By Rosemary Musachio, Chief Accessibility Officer
October is Disability Awareness Month. Since I’m a person with disability, the significance of this commemoration holds much hope and promise, not just for me but for the other 56.7 million Americans with disabilities. However, Disability Awareness Month does not seem widely known to the general population. Consequently, its impact may prove to be weak throughout the rest of the year.
By contrast, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which also occurs in October, usually produces lasting effect. It’s not only because having breast cancer is more serious than having a disability. The strong impact of Breast Awareness Month also is due to how the media covers it. Because news programs, newspapers, and magazines have presented inspiring stories about breast cancer survivors and emphasis of early detection, 39 million mammograms have been performed yearly and the death rate for breast cancer has decreased 34% since 1980, two years after the breast cancer campaign had started.
Disability Awareness Month has not received the same kind of media coverage, however. I remember vividly in 1990’s when news reporters showed how they used wheelchairs and encountered architectural barriers, such as narrowed doorways and high sidewalks. Airing these kinds of reports today would be outdated since the Americans with Disabilities are making physical barriers almost obsolete.
The ideal news feature would be a four-part series on the positive impact that individuals with disabilities have on society. One segment could feature how we are good parents, that we can use voice synthesizers to read to our kids or artificial limbs to dress them. According to a publication by the National Council on Disability (NCD), Rocking the Cradle: Ensuring the Rights of Parents with Disabilities and Their Children, children who have parents with disabilities become well-adjusted adults. The NCD report also states that they have enhanced problem-solving skills and a brighter outlook on life.
The next part of the news series can show how we add a great value to the workforce. Reporters could interview employers who have profited and gained social clout by employing persons with disabilities. Examples of companies that have had success doing this include IBM, AT&T, Proctor & Gamble, and Merck & Co. Forbes Magazine published a wonderful piece on hiring persons with disabilities called The Benefits of Disability in the Workplace. The article explains how employing us increases job retention, productivity, and workplace morale. Consequently, accommodating employees who have disabilities can help companies save money instead of increase costs.
The news series also could cover the many ways we enhance the world’s culture. Actors and actresses with disabilities like Marlee Matlin who’s deaf, Tom Cruise who has dyslexia, Sylvester Stallone who has facial paralysis, and Michael J. Fox who has Parkinson’s Disease have given the public great performances. Scientists, such as Stephen Hawking, the world’s most famous one, Collin Diedrich, a microbiologist with a learning disability, and Mary Temple Grandin, an animal behaviorist with autism, have given the world breakthrough theories. Many other unknown cultural beacons with diverse abilities are out there that the media should highlight so the public can know how we continue to contribute to society.
The last part of the news series could show how technology has helped persons with disabilities make a difference in society. 3-D printed prosthetics allow amputees to succeed in things they used to do or even in things they weren’t doing before they lost their limbs. According to a CNN op-ed, How to Print Yourself A New Hand, 3-D artificial limbs cost $10-$50 compared to FDA-approved prosthetics that run from $40,000 and up. Thanks to 3-D printed limbs, for instance, allows amputees anything they want, from cook to fly a plane. Understandable voice synthesizers that are operated with eye gazes are another technology that can allow persons with speech impairments to teach or give presentations. Screen readers, which have existed for over twenty years but still needs to be explained to the public, allow individuals who are blind or visually impaired to operate computers and maintain related jobs.
My hope is for major news programs and publications to highlight what persons with disabilities are contributing to society and what we will be able to do in the future. I also hope the next time you’ll see another person in a wheelchair or using assistive technology, regard him or her as a productive member of society. Only then can Disability Awareness be demonstrated accurately throughout the year.
Learn more about our work at www.RuhGlobal.com or follow us on Social Media @rosemusachio, @debraruh and @ruhglobal on most channels.
#AXSChat: Join Debra Ruh, Neil Milliken, and Antonio Santos for a weekly Twitter Chat on Disability Inclusion, ICT Accessibility, Built Environment, CRPD, Empowerment and Employment. Just search the hashtag #AXSChat at 3pmEST and join the conversation. You can learn more about AXSChat at www.AXSChat.com.