@natalunasans / natalunasans.tumblr.com
People eventually get diagnosed BECAUSE they are already disabled and struggling. The symptoms don't appear AFTER the diagnosis. So don't expect everyone without a professional diagnosis to be basically fine. That makes no sense.
put spikes on your wheelchair's handles. wrap barbed wire around your cane or crutch so it'll hurt like a motherfucker if someone kicks or grabs it from under your hand. wear a personal alarm and pull the pin every time someone moves you without your consent, leans on your chair, takes a seat on your rollator, taps your hearing aid, steals your AAC device. scream for help when you're abducted. wail like you're in agony when people trip you up or knock into you. take pepper spray to the grocery store. take a knife to the club. leave cards that say "fuck you" under the wipers of inconsiderately parked cars and scratch access codes for bathrooms on the outside of the door. we are not begging for mercy, we're fighting dirty. we have to.
someone grabbed my wheelchair today and then shouted "ouch! there's spikes!"
I witnesses someone trying to shove a wheelchair user because they felt the wheelchair wasn't going fast enough, I guess. Not even a second later, this asshole is screaming in pain because the handles had razor wire on them the back of the wheelchair had a sign saying "do not touch."
NGL, I was laughing and gave the wheelchair user a nod. They just kept on going after a nod and wink at me. Fucking amazing.
When I was in hs, I had to use crutches a few times. Classmates though it was funny to kick them while I'm standing. Soooo I glues nails on the bottom 18 inches or so. Two students screaming and yelling resulted in no one kicking them again.
Do not fuck with mobility devices. They are an extension of our body. If you decide to violate our boundaries, be prepared for retaliation, much like if someone shoved or pushed you. Keep yourself to yourself.
Ik this ruins the point of Get The Assholes When They Least Expect It but
Metal wheelchair and Rose Thorned Crutches
[Image description 1/3:
A photo of a sign saying in all caps:
Well, well, well, if it isn’t the consequences of my own actions
/End image description 1/3]
_
[Image description 2-3/3:
Two drawings:
One of a manual wheelchair with spikes on its handles and the outer side of the back and pentagrams on the wheels,
And the other — of a person using forearm crutches wrapped in barbed wire below the handles and with spikes on the outer side above the handles, and also with rose flower decorations on the butts of the handles.
/End image description 2-3/3]
Well, well, well, if it
isn’t the consequences
of my own actions
Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.
Glasses are the most common disability aid in America.
And some people may say, ‘you would look better without them, have you considered contacts/corrective surgery’, but no one acts like it’s a big deal if you need them, or need some special accommodations because of the condition you need them for, or if you only wear them part time. No one looks at a person wearing glasses and thinks or says ‘that person has both eyes, why would they need glasses?’. No one says a child or young adult with glasses is ‘too young’ to have that problem. No one looks at a person in glasses and assumes they have them because they are fat, or lazy, or trying to trick people into some imagined advantage. Poor or irregular eyesight is a disability that has been normalized to the point that no one thinks of it as a disability any more. Glasses quickly become just a part of the face of the person who wears them, and are solid proof that it isn’t hard for the people of this country to accept and to think of–to acknowledge–that a disability aid, whether part time or full time, is simply an extension of the disabled person who requires it to ease their interactions with the world.
SO IT WOULD BE SUPERB IF PEOPLE COULD STOP BEING SUCH ABSOLUTE FUCK-CLOWNS ABOUT WHEELCHAIR USERS.
He sounded interested and even concerned. I thought he had been touched by what the doctor and advocates in the meeting had just shared about their journey with their patients and their own family members. But I was wrong.
“Those people . . . ” Donald said, trailing off. “The shape they’re in, all the expenses, maybe those kinds of people should just die.”
I truly did not know what to say. He was talking about expenses. We were talking about human lives. For Donald, I think it really was about the expenses, even though we were there to talk about efficiencies, smarter investments, and human dignity.
I turned and walked away
[from later in the article]
Donald took a second as if he was thinking about the whole situation.
“I don’t know,” he finally said, letting out a sigh. “He doesn’t recognize you. Maybe you should just let him die and move down to Florida.”
