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The Alinker :
A Vehicle for Change
Written by Shana Jones ( synopsis of a Sophia Bishop ELEVATED Conversation with BE Alink )
BE Alink , Founder of the Alinker
She says she ’ s not an activist , but I respectfully disagree . She has built schools in Afghanistan and taught carpentry to deaf children in Kenya . She challenges the refuge of comfort we tuck ourselves into by refusing a seat on the othering bandwagon . She personifies a fierce defiance of the mindsets driving the ism ’ s in society , choosing to see a single human race made up of diverse parts instead of different sub-elements struggling to co-exist . Yeah , I ’ d definitely call her an activist , and her current tool of activism is her revolutionary Alinker “ walking bike ” designed to re-imagine life for people using mobility devices ( MD ).
“ Over my dead body will I ever use one of those things !”
The Alinker story started with these words uttered by BE Alink ’ s mother while on a trip to the market back in 2011 . Noticing a group of elderly people happily chatting away in their scooters and wheelchairs , she inadvertently made a judgement about a group of people she could easily become a part of someday . It was a moment of reckoning for BE , who had always been fueled by a passion for justice and inclusion . She believed strongly in the right to live and express life on one ’ s own terms , free from the constraints of society ’ s expectations . She was keenly aware , however , that some people , especially those needing mobility assistance , continued to be systemically “ othered ” by society and cut off from enjoying even life ' s simple pleasures .