The Voiceless Minority

        So, a conversation came up this weekend with a friend who is also my PCA, which made me think of a complex problem facing the disability community. The following sentence was spoken: "I don't understand why it's a problem when people protect you when you are in a wheelchair." Upon hearing this, I lost my mind. After I was done screaming incoherently in rage, I got to thinking about the statement, and I realized that the problem was not my PCA's problem; it is a societal problem.       In this writer's opinion, if you have any disability, most of society sees you as a fragile doll that needs protection. I'm here to say this: WE ARE NOT SOME FRAGILE DOLL THAT YOU CAN COLLECT AND BUY ON QVC; WE ARE PEOPLE! Some of us are motivational speakers, some of us are doctors, some of us have Master's degrees, and we are not happy being put in a box. This is very true for me personally. Recently, I had a conversation with my dad, who is going ...

I know I have written a lot lately; hopefully, it’s a trend that will continue. There are a lot of exciting things happening in my world since the Florida SAND conference. It’s funny how one event can put things in motion that you weren’t even thinking about before the event. Today I met an interesting person by the name of Chris. I have many big ideas, but I have realized that they will take networking and time to implement. I am starting to see that the universe puts things in motion when you least expect it. I was putting together my two-year plan, and it did not involve staying where I am at. I’m not saying that I will, but after the past few days, I’m more open to the possibility of it. I won’t get into great detail about the things that Chris and I discussed because it isn’t set in stone yet; I will say that if it happens, the world will be vastly different (at least in my little corner). I know this was short and sweet, more to come later. 

So, I was talking to a couple friends tonight and I realized that I missed another episode of Speechless. For those who don’t know, Speechless is a show about a young boy named JJ with Cerebral Palsy. JJ cannot speak and has a wonderful mom as a disability advocate. The cool thing about this show is that as a few shows in the past, they actually use an individual with a disability to play the disabled character. I wrote a blog early on in the history of this blog that was relevant to tonight’s episode. Tonight’s episode dealt with the idea of “inspiration porn”. I will not go into detail about the episode as I have not watched it fully yet. Towards the end of this blog, I will link the above-mentioned post. Why am I writing about it now? I am writing because it is amazing that a major network like ABC is finally paying attention to disability issues and portraying them fairly. Perhaps if this show gets picked up for more seasons the perception of people with disabilities in societ...

So, this weekend I attended my first Florida SAND conference. At first, I wasn't sure what to expect; I had never been to an event like this. I had heard mixed reviews from those who have attended in the past. It started slow; there were a bit of technical and arrival glitches with myself and my PCA. However, once we got there, it quickly became apparent that this would not be anything like I had heard. Friday night was a chill night; I met some pretty amazing people and lost Uno's rather exciting game of No official conference business that took place that night. Although my PCA won a bag of espresso beans for some strange reason, I was hoping we would win the autographed football but still pretty awesome. Saturday was the heart of the conference, right away Saturday morning, I realized that something was different. My college brain had kicked in again, and I was in learning mode. I have tried two other academic endeavors since I graduated with my Masters, one in real esta...

Almost two years ago, I wrote a blog about disability parenthood called "Who Says We Can't Have A Family?"  http://thevoicelssminority.blogspot.com/2013/07/who-says-we-cant-have-family.html  In it, I discuss several issues about being a parent and having a disability. When I wrote the blog, I had just turned 27 and had a different view on life. As I am approaching my 29 th  birthday, my perspective on the world is somewhat the same, but on the disability and parenting issue, I don't know if I still hold the same belief.             In that first blog, I laid out the following arguments: It is natural to want to pass genes to offspring, considering human life is just a blip in the cosmic makeup of things, and all we have are the legacies we leave behind. While I still agree with that argument, I find myself internally struggling with the question. Although I believe disabled people as a group have the right to b...

Throughout US history, race relations have been a divisive issue. Recently the death of a gentleman by the name of Freddy Graves has sparked the controversy yet again. Graves was a twenty-five year old African American living in Baltimore, Maryland; he encountered police after they stopped him for "for looking at them and then running from them." Graves was arrested and taken to jail. On the way to jail, he received a broken spine and other injuries. As a result of his injuries, he died a week after his arrest while still in police custody. His death would send the city of Baltimore into an uproar. At first, the protest against the police treatment of Mr. Graves was non-violent. Protesters seemed to be peacefully voicing their displeasure over several issues, including the treatment of the minority community by the Baltimore police over decades. However, on the day that Freddy Graves was buried, tensions rose, and the peaceful protesters were overshadowed by violence. The v...

It has been a few days since I've written. I'm just writing this as a quick update. I have been in Florida for almost nine months. For the most part, things are going well. However, there is one issue that has still been a struggle for my family and me. As some of you may know, taking care of a person with a disability often requires that one rely on others' help. People who are forced to rely on support from others usually have two options; they can either pay out-of-pocket or go through a state waiver.             It is impractical for most people to pay out-of-pocket if I used myself as an example. I need 24-hour care. Suppose one was to pay out-of-pocket at the rate of $10 an hour that would equal the following.: $240 a day, $1680 a week, $6700 a month, and $80 640 a year. This is not a practical solution for the long term. The only long-term solution is to go with a state waiver. However, the waiver itself presents probl...