We talk quite a bit about inclusivity, and we do believe it’s a very important part of life. However,
how can we be more inclusive in everyday situations? What small changes can we make so
people feel more comfortable, more accepted, and most importantly, seen and represented in
the community?
Well, that is exactly what we are going to try and answer today. We want to help people find
new and better ways to interact with the world around them and focus on being a positive force
for people who have a disability. It can be hard for anyone who has a disability to feel like they
are being respected and helped in everyday life – they get used to most people either treating
them with indifference or simply giving them a wide berth. Neither of these things are particularly
what we want to see! It would be better for everyone if we could all embrace new habits and
quirks which might help us to be supportive.
First of all, it is important to understand what challenges disabled people face on a daily basis.
Lots of disabled people find it hard to get around, and there are lots of normal, everyday things
which aren’t designed with them in mind – public transport, social settings, etc! Our goal should
be to try and recognise the problems they face so that we can help disabled people to get the
support they rightfully deserve in the face of these challenges.
The other big thing we can do is modify our behaviour to be supportive of people who have a
disability. This means that we need to work carefully with them to not use language which is
offensive or to take disabled people into consideration when we build new structures or offer
events and services. It’s really important that we try to think about development with people in
mind.
Ultimately, these are small things we can do, which will change the way people look at disability
and how they progress. What we have to remember with disability is that disabled people are
not starting from the same position in life as the rest of us. We have to work from a position of
equity rather than equality. We have to give them opportunities to have the same types of
support that we would expect for ourselves.
When you get right down to it, supporting people through small changes in our everyday life is
the way to go. If we help to push people to learn and grow, and develop new ways to be
inclusive, then it benefits all of us. Unless we support the most disadvantaged members of
society, we’re not making any real progress. Disabled people need to be at the forefront of
future decision-making because they deserve the same freedoms and support that is given to
the rest of us. Anything less would frankly be wrong.