is the case with a lot of people. That is why I always try and educate people rather than getting mad. I have found you get further that way.
If you lovely people are going to work in the disability field, the most important thing to remember is you are not there to do the person with a disability a favour so it is important to be a professional at all times. I can guarantee you if a person with a disability had any other choice you would not be in their lives as carers. I have found the general rule of thumb is ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’. In other words don’t do anything to your clients that you wouldn’t like done to yourself. Let me ask you this question – please look at the person next to you, now what if I was to tell you that the person you are looking at right now is coming home with you tonight, strip you naked and shower you. The standard answer to this question is ‘hell no!’. But people with disabilities have no choice. I have had carers that think I am invincible because of the way I joke around and act confident. This is just my way of protecting myself from the invasion of privacy I deal with every day and it is because of this bravado a few carers have made inappropriate comments about my weight while showering me and even comments about how disgusting my bowel movements are. Comments like this are completely inappropriate because it is comments like these that make me feel more disabled than anything.

There are many issues that disabled people face everyday. For example,
How will we get from one place to another?
How do we gain access to friend’s places, shops etc?
How do we deal with sexual frustration when society believes that disabled people don’t have sex so therefore they don’t even think about it?
I’m not asking you to answer any of these questions. The only thing people with disabilities want is for everyone to be open minded and simply aware – after all that’s why we call it ‘disability awareness’.
Thank you for your time.
I am happy to answer any questions you may ask.