Wait! What did he just say? That my son doesn’t recognize me? That I should just let him die?
Did he really just say that? That I should let my son die . . . so I could move down to Florida?
Really?
[...]
Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised to hear Donald say that. It wasn’t far off from what he’d said that day in the Oval Office after our meeting with the advocates. Only that time, it was other people’s children who should die. This time, it was my son.
When you’re legitimately so evil you tell a parent, your own fucking nephew, to their face that it’d be more cost-effective to let their child die because they are disabled.
Honestly, it's not the ableism or eugenics that shocks me. Donald Trump has shown who he is time and time again. I guess what got me was that he’d be willing to hold the same views for family members.
Usually these types of people make exceptions for their own. “It’s not immoral if it’s my abortion, I’m only doing this because I have no choice, mine is necessary” kind of thing.
But nope. Donald just straight up thinks his great nephew should die because it’s expensive to keep him alive.
Jesus Wept.
Fucking vote. Please, I’m begging you. As a disabled immigrant who isn’t able to vote I see so many people saying they’re going to boycott the election by not voting and I want to scream.
You boycott products by withholding money.
Not voting in elections only disenfranchises yourself. You’re not protesting. You’re giving tyrants power.
Please vote like people’s lives depend on it because they do.
If you need help figuring out how to register I will help you but please. Please vote.
today, april 11th, is the anniversary of Mel Baggs' death. Mel Baggs was one of the early founders of the neurodiversity movement and believed that no one was too disabled for human rights, something that modern nd movements fail to understand to this day. sie was so instrumental to my understanding of literally everything. sie died from medical ableism and neglect during the beginning of the pandemic. we would be nowhere fucking near where we are now without hir. i've decided to make a masterlist of some of my favorite posts of hirs, organized into different categories.
(some of these are listed in more than one category because they overlap so much)
here are some of the "essentials" (what you might have already read by hir/should read first):
here are some of hir beautiful writings on perceiving/communicating with hir environment as an autistic person, and on communication in general:
on personhood and who has the authority to take it away:
on institutions and the I/DD service system:
on online social justice communities/their inaccessibility:
misc:
this is hir poems and creative works:
this is hir writing on autistics.org:
may hir memory be a blessing/revolution.
i just saw someone describe a disabled person as "someone with beautiful abilities" i cannot do this anymore
god can we stop softening the term "disabled". disabled isn't a dirty word. it's not "special abilities" or "differently abled" or whatever the fuck you want to call it. people have disabilities that cause life to be hard and there's nothing wrong with acknowledging that?? it feels so invalidating when people are like "ohh you're not disabled!!! you have special abilities!!" like. omg a) it feels so infantilizing. b) by saying that you're basically saying our struggles aren't real...? some conditions are disabling. it's not hard to understand?? like there is NOTHING wrong with being disabled & using the word disabled. it's not offensive it's not a dirty word can we take the shame out of it pls oh my god. this goes for physical & non physical disabilities btw
no one wants to confront the fact that life is hard for disabled people because if they did then they would either have to do something about it or feel guilty about not doing something
as it is, if they go on pretending we can do anything we want to if we just put our minds to it, they are free from all responsibility
Disability Pride month let's not forget about the people in our community with intellectual disabilities!
I just found out about the Stay Up Late campaign to advocate for people with intellectual disabilities to have the right to go out in the evening and not have to be in bed by 8pm
I learned about it from this video:
And I found the website for the campaign which is here:
Let's support all members of our community
Woohoo here we go. I expect this one to be a bit more controversial because I am using specific media as examples. I would really prefer if, when critiquing this post, you avoid defending specific media, and focus instead on what’s actually being said/represented about disabled communities. If you feel I’ve done a really grave injustice, you can come into my askbox/DMs/replies to talk to me about it, but I might not answer.
One more time: I am not interested in getting into a debate about whether something is a good show/movie/book/whatever. I’m not telling you it’s bad, or that you shouldn’t enjoy it! People can like whatever they want; I am only here to critique messaging. Do not yell at me about this.
