Thursday, January 7, 2016

What Is Normal?

We all have a disability, but you can't always see it.  People only see the disability on the outside and that's where they try to label it. I've endured a lot of labels over the course of my lifetime. Everything from handicapped and special needs to idiot and retard. As you might have guessed, I have found most of them inadequete in trying to compartmentalize... I mean describe me. Some are just downright  hurtful. Frankly I believe that words are just words and they shouldn't be used to label people by what you see on the outside. 

Normal for me is how I feel with myself inside. I used to look at both of my sisters and see them as normal. It used to make me really sad. But now that I am older with a little more life experience, I feel like I can finally live my life and do what I want in the way that I can. I feel like I can finally be me! Normal is really what you want it to be, perhaps none of us can truly reach normal in the same way none of us can reach perfection. I hate how we people put labels on everything, it's just wrong. 

More than that, I really feel like this guy's heart is just not in the right place. There is no solid evidence in the article to support this, but just hear me out.. He talks about how people with disabilities picking up the employment rate so it is on par with "normal" or non-disabled people. I feel like perhaps he sees people with disabilities as a burden on the system. Maybe he believes that having a job is the only way a person can contribute to society. Of course I am supportive of people with disabilities being employed, I just don't trust his motives. 

At the end of the day, I really believe that the word normal is not helpful for people in society. I agree with what Mik Scarlet said "If we can get past this idea of normal then we can be truly equal and nobody would need to be described as such".

No comments:

Post a Comment