TED ALANYA COLLEGE / 9-A
Per Aspera Ad Astra
İlya Uysal
18
In 2011 , the World Championship in Athletics had an unexpected winner . Oscar Pistorius became the first amputee to win a race while competing with other non-disabled rivals . While a lot of people thought that he couldn ’ t win because of him being an amputee , many still believed in him . Was this enough of an achievement to prove that disabilities are not a roadblock ? This essay is going to explain why disabilities are not an obstacle to success for several reasons .
The world is starting to offer more accessible alternatives for everyday things . Popular games have been adapted for people with different disabilities . For example , I once played chess using special pieces with a blind person and he even won . Technological devices also have new features that let more people apply them . For instance , Sony has announced “ Project Leonardo ” a controller that can be modified to be accessible to everyone . To sum up , a lot of things evolve to be suitable for every user .
Actions are being taken to allow physically disabled people to do a wider variety of activities . First of all , prosthetics are now easier to access . As an example , Joel Gibbard has developed a prosthetic hand using 3D printed pieces that is a lot more affordable compared to other competitors like I-Limb . New competitions have started to allow impaired people to compete . The Paralympic Games began in the middle of the 20th century and have grown to become one of the biggest sporting events worldwide . Basically , several communities are working to make disabled people to be included .
A lot of people are famous even though they have mental disabilities . Some individuals with autism spectrum disorder are much smarter than an average person . Einstein ( while not formally diagnosed ) and Elon Musk are great examples of this . Several people have improved artistic skills because of autism .
Stephen Wiltshire , for example can draw an entire cityscape from memory . To keep it short , mental disabilities have not stopped people from becoming successful .
From my point of view , disabled people should never be looked down upon and should only be encouraged , no matter if they have a physical or a mental disability . I believe the main reason why they are treated differently is because there are still presumptions about them in society and those presumptions are what discourages a lot of disabled people from succeeding .