What is Ableism?
By: Alyssa Salter, Bened Life Neurodiversity & Disability Specialist
You post a tweet and refer to yourself as disabled. Someone replies and “corrects” you, saying “It is ‘differently abled.’”
You hear someone complaining about how many disabled parking spaces there are and that there shouldn’t be more than one since all the good spots are “unused disabled spots”. They mention that “I saw someone get out of a handicap spot who didn’t even look disabled.”
You’re walking with your service animal. Someone bends down; you assume they’re tying their shoe. They instead start calling your service animal to them, causing a distraction. You ask them to leave your service animal alone, and they are annoyed that you “disrupted” them.
You break your foot in college and need a scooter as part of your rehabilitation. One of your classes is down a flight of stairs, and the university tells you to just have someone carry the scooter down for you. They could move the class elsewhere, but it would take time and logistics, so they won’t.
You’re applying for a job and get an interview. When you show up, the interviewer realizes that you are a wheelchair user. They ask you, “Is the wheelchair a full-time thing? The job application says the position requires you to occasionally lift 50 lbs.”
All of the above scenarios have at least one thing in common. Were you able to name it? If not, that’s okay because we are going to talk about the elephant in the room: ableism.
What Ableism Means & How It Shows Up in Everyday Life
Ableism is a term you may have encountered before, but today, we’re going to break it down and get more context.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines ableism as: discrimination in favor of able-bodied people.
Now, who qualifies as “able-bodied?” “Able-bodied” is a term used to define people who are not disabled. Many people in the disability community do not use this term, as it implies that disabled people aren’t healthy or capable.
In fact, some prefer alternate terms, like “non-disabled,” “temporarily able-bodied,” or “not yet disabled.” The latter two options remind us that anyone can become disabled at any time due to illness or accident.
So, what does ableism really mean?
Ableism is a form of discrimination and social prejudice that impacts people who are permanently or temporarily disabled. Anyone at any time can experience ableism, including children with disabilities. Just like other forms of discrimination, disability discrimination can be both intentional and subconscious.
You may be trying to think of examples of clear-cut ableism in our world, but you may find it difficult since it is ingrained in our societal structures. Ableism isn’t just obvious examples – it’s also a mentality and perspective.
Disability discrimination can include:
- Viewing people as lesser than or inhuman due to disability (which includes neurodiversity)
- Assuming disabled people have less fulfilling lives, dreams, etc.
- Believing disabled people should not have the same opportunities as non-disabled people
- Underestimating someone’s capabilities because they are disabled
- Assuming disabled people want to be “cured”
This may start to jog your memory to more detailed experiences with ableism. You may now be realizing that it isn’t solely wheelchair activism and accessibility, but a nuanced concept. You may also be recognizing how much of this is institutional in our world. Our thoughts and actions all contribute to the issues facing people with disabilities.
Disability in the U.S.
You might think: “How am I supposed to know all of this if no one in my life is disabled?”
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 1 in 4 people in the US has some type of disability, which averages out to roughly 83 million people alone. This includes physical, intellectual, and psychiatric disabilities, which include mental health conditions.
The likelihood that you know someone disabled is much higher than you might believe. If we take into consideration that one in every four people we may meet has a disability, we can begin to see the potential scope and impact that ableism has on our community.
Examples of Ableism & Discrimination
The impacts of ableism can be seen in a variety of ways. Let’s break down the previous examples and dive deeper into how each one could impact the person involved.
Example 1: You send a tweet and refer to yourself as disabled. Someone replies and corrects you and says “it is differently abled”.
- Using “differently abled” perpetuates the idea that saying “disabled” is bad or taboo, when it is just an identifier.
- Using “differently abled” doesn’t offer enough detail, as all people have different abilities.
- This term is a euphemism that adds to the taboo around referring to disabled people and denies the reality of people experiencing disability.
Example 2: You hear someone complaining about how many disabled parking spaces there are and that there shouldn’t be more than one since all the good spots are “unused disabled spots”. They mention that “I saw someone use a handicap spot who didn’t even look disabled.”
