(In the next few posts I shall be sharing thoughts on disability. This is motivated by my interaction with not only persons with psychosocial disabilities but all other disabilities as well. It is crucial that persons with disabilities fully and effectively participate in society on an equal basis with others. And I feel that the awareness of this fact is really key.)
Do you have a disability? Maybe you know someone who does? What comes to your mind when you think of ‘a person with a disability?’ I will not take you to class but it is okay to reflect. I realize that when we do not put ourselves in the shoes of someone else, we are bound to probably wrongly judge them; label them, and in the case of disability, isolate/stigmatize them.
The thought of disability is not something that often crossed my mind while growing up. In my thinking, the disabled were those on wheelchairs; those who could not see; those who could not hear. And it really didn’t cross my mind to know further what it is like to be disabled. A quick check online on the simple definition of disability is ‘a physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities.’
And so even when I was given a psychiatric diagnosis; the idea of disability did not cross my mind. I look back on how I quit four jobs because of the limitations that came with my diagnosis, and the fact that I now realize I may have needed extra supports and accommodations to function well in formal employment- slowly the word disability makes sense.
I am not using disability in a way that disempowers me. I am asking myself; if the various supports I needed as a result of my psychiatric diagnosis were offered me in my workplace; would I have quit the four jobs? (And you will understand that when you have got no employment, or no source of livelihood, it definitely is challenging, not only for the person with a disability, but even for the one without).
So it is for every disability. National and international instruments have defined disability, or persons with disability. I will pick the definition from the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, an international agreement on the rights of disabled people, which I think we should all acquaint ourselves with. It states: Persons with disabilities include those who have long term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
Because persons with disabilities are constantly discriminated and face many barriers in the environment, such Conventions as the CRPD are there to set out what countries have to do to make sure that all people with disabilities enjoy all the same human rights as everybody else.
I know it is not easy for most persons with disabilities to navigate through life. The barriers are still there. The stigma. Yet again, I feel that there are many opportunities for persons with disabilities. But the awareness on the same has to be created. There are children with disabilities locked away in their homes for so many reasons—these children will definitely not enjoy the same environment as other children, which limits their life opportunities. Many families still live in poverty due to a family member having one or other disability. I know the Kenyan government has programs that are supposed to act as safety nets for the poor, the disabled, the elderly….but again, in a country where so many persons are affected by poverty, what of the double burden of disability and poverty.
I have just seen that now development partners are insisting that governments have to include marginalized groups in developmental processes otherwise they cut on funding. This is all good; but it is important that institutions mandated to ensure the inclusion and participation of persons with disabilities are proactive enough to ensure that no person with disability is left behind.
Elizabeth Ombati 