Curing Disabilities?

While snowed in this week, I have had a lot of time to catch up on school work and to think...yes, lots of time to think.

Last Wednesday, we had a lecture on Developmental Disabilities. Included in this topic is autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Our presenter questioned us on what we thought could be causes of the increase in diagnoses of ASD. A couple weeks ago I wrote about the Westernization of diagnosing disabilities.

So in class, I proposed the question "Are we, in a sense, creating disabilities? Are there more diagnoses around the world because they are using our system to diagnose and treat disabilities?" Apparently, this was an interesting question, but no one had a comment. This question got me thinking, "why do want to cure disabilities?" "What is the motivation?" When I propose this question, often times responses are "Well, why wouldn't you want to cure disabilities?" I think often times people assume that when one has a disability they are suffering, and that the disability causes the suffering. This view point is that of the medical model. However, if one looks at the social model of disability, isn't trying to cure disabilities the exact opposite of what we would like to do in the disability community? And exactly what is meant by "curing" disabilities? I am all for finding treatments that will help individuals live their lives more fully, but if we are talking about "getting rid of people with disabilities," then I don't agree. If we look back throughout history, one would find that people with disabilities were subject to cruel experiments, the eugenics movement, forced sterilizations, had no rights as citizens, etc. They weren't seen as humans and they had no rights. Why would I be "for" curing disabilities? Isn't curing disabilities just another way exclude people with disabilities from society?

Individuals with disabilities currently face systematic barriers, negative attitudes, and are repeatedly excluded from society and their communities. If you are familiar with disability studies, then you are also aware that a person's environment makes an impairment a disability. Someone who has their right arm amputated who's career is in retail, will not have as much difficulty as another person with the same injury who is a pianist. Environmental factors increase a person's functional limitations. However, just because someone needs more support for their functional limitations doesn't mean that they do not lead full lives and that they are not worthy of living!

I like to think that our society has made vast improvements in the treatment of individuals with disabilities. However, with individuals around the world who continuously throwing around the R-word (if you haven't seen this, please watch it), abusing individuals with disabilities, doctors who continuously recommend babies be aborted because they may have a disability, continuously housing individuals in psychiatric hospitals, etc. it is hard to identify the positive changes in our society. How can we say our society is moving toward inclusion and acceptance if our society isn't walking the walk that they talk?

Here is an interview with Harriet McBryde Johnson. She was an attorney and great activist/advocate in the disability community. She wrote Unspeakable Conversations. In fact before her death in 2008, she published a great deal and I encourage you to research her yourself if you are intrigued!

Should we cure disabilities? I personally don't think so. Is it at all ethical to cure disabilities? I personally don't think so. What do you guys think?

Fit Parents?

This was posted on the New York Times.

"Kaney O'Neill and David Trais will be in a Chicago courtroom this week, arguing over their five-month-old son, Aiden. Trais says that O'Neill is unfit to have custody of the boy because she is a quadriplegic."

I don't even know where to begin. I am appalled that this mindset is still in existence. I thought that the opinion of people with disabilities being viewed as "unfit to have/raise children" was a thing of the past, at least in America. I know that in other countries infanticide still occurs and that PWD's rights are taken away. Forced sterilization is still practiced in some countries. I guess I just thought the mentality in America is different. After all, we are the most progressive in disability rights laws and such. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is based off the ADA. Yet, we have individuals who believe they are superior because they do not have a disability.

As long as a person with or without a disability has the knowledge, the means, and support systems to raise a child, then they should. Now I don't know their personal story, but accusing someone of being unfit mother just because they have quadriplegia is not a sound argument. Technology today is AMAZING. There are tables that be raised/lowered with an infrared control, there's assistive technology that can help, aids if need be. It depends on the individual, the disability, the severity, etc. Furthermore, in McKeesport, PA there is a program called Blue Roof technologies. These house are fully accessible. These houses offer smart health, smart learning, smart living, and smart technologies. Pay no attention to the model houses with steps, the other models don't have steps. Also, here's a youtube video of the Blue Roof Technology.

With this technology, how can anyone say people with a disability cannot and should not have/raise children? I, personally, think it's ridiculous.