- Not all disabilities are visible or obvious to everyone.
- Handicap placards are a right by law for people who have varying disabilities. Accommodations for disabilities are not a privilege, but a right.
- Abuse of handicap placards is rare. Getting a handicap placard, temporary or permanent, takes time and energy. There are serious barriers from the Department of Motor Vehicles, which sets the standards for who can and cannot have a placard. This is a fight many give up, as it not only involves the DMV but also your doctor, who has to believe you need the placard. This process can feel very invalidating.
Example 3: You’re walking with your service animal. Someone bends down, you assume to tie their shoe. They instead start distracting your service animal and calling it to them. You ask them to leave your service animal alone, and they are annoyed that you corrected them.
- Service animals are medical equipment. Consider them the same as you would a wheelchair, a pair of glasses, or crutches. If someone removed your glasses, just because they wanted to, that would make living your life less accessible. Distracting a service animal is the same thing.
- As a service dog handler, I can say firsthand that the impact of people perpetuating ableism and not respecting service animals as medical equipment takes a toll on my mental health and stress levels. On days where I have to advocate more for myself and my service animal, I often am wiped out mentally and physically for several days after.
- By not ignoring service animals and giving them their space, you put stress on the handler, which can often lead to them isolating themselves and avoiding public outings due to the stress of being out as a team.
Example 4: You break your foot while in college and need a scooter as part of your rehabilitation. One of your classes is down a flight of stairs, and the university tells you to just have someone carry the scooter down for you. They could move the class but it could take some time so you might as well not bother.
- This is not only violating a student’s rights to access the class they’re paying for but also placing the burden on the student needing reasonable accommodations.
- There are many locations that are not accessible to people with mobility aids. This is also ableism in practice.
Example 5: You’re applying for a job and get an interview. When you show up, the interviewer realizes that you are a wheelchair user. They ask you, “Is the wheelchair a full-time thing? The job application says the position requires you to occasionally lift 50 lbs.”
- If a skill like lifting 50 lbs is necessary for a role, the interviewer is allowed to ask the applicant to demonstrate their ability, but inquiring about mobility aids is not allowed.
- A wheelchair is medical equipment, and it is illegal to discriminate against people who use mobility aids. You can read more about your rights as an American in relation to disability here.
- Some wheelchair users have dynamic disability, meaning they can perform tasks or activities with or without their mobility aid sporadically or depending on their day to day health. However, asking someone the details on their mobility device is inappropriate.
- Did you know? According to the Civil Rights Department of California, “Employers must evaluate job applicants regardless of their actual or perceived disabilities. They can’t ask about the nature or severity of disabilities nor can they require an applicant to take medical or psychological exams that aren’t routinely given to other prospective hires.”
- While discrimination and ableism may be illegal, it is difficult to hold many employers accountable. There is extra labor put on disabled employees or prospective employees to be the perfect candidate while also having to advocate for themselves full time.
How to Become a Disability Advocate
This is only an introduction to ableism and ableist behaviors, so there are many ways that ableism impacts different environments that are not covered here. Remember that ableist language and actions do not have to come from a place of cruelty or with the goal to perpetuate harm. Often you may find that you or others around you will say or repeat behaviors that they have seen and assumed were the correct ways to behave.
Education about topics like ableism is important because it begins to change the social perception of disabled people, social prejudice, and disability justice. Just as anyone can become disabled at any time, anyone nondisabled can become a disability advocate with a little education.
Here are some other resources you can use to help you become a more educated disability advocate:
Ableism articles
- Center for Disability Rights - "Ableism"
- Forbes - "Words matter, and it's time to explore the meaning of ablesim"
- Trinity College - "Ableism at Trinity - Disabled students share their harrowing on-campus experiences"
Stop Ableism
- Stop Ableism Mission Statement
- Stop Ableism History of Ableism
CDC
- Disability Impacts All of Us: Infographic
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