Newest caveat aside, let’s get into it!
Disabled kids need to be able to talk about disability. Difference isn’t a good enough word. Everyone’s different from everyone else in some way. Not everyone has a disability. People who have disabilities need to be able to talk about that, both in general and specific terms.
I’m writing this partly in response to comments I’ve seen on several good posts that have been circulating recently on why it’s important to tell autistic kids they’re autistic.
I’ve seen some parent responses that seem superficially positive, which actually miss the point:
That’s not good enough, because it doesn’t address autism as a disability. Knowing the word “autism” only goes so far. Kids also need to be able to talk about disability in a nuanced way, without glossing over things.
Kids will know that there are difficult and painful aspects of being disabled whether or not you talk about it. You can’t protect children from that knowledge by refusing to talk about it; you just end up sending the message that they’re on their own in dealing with it.
Here are some other things autistic kids need to know, beyond the word autism (not an exhaustive list by any means):
The basic version:
Some other, more complicated (and also not exhaustive) information:
And any number of other things.
Disability is complicated. Disability is something we spend our whole lives dealing with, and that we never stop learning about. This is not something you can cover with your child in one conversation When you talk to your kids about being disabled, it’s really important to let it be complicated, and to be honest about it being a long-term conversation. It’s important that they know that you can handle talking about it, and that it’s ok for them to have questions, feelings, and to need help figuring things out.
tl;dr Telling your autistic kid that they are autistic isn’t enough. You also have to talk to them about disability.
THIS THIS THIS
This is really important! Please call your reps to support if you can
Not only does it raise the limit, it INDEXES THE LIMIT TO INFLATION MOVING FORWARD.
If you are in the US, tell your senators and congressperson to vote for this.
(you can still contact your senators if you’re under 18, or if, like me, you are a green card holder or other immigrant who can’t vote yet.)
This one isn’t a hotbutton issue for Republicans vs Democrats so dont assume that just because you live in a blue state that your reps will definitely vote for it. Make the call.
Or that they WON’T in a red state.
Boost the heck out of this. It is bipartisan legislation, Sponsored by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and co-sponsored by Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH). The bill number is S. 4102 and I don’t think it has a House equivalent yet. If you tell your reps to vote for S. 4102 sponsored by Sen. Brown and co-sponsored by Sen. Portman, you could be completely changing the game for disabled married couples. (The Senate has a drop-down menu by state at the top of the website https://www.senate.gov/)
I said it in the notes on the last post but I’m gonna say it again.
I’m married to someone with severe memory problems. Automation of household appliances & systems helps him a lot and helps me a lot because it reduces the number of things I have to keep in my brain at all times. I love doors that lock themselves, being able to schedule dog food being delivered, a thermostat I can manipulate from wherever. Beyond my little bubble it should be noted that voice controlled appliances can be really good for people with mobility concerns. Appliances that can measure and talk and remember little tasks can be such a blessing for people.
I will never forgive Amazon and Google for taking technologies that could be really helpful and weaponizing them, and fuck everybody who acts like its some kind of conspiracy theory that those devices are spying on you. You absolutely should be distrustful of those devices but just make sure you’re getting angry at the right people.
Making accessibility devices evil is just like so Disney villain
My mom is blind and without her Alexa literally could not cook, go shopping, or do a million other things. Because Alexa is voice-activated, she doesn’t have to fumble with knobs or write a list she can’t read.
I will never forgive Amazon for how much I hate a tool that allows my mother to live her life.
Open source and secure alternatives for some of these:
- Voice activated smart speaker: Mycroft (can be purchased as a complete unit, or DIYed with a Raspberry Pi and microphone+speaker array) https://mycroft.ai/
- Smart Home automation: home-assistant (cannot be purchased, originally developed by MIT) https://www.home-assistant.io/
- Zigbee (the wireless protocol for smart lights and other smart devices) bridge: Conbee II (this takes the place of a Phillips Bridge, for instance. And is in many cases better because it works with all brands of smart light that use Zigbee--which is almost all of them, including the cheap IKEA ones--and also works for devices that aren’t lights. Cannot really be DIYed because Zigbee needs special hardware, not just software) https://phoscon.de/en/conbee2
I don’t know any alternatives for locks, vacuums, thermometers, or anything else sadly. None of these are that difficult to set up with just a little bit of tech know-how, and extensive guides already exist for almost all problems you could run into because the open-source community is almost psychotically dedicated to its projects, unlike Amazon, Google, and Apple where it’s practically impossible to get help with any problem that’s even slightly unusual.
