Living in an ableist society
Government, schools could have found funding and supports all along
The financial hardships and social isolation that many have been living with for the past couple of months is a battle nobody should have to endure, but one that our disabled and senior populations live with every day, pandemic or not.
Seeing entire communities and our government leap into action over the past few weeks to keep islanders safe has been commendable. It has also been eye-opening to the many ways businesses, schools and government can provide accommodations, financial support and regulations to support those who need it.
It has also brought proof of a very ableist society. We live in a world where when it benefits able-bodied people, schools can adapt their curriculum, offer online alternatives and provide ongoing support to students being affected.
When I was sick in high school with a connective tissue disease that left me bedridden most days, I was kicked out of several classes with no prior warning, and despite doctors’ notes.
When my jaw was left dislocated and face cartilage crushed as a result of ongoing dislocations, unable to eat and barely speak, my principal forced me to choose between my health and my education. I chose my health, and had to drop out for a year.
I was denied medical tutoring because the process was “too long”, was told distance learning was not an option, and denied countless accommodations recommended by OT, PT and other medical professionals.
When I wanted to get a job, but relied on accessibility in a province and home town without adequate accessibility laws and regulations, I was met with unaccommodating employers, inadequate spaces and ill-equipped support.
When I inevitably ended up on disability, I was given different rules, guidelines and requirements from each social worker. One worker told me that in order to be “allowed” to attend university, I needed a doctor’s note. My income support was cut off until I could get into my doctor to get the note.
I was told my bursaries and scholarships were considered income, and despite bursaries and scholarships being credited to my student account and not my bank account, I would be docked.
When I was required to go on tube feeding that alone costed almost $2,000 a month, our health-care system refused to provide financial support.
For the next two to three years, I was to live off $123 dollars a month, which is what income support covers for people with disabilities.
As for a social life, what social life? Every good day I had went into completing school work, or trying to recover physically. I never went anywhere because I was guaranteed to end up sick or in a flare. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t, because of a lack of accessible public spaces. And no, elevators, curb slopes, and “big” bathrooms do not make a space accessible.
I am not an isolated case. People all across the island
Take this time to focus on self care, and do what you can to take care of others.
are in the same shoes that I am, or worse. I’m fortunate after many years to have the support of family, a family doctor and medical professionals who’ve gotten me to where I am, and developed connections to people who have gone out of their way to provide me with support and leadership in education and work. Not everyone has that, and that’s not something that is lost on me.
So I ask the businesses, schools, and government where their accommodations have been for the disabled. If you can provide care, financial support, protection and other accommodations for your able-bodied community, why can’t you for the disabled?
When I approached multiple levels of government, including the minister of health and wellness, to discuss such issues, I was repeatedly refused a conversation and meeting.
I have been told by multiple health professionals on P.E.I. that if I want or expect to have a life with my disability, to leave P.E.I.
Our government has decided that people with disabilities don’t deserve the same opportunities that able-bodied people have, and sentenced them to a life of isolation and neglect.
The other option? Leave your family, friends, your home, the little support you already have and find somewhere else to live.
Afterwards, when everyone returns to school, work, and social outings, the disabled and senior communities will remain in isolation, with unlivable conditions, as they most likely have for many years.
When your temporary inconvenience and fear subsides, that of ours will not. The government’s neglect of issues faced by P.E.I.’s disabled community will continue as it always has.
To turn a global health crisis into an optimistic lesson would be invalidating and minimizing to those who have lost their life and loved ones.
So instead I’ll ask that you reflect and take into consideration those around you.
For many of us COVID-19 is just another passing cold, but to some it is a life-threatening reality.
Take this time to focus on self care, and do what you can to take care of others.