Conversation

This has been on my mind lately, as I slowly page through the vast material on disability rights, activism, social model...

Are there privileges within disability?

I speak as someone with "invisible" disabilities. I know that because of this, I am afforded more access to society than persons with visible disabilities, in multiple ways. Doors, walkways, and seats are designed for my body (at least in purely spacial terms; many seats are untenable for my sore bones). Counters are built at a height that approximates convenience for me. And in purely social terms, people do not look at me and think "disabled." (Neither do they look at me and think "abled" -- as an abled body is the default body, it requires no thought at all.) Thus I am treated as though I were a full person. Any condescension directed my way tends to be because I am young and female. And, at least in my experience, I am still more of a person in most eyes as a woman than I would be if I were instantly identifiable as handicapped.

I am tenderly aware of this condition. And I wonder whether other pwd, those challenged in different ways, see this condition as one of privilege. And I worry, when I talk about disability, about appropriation. About using words that pwd have used for themselves for ages, even though ostensibly they do not apply to me. About taking up a banner that has been carried throughout the years by people who do not have the advantage of being able to blend in, to pass.

And I figured I would put this out, as a request for the thoughts of those who approach the world from an atypical place.

I do want to clarify that I still do suffer barriers to participating fully in society. There is a reason I quit study, twice, even though I miss college dearly -- no matter how I have attempted to adapt, I cannot read physical, printed-on-paper text at length; it inevitably triggers my disabling migraines, which I go to great lengths to prevent. There is a significant degree of cognitive impairment from the fibromyalgia to begin with, and when you add the medications I require to function day-to-day, my ability to concentrate and process thought is considerably decreased. I can never stop being aware of my physical capacity; if I go out on a walk, I have to keep in mind how much energy I have in reserve -- after all, I have to be able to make it back home. If I value my health, I can never stop thinking about it.

This is to explain the place I am coming from. I do detect a defensive tone on re-read, and I apologize for it. Know that it is not directed at pwd or progressive allies; it is a reflex built up by years of fighting a system that assumes that because I look "healthy," any complaints (of personal pain or of societal barriers) must be overblown.

What are your thoughts? Where are you coming from? What barriers do you face? What privileges do you see? What do you think we can do to address these?

(I am very nervous about putting this one out there -- please do offer criticism if you have any, but please be gentle. Keep in mind I am relatively new to all this.)