Our Own Journey
I thought of this title, because iTunes is currently playing I Will Be There for You, by Jessica Andrews. It's always been one of my favorites, as it speaks of the value we place on supporting and getting support from one another.
However, this entry will be about something different. I'd heard via Twitter that May 1 is Blog Against Disablism Day. I don't know much about the movement or how it got started, but it sounds like a good idea to me. I have a couple of things I could address.
First, I'll provide a link to a piece I wrote about the very real on-the-job discrimination I experienced. That trauma had a lot to do with why I ended up working in a sheltered workshop for six+ years, and why I am now preparing to try and knock down some of those barriers for those who come behind me.
My other issue is this: someone else on Twitter just mentioned that certain guide dog schools, in an attempt to procure funding, perpetuate the myth that the only way that blind persons can obtain independence is through the use of a guide dog. This individual is actually a big proponent of working with dogs, and yet she readily acknowledges that not having one does not equate to a lack of functioning. In fact, even if one does have a dog one must learn the skills necessary to cope in the larger world, or he would be no more independent than if he had a cane.
During the entire year I've spent on or near this campus, I have been asked more times than I care to mention why I don't have a dog. From professors to students to workers who could barely articulate an English-language phrase, they all tout the powers that having a dog would bestow upon me, as conveyed to them through their TV sets. And so I find myself uttering the same response: "Yes having a dog would be cool... they'd make great companions, sure... would probably help me in crowded situations and perhaps to walk straighter."
The truth is, I'm not entirely certain just how much I would benefit from the assistance of a guide dog. And I think the lumping of all of us into a category of must-have is just as ridiculous as asking a sighted person who happened to be riding the bus "Do you have a car? Why don't you have a car? Don't you know they could help you get around town more effectively and thus save time?"
We all have our reasons for choosing the particular set-up that we have. And besides, most guide dog users I know are also proficient at using their canes, since there are times, such as conventions or other road trips where the stress of constant crowds and unpredictable weather may be too much for the animal, that may require the use of this alternative method.
As I have stated before, I may well get a guide dog someday. But believe me, if I do it will be on my own terms and for my own reasons, and definitely not because some person at a training school or an individual pontificating on late-night TV believes that I must have one for my functioning. I write this not to put anyone down who has asked such questions of me, but to just educate them further. We are not all the same. Some who have dogs, and I know this from what I've seen, still do nothing but sit around the house and let their poor animals forget how to function in a guide capacity. Others with only canes as a means of travel would blow the socks off of the most mobile sighted person. So if I am getting by, let me get by. And if I'm struggling, well that's my problem and I'd better figure out how to deal with that. Meanwhile, I'll try hard to avoid putting another mark on your pretty ride.
However, this entry will be about something different. I'd heard via Twitter that May 1 is Blog Against Disablism Day. I don't know much about the movement or how it got started, but it sounds like a good idea to me. I have a couple of things I could address.
First, I'll provide a link to a piece I wrote about the very real on-the-job discrimination I experienced. That trauma had a lot to do with why I ended up working in a sheltered workshop for six+ years, and why I am now preparing to try and knock down some of those barriers for those who come behind me.
My other issue is this: someone else on Twitter just mentioned that certain guide dog schools, in an attempt to procure funding, perpetuate the myth that the only way that blind persons can obtain independence is through the use of a guide dog. This individual is actually a big proponent of working with dogs, and yet she readily acknowledges that not having one does not equate to a lack of functioning. In fact, even if one does have a dog one must learn the skills necessary to cope in the larger world, or he would be no more independent than if he had a cane.
During the entire year I've spent on or near this campus, I have been asked more times than I care to mention why I don't have a dog. From professors to students to workers who could barely articulate an English-language phrase, they all tout the powers that having a dog would bestow upon me, as conveyed to them through their TV sets. And so I find myself uttering the same response: "Yes having a dog would be cool... they'd make great companions, sure... would probably help me in crowded situations and perhaps to walk straighter."
The truth is, I'm not entirely certain just how much I would benefit from the assistance of a guide dog. And I think the lumping of all of us into a category of must-have is just as ridiculous as asking a sighted person who happened to be riding the bus "Do you have a car? Why don't you have a car? Don't you know they could help you get around town more effectively and thus save time?"
We all have our reasons for choosing the particular set-up that we have. And besides, most guide dog users I know are also proficient at using their canes, since there are times, such as conventions or other road trips where the stress of constant crowds and unpredictable weather may be too much for the animal, that may require the use of this alternative method.
As I have stated before, I may well get a guide dog someday. But believe me, if I do it will be on my own terms and for my own reasons, and definitely not because some person at a training school or an individual pontificating on late-night TV believes that I must have one for my functioning. I write this not to put anyone down who has asked such questions of me, but to just educate them further. We are not all the same. Some who have dogs, and I know this from what I've seen, still do nothing but sit around the house and let their poor animals forget how to function in a guide capacity. Others with only canes as a means of travel would blow the socks off of the most mobile sighted person. So if I am getting by, let me get by. And if I'm struggling, well that's my problem and I'd better figure out how to deal with that. Meanwhile, I'll try hard to avoid putting another mark on your pretty ride.