Finally inspired!

While I have had a profile on blog spot since February, today is the first time I have actually decided to blog. I read several other's, I recommend Chewing the Fat. I have thought several times about topics, I have a lot I like to say, whether other's wish to read it is a different story. I finally decided to toss my thoughts out into cyberspace and we'll see what happens!

I was finally inspired after attending a training today given by Kathie Snow. I highly recommend that if you're interested in disability rights you visit her website at www.disabilityisnatural.com. Today Kathie challenged an audience of parents, educators, and other "experts" to think in a revolutionary way...to use common sense. I found myself thinking a lot today (as I often do) about how we force people with disabilities into services, expect them to comply with those services and perhaps sometimes expect gratefulness, when all the while we are essentially telling people that they are broken. They have a "problem" (disability) and we can "fix" it. BUT DISABILITY ISN'T THE PROBLEM! WE ARE! When I was already excited and inspired, I came home and read my work e-mail where there was an article sent to me regarding a push from parents toward insurance coverage of autism therapies. Then I saw a report on the news about it. First of all, if newspapers are going to cover these stories couldn't they speak about children with autism as full human beings? These reports are so riddled with pity I could cry, no wonder there is so much stigma, and there are parents (not all, and they are always doing the best they can) who seem to be encouraging this. "Poor me, I have a child with autism" why is it never about "I'm so lucky, I have a child with an incredible wit" or "I have a child with an incredible knowledge of Star Wars and it's something to behold!" Also, the last time I checked, autism isn't a terminal disease! Why do we keep talking about "curing" it? I don't know about you, but I think I would take offense, and maybe not feel too good about myself if people wanted to cure me of my fabulousness!

Anyway, not to drone on, please just consider whose problem it is. Does the person with autism (or any other different ability) see it as a problem, or do we? Are we putting kids through therapy after therapy, and "programs" and behavior modification for them or us? If you really think about it you may not like the answer...