Disabled people had been trying forever to advocate for online learning , for accommodations in the workplace . The response was : “ Oh , we don ’ t have the resources ,” “ It ’ s just not possible .” But with the majority inconvenienced , it happened . Suddenly people actually had to think about access , flexibility . That is ableism , where you don ’ t think disabled people exist , you don ’ t think sick people exist . . .
They ’ re saying I ’ m disposable . No matter what I produce , what value I bring , it doesn ’ t matter , because on paper I have all these comorbidities and I take up resources . This is wrong , it ’ s not equity , and it ’ s not justice . It took a huge community-based effort last year to get the state to backtrack . We ’ re saying , “ Hey we ’ re here , we exist , we matter just as much as anyone else .”
Q : Do you think there ’ s any way this pandemic has been positive for disabled people ? I hope so . There ’ s been a lot of mutual aid efforts , you know , people helping each other . People sharing information . People organizing online . Because we can ’ t wait for the state . These are our lives on the line . Things were a little more accessible in the last two years , and I say a little because a lot of universities and workplaces are going backward now . They ’ re doing away with a lot of the hybrid methods that really gave disabled people a chance to flourish .
Q : You mean they ’ re undoing things that helped level the playing field ? Exactly . People who are highrisk have to make very difficult choices now . That ’ s really unfortunate . I mean , what is the point of this if not to learn , to evolve ? To create a new normal . I can ’ t really see that yet . But I still have some hope .
This story was produced by KHN , which publishes California Healthline , an editorially independent service of the
California Health Care Foundation .
This article was originally published in KFF Health News . Read the original article .
Disabled people had been trying forever to advocate for online learning , for accommodations in the workplace . The response was : “ Oh , we don ’ t have the resources ,” “ It ’ s just not possible .” But with the majority inconvenienced , it happened . Suddenly people actually had to think about access , flexibility . That is ableism , where you don ’ t think disabled people exist , you don ’ t think sick people exist . . .
~ Alice Wong
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