Running head: DISABILITY AS MULTICULTURAL
Disability as a Multicultural and Diversity Component
Shonda McLaughlin
American Association of People with Disabilities
Contact Information:
Shonda McLaughlin, PhD, CRC
Programs Manager
American Association of People with Disabilities
1629 K St NW, Suite 503
Washington, DC 20006
Phone: 2024570046, Ext 22
Email: shondamc@verizon.net
Fax: 2024570473
The “ility” jingle (author unknown)
Though I fully appreciate life, sometimes it makes me blue
To hear I can’t do something, when I know that’s not true
I never wanted any pity, please look me in the eye
and listen to me carefully as I say most respectfully
I’m just your average guy
When seen as inability to achieve possibilities
The access to some facilities has tested my agility
and someone’s inability to use common sensibility
So if I act with hostility when I hear some senility
That questions my abilities you’ll understand my sincerity
To direct your ability to see my abilities
So we can use our abilities to create possibilities
The walls will start to crumble, the doors will open wide
Your former ways of thinking, will fall by the wayside
You’ll see how much we can achieve, by stamping out this curse
So remember through this ditty, I never wanted any pity
And to always put “people” first!
July 26, 2001
One in five Americans
has a disability. There is a good chance that you interact everyday with
somebody who has a disability, perhaps without even knowing it. Sometimes people
are uncomfortable around people with disabilities because they don't know how to
act or what to say. Here are some general tips to make communicating easier.
1. First and most important - people with disabilities,
like everyone else, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. People with
disabilities have different personalities and different preferences about how to
do things. To find out what a person prefers, ask.
2. When you meet someone with a disability, it is
appropriate to shake hands - even if a person has limited hand use or artificial
limbs. Simply touch hands (or the person's prosthesis) to acknowledge his/her
presence. Shaking the left hand is also fine.
3. Always ask before you assist a person with a
disability, and then listen carefully to any instructions. Do not interfere with
a person's full control over his/her own assistive devices. For example, before
you push someone who uses a wheelchair, make sure to ask if they want to be
pushed. Likewise, never move crutches or communication boards out of the reach
of their owners without permission.
4. Remember, most people with disabilities want to serve
as well as be served and enjoy assisting others.
5. Usually people with disabilities do not want to make
the origin or details of their disability the first topic of conversation. In
general, it's best not to ask personal questions until you've become real
friends.
6. Be considerate of the extra time it might take a
person with a disability to get some things done.
7. Speak directly to the person with a disability rather
than to a companion or sign language interpreter who may be along.
8. Relax. Don't be embarrassed to use common expressions
such as "I've got to run now," "See you later," or "Have you heard about" even
if the person doesn't run, see or hear well. People with disabilities use these
phrases all the time.
9. Some terms that might have sounded acceptable in the
past, such as "crippled", "deaf and dumb" and "wheelchair-bound" are no longer
accepted by people with disabilities. Many have negative associations. Instead
say "person with a disability," "Mary is deaf (or hard of hearing)" "Denise uses
a wheelchair," and "Joe has mental retardation." This type of language focuses
on the person first, and their disability afterwards.
10. Avoid excessive praise when people with disabilities
accomplish normal tasks. Living with a disability is an adjustment, one most
people have to make at some point in their lives, and does not require
exaggerated compliments.
11. Don't lean on a person's wheelchair - it's considered
an extension of personal space.
12. When you talk to a person in a wheelchair for more
than a few minutes, try to sit down so that you will be at eye level with that
person.
13. Don't pet a guide or companion dog while it's
working.
14. Give unhurried attention to a person who has
difficulty speaking. Don't pretend to understand when you don't -- ask the
person to repeat what they said.
15. Speak calmly, slowly and directly to a person who is
hard of hearing. Don't shout or speak in the person's ear. Your facial
expressions, gestures, and body movements help in understanding. If you're not
certain that you've been understood, write your message.
16. Greet a person who is visually impaired by telling
the person your name and where you are. When you offer walking assistance, let
the person take your arm and then tell him or her when you are approaching
inclines or turning right or left.
17. Be aware that there are many people with disabilities
that are not apparent. Just because you cannot see a disability does not mean it
doesn't exist.
18. Whatever you do, don't let fear of saying or doing
something "wrong" prevent you from getting to know someone who has a disability.
If you are unsure of what to say when you first meet, try "hello."
19. Help make community events available to everyone.
Hold them in wheelchair accessible locations. This makes it easier for everyone!
Do not refer to a person's disability unless it is relevant.
Use "disability" rather than "handicap" to refer to a person's disability. It is okay to say that a person is handicapped by obstacles, such as architectural barriers or the attitudes or ignorant or insensitive people. Never use "cripple/crippled" in any reference of disability
When referring to a person's disability, try to use "people first" language. In other words, when necessary, it is better to say "person with a disability" rather than "a disabled person" in the first reference. Since "disabled" is an adjective, it is important to avoid ridiculous - and improper - constructions such as "disabled group" or "disabled transportation." Instead, build phrases using the word "disability." For example, "disability activist," or "disability community," are correct and not contradictions to the "people first" ideas.
Avoid referring to people with disabilities as "the disabled, the blind, the epileptics, the retarded, a quadriplegic," etc. Descriptive terms should be used as adjectives, not as nouns.
Avoid negative or sensational descriptions of a person's disability. Don't say "suffers from," "a victim of," or "afflicted with." Don't refer to people with disabilities as "patients" unless they are receiving treatment in a medical facility. Never say "invalid." These portrayals elicit unwanted sympathy, or worse, pity toward individuals with disabilities. Respect and acceptance is what people with disabilities would rather have.
Don't portray people with disabilities as overly courageous, brave, special, or superhuman. This implies that it is unusual for people with disabilities to have talents or skills.
Don't use "normal" to describe people who don't have disabilities. It is better to say "people without disabilities" or "typical," if necessary to make comparisons.
Never say "wheelchair-bound" or "confined to a wheelchair." People who use mobility or adaptive equipment are, if anything, afforded freedom and access that otherwise would be denied them.
Never assume that a person with a communication disorder (speech impediment, hearing loss, motor impairment) also has a cognitive disability, such as mental retardation. On the other hand, people with mental retardation often speak well.
Source: http://www.nawcwpns.navy.mil/~hrd/disability/etiquette.html
The following information first appeared in 1992, when it was published simultaneously in ACA's Journal of Counseling and Development and in the Journal of the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD). Since that time, the multicultural competencies outlined in the article have become an important part of the counseling literature and a central aspect of all counselors' work.
For more information about multicultural counseling, we suggest that you make frequent visits to AMCD's web site that is located at www.amcd-aca.org.
In April 1991, the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) approved a document outlining the need and rationale for a multicultural perspective in counseling. The work of the Professional Standards committee went much further in proposing 31 multicultural counseling competencies and strongly encouraged the American Counseling Association (then known as the American Association for Counseling and Development (AACD)) and the counseling profession to adopt these competencies in accreditation criteria. The hope was to have the competencies eventually become a standard for curriculum reform and training of helping professionals.