For many in the disability community, the idea of disability pride itself is a complicated topic.
These are their stories.
Polio predominantly affected my back and my leg.
Verywell / Nez Riaz
For some, thepressureto come out as disabled means they choose not to disclose that information.
For them, identifying with disability meant coming to understand labels differently.
I hate that I had to give up woodworking, which I loved, because my hands got weaker.
I can hate things about the disability and still have disability pride, she says.
Thats the case for McMaster University doctoral candidateJess Rauchberg.
Who gets to be represented in mainstream disability pride?
This isn’t to say that disability pride is bad or that it’s not important.
“Insulin-dependent diabetics have never been raised with the idea that this might fall under that category.
And so it’s very new to them.
So they’re not learning a lot about disability.”
Joannie Cowie says that her mother, now 89, is still pushing her to fight for disability rights.
She’ll still say to me, ‘When I die, you keep fighting for disability rights.’
And then Im like, ‘Im trying, Mom, Im doing my best.’
I think its made me stronger as a fighter.
What this Means for You
Disability Pride is complicated for many in the disability community.
For others, the process of identifying with disability during the month is murky.