Oh thank you!! These area really neat
Oh thank you so much! My grandmother has an alexa and it’s really improved her enjoyment of life, but I hate even talking around it. It’s linked to my amazon and I’ve gotten suggestions based on things it’s heard. That wigs me out so much.
Can confirm, Home Assistant is amazing; I transitioned everything I could for it to control and right now that’s literally everything. It can also be integrated with other voice-activated smart speakers than Alexa as well as Alexa. It also comes WITH an Add-on called Ada for voice. So far, there is very goddamn little on the market that isn’t either officially supported or community supported and stuff is being added at the rate of literally weekly. If you do scripting and have a taste for diy, you can be Dr. Doom and your home is your supervillain lair.
Because of the market, most smart appliances and devices are Alexa enabled, but unless they’re made by Amazon, that doesn’t mean they’re Alexa exclusive and even then, someone is hacking their way into the API and pulling the endpoints. Right now, the only thing I can’t work in here (yet) is my Nest Thermostat and HA is working on adding that back in right now.
Home Assistant is fully compatible with the zwave and zigbee standards as well as wifi and bluetooth; you can directly control zwave and zigbee items or link up your existing hubs for it to control like SmartThings.
It can be run in several ways; I’ve done it on a Pi 4 both 4G and 8G and a VM on my Ubuntu server and while the Pi is recommended--I recommend it too for convenience--it’s one of several possibilites. Currently I’m using a Raspberry Pi 4b 8G with a solid state hard drive instead of SD card. You can purchase z-wave and zigbee modules to add to it for direct control of z-wave and zigbee devices or use your existing hubs (or both). Beneath the HA umbrella is also links to the blueprints of building your own zigbee and zwave devices with Arduino just to start that HA can also control. I’m not saying you’re going to be building your own smart thermostat on the weekend, but apparently, some people are doing just that.
This does not require a high tech start value; most integrations are automatic, you just say yes and login and let it happen, it even creates your Dr. Doom dashboard with TABS.
Again, you DO NOT NEED TO KNOW ANYTHING BUT COMPUTERS EXIST AND HOW TO CLICK YES AND NO TO USE THIS. For me, it was actually easier than a lot of setups with shit I had to pay money for that said they were easy. This is open source, but that is not synonymous with user unfriendly; a lot of work was done to make this accessible to the casual automation user. The UI is card based; when you first start, HA does it all for you and creates discrete cards that control different things on your dashboard; no effort on your part, you can turn on and off any light in here or turn them red while someone is in the bathroom because that’s fucking funny. But as you get more comfortable, you can start to create your own configurtions, take direct control of the UI, and mix it up; it’s up to you.
But.
If you are a DIYer or just want to be or never knew you wanted to be but feel the vibes and need a place to start, this is the perfect sandbox for learning and escalating. There are a metric ton of tutorials, community add-ins, and message boards to consult. If you can imagine it, it can be done and its likely someone is working on version eight right now. The primary languages are python and javascript with yaml for configuration files for DIY. You can create your own layouts, your own sensors, and your own cards if you don’t like what they have. If you’re like me, you may also go in to community addins and add new stuff to their code so it runs like you want it to; it’s all up to you.
I am not a dev pro, I’m a QC analyst with a scripting hobby; I do this quite literally for fun on weekends or when I’m bored or anxious and need to soothe myself with coding.
Here is the home page of my MULTI-TAB dashboard. Yes, that is a floorplan of my apartment and those glowy orange and dark grey bits are things that I can turn on and off from the comfort of my bed. It’s fun.
