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Monday morning I jumped onto the @NWJAutistic Twitter account to post Sunday’s Not Weird Just Autistic column link when the top trending Twitter hashtag caught my eye.
As a mostly good writer I keep up on what the trends are and do look to see what’s trending, but it’s rare that it’s something I’m really comfortable writing about. Today was different.
The top # was #disabledpeoplearehot
And just like that, I knew what I was writing this column about. It shocked me at the number of people who participated in this and willingly posted their pictures and proclaimed, “I’m disabled and I’m hot.”
Then I envision a mic drop after the word, “hot.”
BOOM!
I certainly don’t consider myself hot, but I’m not hideous, so I’m somewhere in that middle ground. I could lose a little around the center section of my body, though couldn’t most of us, right? People don’t think I’m as old as I am by looking at me, which I guess is a good thing. I don’t need to tell anyone how close to AARP age I really am.
There were some on the hashtag chat that were opposed to the concept and saying that it’s objectifying the disabled and trying to mold them into what society thinks is beautiful.
#DisabledPeopleAreHot is not about adhering to conventional standards of beauty. It’s about being disabled and being proud of that.
— Andrew Gurza #DisabledPeopleAreHot (@andrewgurza) February 18, 2019
#DisabledPeopleAreHot
I gotta say, I am loving all the beautiful faces I see today!What a hashtag!! 🤗🤗🤗
Can we do #DisabledPeoplesAnimals next?
— Lelena (@LelenaPeacock) February 18, 2019
#DisabledPeopleAreHot….DUH!!! 😘🥰😎
— CHRISTY S (@ChristyS524) February 18, 2019
Feeling the love for everyone using the #DisabledPeopleAreHot hashtag to talk about #InvisibleDisabilities.
— JJ Hunt (@HeyHeyDoubleJ) February 18, 2019
Those people have it all wrong. In my generally humble opinion.
The idea is that we look at ourselves and see someone we love and care about. Someone that we see as a beautiful person worthy of love.
We’re not expecting to be George Clooney or Tom Selleck in their primes or even Megan Fox, Rachel McAdams or Scarlett Johansson of recent years. We’re content to be us. As we are. Quirks, ticks, and all that comes with our disability, be it a service dog, wheelchair or any other assistive device.
When a disabled person tells you they’re beautiful, what they’re saying is that they have overcome their self-esteem issues, the wondering why me? They have simply learned to believe and accept that a challenge is just that. An obstacle between happiness and us that can be overcome and not barriers that are solid and will not be overcome. Period.
Next time you see a disabled person, don’t look at us with pity and thank your holy guide, or whoever you talk to, that it’s not you like that. Look at the person for what they accomplished and what obstacles have already been overcome. Celebrate, but probably best if you do it in your head. It gets weird if you do it in, say, an elevator. Ya know?
Keep in mind that, in a lot of us, the disability is hidden until we get in a tight situation and we have no choice but to reveal it, even if we don’t name it out loud.
The bottom line is that the disabled community wants only one thing; a level playing field. Oddly enough, that’s what I’ll be writing about next week.
Actually, we also want wheelchair ramps and all the other good stuff that’s been done to help out. We’ll keep that. And we have a list of improvements and things that still need to be fixed. We’ll send them via Google Drive. Please set up a shared folder.
Remember that Life doesn’t have to be your disability. It’s hard, but you can choose to live and not have your disability define you. Let life be the main course and disability, a side dish. Enjoy your life with a side of disability.
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Photo courtesy Unsplash.