#8 Hehir

 After reading this article, I looked to the blogs for further inspiration. Brenna’s blog stood out to me. In particular, one of the images she utilized in her blog. The image is below and titled “What Does Ableism Look Like” which relates to Hehir’s articles about ableism. Brenna’s connection to Johnson about how we are afraid of what we don’t know resonates with how people without special needs treat people with special needs. While there are people who are unkind and are out to hurt others, most people say things because they do not know. As an advocate for my sister, it is important that I help others understand down syndrome and how Emme lives differently but how it is a blessing. In the reading, there were a few parts that mentioned how parents of children with special needs see their child’s birth as a blessing and not a tragedy. This helped me understand my role in guiding and advocating for my sister as well as for other people with different abilities who experience inequalities. 

This reminds me of personal experiences I have had with my younger sister, Emme, who has down syndrome. Some interactions that reflect on Johnson’s point of being afraid of what we do not know include people staring at my sister because she looks different or talking loud and close to her even though she has typical hearing. Reading the examples in the image that Brenna posted, reminded me of interactions I have seen when my sister, Emme, meets new people. When I was younger, I had trouble articulating Emme’s disability when people asked me, “what was “wrong” with her. This connects to Johnson’s reading and Brenna’s post because I felt the need to “tiptoe” around what special needs means for my sister. However, over time I realized that people are not asking in an intentionally rude way, they are just asking in a way that they know. I will always be on Emme’s side and continue to advocate for her and make sure she can share her talents with the world even if she is not always accepted in the way she deserves to be treated.

Here is a picture (left to right) of Emme, my youngest sister Brooke and me from a couple weekends ago at a cheer competition. Even though the volume and amount of people is stressful and anxiety inducing for Emme, being able to see me coach and see Brooke perform, kept her grounded. Thanks for letting me share this with you all! 

Expanding on the reading, the “Going to School” and “Examined Life” films were helpful in seeing people with disabilities and how they function in the world. My heart breaks for the students in the inclusion programs in LA and their parents. Every parent wants the best education for their child and the parents of the children with special needs are fighting and advocating with their voices not being heard. Parents do not feel supported or that anyone is there for their child. One of the moms said that they continue to push things back year after year so the IEP never gets implemented. One of the teachers expressed his frustration with how the school is noy physically accessible for students with wheelchairs. His reflective question, can everyone just walk up the ramp? stood out to me because his mindset has disabilities as socially acceptable which is the way the world should strive to be. However, that is not the way the world is. Stereotypes and barriers persist in education, especially for students with disabilities. In the conversation between Judith Butler and Sanaura Taylor, they discussed the importance of the social acceptability of disabilities. They mentioned the importance of recognizing how one is different than the typical person but also how there are structures in place that prevent them from succeeding in all areas of life.