I seriously would kill to get more people into this and have someone to play with and enjoy the feeling of controlling all within my (apartment) kingdom with but a single command. Dear God tell me if you’re into it; we’ll be best friends and hopefully you’ll be okay with that.
Here’s an intro to Home Assistant I wrote back in September in DW when I first started, with screenshots. You’ll also be able to see my Dash when I first started compared to the dash above. Feel free to ask me anything from the perspective of someone not a dev professional, an engineer, or even has a degree in anything, much less anything like this, and yet is a QC lead who codes their own testing tools and for whom this is just something cool and fun.
this is cool af! reblogging for anyone interested in automation but not bezos!
Jesus am I tired of Tumblr's gatekeeping of solidarity movements. If you asked someone at an in-person cripplepunk meet-up to provide a list of their disabilities to you so you could validate if they're the right kind of cripple for you, you're the one who gets kicked out, not them. Hell, if you asked for a list at an online meet, I'd boot you, too.
The idea that there's some hard bright line which exists between all disabilities of all other organs and disabilities of this one organ is bizarre and unhelpful. It also perpetuates the "but mental disabilities are different" mindset which leads to "oh but mental health coverage is optional, different, and can be shunted off into its own little box."
I have a disability where one of my organs doesn't function properly bc it doesn't make enough of a certain kind of juice, which makes it difficult for me to do certain things which I need to do to function. I have to adapt my life, change what I eat and how I move my body, take medications and rely on others for assistance with my condition. If I don't do that, this condition has been known to kill people. Is that diabetes or post-traumatic stress disorder?
I have another disability in which my nervous system doesn't behave properly, and that causes me great difficulty in my life. I have had to change what I eat, the medications I take, how much coffee I drink, how I rest, and how I deal with the medical establishment. This disability and its diagnosis has profoundly affected how I live my life, and I require assists and accommodations to live my life as I choose. Is that disability ADHD or physical damage to my spine from the tumor which compressed my spinal cord & left scars behind when it was removed?
Do anxiety and paranoia and insomnia and depression count if they're symptoms of celiac disease? If not, why not? They're disabling effects of an autoimmune disorder. And regardless, it's because body not act right so... wtf? How about my memory issues that come from damage from a medication used to treat the pain in my legs?
Solidarity movements are reciprocal, y'all, and I'm exhausted of "you must be this queer/this trans/this disabled to come in." Maybe I'm just too fucking old and too fucking tired to listen to this week's Discourse ™️ about who trademarked what term when while actual problems exist.
I know it probably seems like you're doing something productive to you, but I assure you, you're not. If your issue is "these specific people are being dicks," deal with those people being dicks, and don't ascribe their dickishness to their disability. The problem is they're being a dick.
If your issue is instead "but this isn't as disabling as what I deal with" or "I have that disability and it's not as bad for me as my other disability" or "but it feels good for me to draw a line between disabilities of this one organ and every other organ," then it is you. You are being the dick.
Perpetuating the non-existent line between "physical" and "mental" disabilities helps absolutely no one. It places mental disabilities by default in a "not as bad" category and an "all in your head" one, which ... like, do I need to explain to y'all why functioning labels and categories aren't helpful in disability movements? Why are we resurrecting this shit and giving it new polish?
To be clear, I am not interested in debating this, so trying to tell me how your no-brain-problems-allowed approach is right and good, actually, is a waste of your time, because there is absolutely no way to convince me that trying to keep certain kinds of disabilities out of a general disability solidarity movement based on the organ that disability centers in has any use whatsoever. The line between "mental" and "physical" disabilities is blurry as fuck and trying to fence off all brain problems is not okay, especially since y'all don't mean that because a lot of things which are caused by the brain acting in a non-standard matter are considered "physical" disabilities.
Jesus, y'all make me tired. This bullshit is the least punk thing ever.
The following article is credited to Debra Keenahan re: theconversation.com
Debra Keenahan, The Conversation, November 2017
"Edgar Allen Poe’s words have a particular irony for me. I am a woman with achondroplasia dwarfism, or what is commonly referred to as “disproportionate dwarfism”. Individuals with my physicality have arms and legs significantly shorter than the average person and thus out-of-proportion to our torso, which is usually of average height.
According to contemporary Western standards of beauty, a woman with such disproportions would not popularly be described as beautiful. The implication seems to be that physical difference and disability cannot be considered attractive.
The representation of female dwarfs in the visual arts mirrors the social attitudes towards people with this physical difference. When dwarfs were viewed positively, such as in ancient Egypt, they were portrayed participating in the full spectrum of life - even worshipped as Gods. But more often, especially in the 20th century, dwarfs have been depicted in the arts in demeaned social roles: comically or as grotesque fairytale beings.
Today, people with dwarfism, and women in particular, are still subject to stigma, stereotyping and discrimination. Pop culture continues some of these problematic representations. The US reality TV show Little Women harks back to the voyeurism of circus founder P. T. Barnum but with an explicit display of female flesh and titillating foibles.
There is also still a clear gender disparity in the depictions of male and female dwarfs. Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones is portrayed as intelligent with an acute sense of social justice. Despite Tyrion’s weakness for alcohol, his sexual exploits could not be considered more risque than others in the story-line. While Tyrion is treated seriously and as a character with agency, the women of Little Women seem to be objects of mirth who are shallow.
However a growing number of artists, including myself, are challenging the idea that women with dwarfism cannot be beautiful thanks to their “disability”. In fact, I argue that rather than seeing disability as something inherent to a person we should see it as a product of social and physical environments.
I also recently performed in The Big Anxiety Festival’s Awkward Conversations, where I invited people to figuratively walk for 10 minutes in my shoes. By walking the Sydney streets in my company, participants witnessed a variety of public behaviors towards me.
My own sculptural work represents a style of interaction all too often experienced by people of extreme short stature. That is, being spoken to like a child rather than an adult and an equal. The white marble finish of my sculpture Little Big Woman: Condescension is reminiscent of Greek statues - often considered the epitome of classical beauty.
The three figures in this sculpture are back-to-back, gazing out upon the viewer. Moreover, the work is raised so that a person of average height walks around it and has the experience of always being looked at by the female dwarf. Thus the work reverses what is my daily experience.
I also recently performed in The Big Anxiety Festival’s Awkward Conversations, where I invited people to figuratively walk for 10 minutes in my shoes. By walking the Sydney streets in my company, participants witnessed a variety of public behaviours towards me.
Each performance gave them insight into the dynamics of interaction - sometimes subtle (glances, smirks), sometimes overt (mocking, insults) - that are disabling to a person with dwarfism.
The SSI Restoration Act of 2021 is currently proposed to congress. SSI is a type of disability payment for disabled Americans. The bill will increase the SSI payment to the poverty level (right now the maximum payment is 9528$ a year). It will allow disabled people on SSI to marry and not lose their income. It will increase the asset and income caps for SSI among other improvements.
Friends and I made a website that has all of this info plus a REALLY easy way to send an email to your state reps. If you click the link below and click send email, you can send a letter of support for the SSI Restoration Act to your state reps. It's already written and takes only a few minutes. Seriously it is ridiculously easy. These emails have more pull to reps than resistbot so please fill out if you can!
We also have a Facebook page called "Campaign to Fix SSI" that has this information and regular updates. Here's the link for that.
We are at 4,400 signatures and are gearing up for a "day of action" on valentines day. Now that congress is back in session, the push to pass the SSI restoration Act is back on! So on Valentines Day (Monday February 14) we are encouraging as many as possible to show their love for disability justice and call their state representatives about the SSI Restoration Act!
[image description 1: a pink background with black text that reads "Phone numbers. Call your (1) Representative at 202-225-3121. Call your (2) Senators at 202-224-3121" There is clipart of a Grey phone and a red heart next to the words "phone numbers"]
[image description 2: a pink background with a red heart on the right and black text that reads "The Actual Call Script: Hello. My name is _____ and I am a constituent from [town].
I am calling to wish the [Senator/Congressman/Congresswoman] a Happy Valentine’s Day and ask them to show their love for Americans with disabilities by giving their fullest support to the SSI Restoration Act.
This important bill would promote marriage equality for people with disabilities, update the asset limit for the first time in over thirty years, and tie monthly benefits to inflation so that recipients don’t have to live with an income 30% below the federal poverty line.
I can’t think of anything more loving and romantic than permanent improvements in quality of life for millions of Americans with disabilities. I hope that the [Senator/Congressman/Congresswoman] will work hard to ensure the passage of the SSI Restoration Act during this session of Congress.
Thank you for your time, and have a Happy Valentine’s Day!]
I understand not everyone is able to call for our day of action. The first link in the original post takes you to our letter campaign so you can contact your representatives via email if you are unable to call.
We are really pushing to gain support for the SSI Restoration Act. We are gaining new cosponsors every week but as of now, no Republicans have signed on and many Democrats have not as well. We need more cosponsors and more support. Your representatives need to know their constituents support the act.
We also give regular updates on Facebook at our page Campaign to Fix SSI if you're on Facebook.
(also please boost this 😅)
[image description: a Bernie sanders meme. An old white man, Bernie Sanders, stands in front of a snowy neighborhood in a brown winter coat. He looks to be mid word with his mouth open. The white text below him reads "I am once again asking for your support on the SSI Restoration Act"]
I luckily haven't had to deal with much chronic pain or hand pain yet, especially with regards to baking (crochet is another story). That said, these look like some pretty solid tips! There's also some in the comments section.
As this link nears five hundred notes, I'm just... very quietly touched at how many people are sharing it. Whether they need it themselves (or think they will someday), or know someone else who might need it, the fact that all of them are sharing the sentiment of "I want the people who love doing this thing to be able to keep doing the thing that they love" is... yeah. It makes me happy.
ableism runs so fucking deep it's a tool of every oppression we care about today and yet in nondisabled circles, esp academia, it's just not given ANY thought.
like there are theories of ableism, but they're created by disabled people and in every other discipline we just aren't paid attention to. medicine is focused on eradicating us. anthropology focuses on every intersection of modern oppression EXCEPT us, even though ableism/pathologization is a tool of all of them that works near-invisibly.
and as soon as you bring up fat disabled people, or intellectually disabled people, or disabled people of color, people begin to actively promote eugenics with a kind of glee i find deeply disturbing.
one million dead in a two year long pandemic, the majority of them disabled, and even liberals are telling everyone to return to normal and questioning mask mandates.
disabled people need to have incomes, families, and legal and social self-determination. we need to be included in mainstream analyses of power and capitalism. i'm sick of being ignored, isolated, and worrying about the future, knowing that i am immensely privileged in comparison to the majority of disabled people, especially disabled people of color, who are at the dead bottom of the totem pole. it feels like no matter how loud we scream they refuse to listen, and we need nondisabled people to pay attention.
Turns out some film producers may be keeping streaming movies on release day a thing. Why? Because of how much money they're making from those of us who can't go to the theater.
Deaf people can have subtitles and captions without having to argue with theater managers about it.
Wheelchair users can where they damn well please instead of in the spot next to the trashcan. Yes, that's usually the only spot for a wheelchair, and often there's only one.
Epileptics can have the lights on, which is a fuck no in theaters. The lights help diminish the strobe effects created by watching things in dark rooms.
Folks with sensory input issues (ADHD and autism are good examples) can control the volume, put subtitles up, adjust the lighting, etc.
Immunocompromised folks can watch a film with virtually zero worry about catching illnesses.
Folks with allergies don't need to worry about some random person exposing them to an allergy (some folks can't even be in the same room as peanuts).
Many of us require frequent bathroom breaks. Many of us are on medicated or specialized diets. Many of us need a break (or a few) to help ground ourselves in reality, process things, burn off built-up anxiety (I need to bounce after intense scenes so i can focus), and a multitude of other reasons.
If release day streaming remains a thing, there are gonna be millions of happy people. I cried the first time I watched a streaming release day film. Ten minutes of ugly crying because it was the first time in a decade that I could watch a film without waiting six to eight months to rent it.
This is what accessibility looks like. Keep this available forever, please.
