A person of different abilities is a person first
TheStar.com – Opinion/Commentary – A mother of a young girl with Down syndrome reflects on society’s evolving attitudes over the last 50 years, and the work still to be done.
Mar 21 2015. By: Adelle Purdham
As I registered my eldest toddler for kindergarten, I thought about how her little sister is going to follow in her footsteps in one short year. My daughter Elyse — barely 2 years old — will be registered for full-day kindergarten come next January. Her November birthday will make her one of the youngest in the class.
Like many parents, I’m feeling the usual mixed emotions about seeing my girls off to school: proud to see them growing up, but sad to see them go on without me. Then there are feelings I’m grappling with that not every parent has to face.
You see, my daughter Elyse has Down syndrome. She has a third copy of the 21st chromosome in each cell of her body, instead of the typical two.
We knew as soon as Elyse was born just how precious her life was to us — a realization that came into full force when she faced life-saving surgery at one day old. I have since wondered how the world would be different if people only knew that life is far too short and beautiful to get hung up over an extra chromosome.
Thanks to advances in medicine, education and human rights, Elyse’s future has never looked so bright. She has regularly scheduled checkups to keep her healthy. She will be attending school alongside her sister. She takes swimming lessons, attends preschool and goes to story time at the library with other kids. And why shouldn’t she? For all of this progress, I am grateful. But as I celebrate how far we have come, I dare not forget the bleak history of how those with disabilities were treated in the past.
Only 50 years ago, babies with Down syndrome were commonly institutionalized, and removed from their families at birth. Not all parents complied, and thankfully many paved the way for our treatment and consideration towards those with different abilities today. But not all babies were so lucky. Many were lost when the prescribed treatment for their “care” was to literally do nothing; these babies starved to death.
The sad reality is that there’s nothing we can do to save those babies. No one can go back and tell those parents, medical professionals, and society at large that we are all much more alike than we are different. But I can tell you. Together, we can continue to learn from the past, and grow from our mistakes.
As I stepped through those school doors, with both my daughters by my side, I was reminded of how far we have come as a society. I was reminded of how much times have changed for children with different abilities because of parents and advocates who knew change was necessary — despite what everyone else was telling them.
One of the biggest challenges facing any person, with Down syndrome or without, is being told what we cannot do. The language we use, the classrooms and special programs we set up, and the job opportunities available all set the tone for a person’s development and success. As we shift from looking at people with disabilities as “disabled,” and move toward a more inclusive model that sees all people as capable, with a range of abilities, our expectations for those with Down syndrome will continue to evolve. When we expect more, people do more. You need only look back 50 years to find that out. People with Down syndrome are no different; they have hopes and dreams, just like anybody else.
It’s important that we recognize that, while at first those hopes and dreams may seem out of reach, they so often are not. That’s the lesson of the last 50 years. People with Down syndrome can achieve a great deal if we provide the support and encouragement they need to realize their potential. That starts with education. What we don’t know can hurt us, and those around us. So we must educate ourselves and those close to us. We must spread the understanding that we are all much more alike than we are different, that a person of different abilities is a person first.
March 21 is World Down Syndrome Day. I’d like you to join me, with the rest of the world, in celebrating the many people with Down syndrome who live and work in your community; who attend schools or other programs; who volunteer and inspire others to be the best they can be. Today we acknowledge their accomplishments, their achievements, and perseverance. We honour their right to be. I also salute their parents who helped create a more inclusive and diversified society — one where we all feel included.
For more information, visit the Canadian Down syndrome Society’s website at www.cdss.ca, or your local Down syndrome Association.
Adelle Purdham is vice-chair of the Halton Down syndrome Association (www.haltondownsyndrome.com). She is a teacher and mother of two who lives in Georgetown.
< http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2015/03/21/a-person-of-different-abilities-is-a-person-first.html >
Tags: child care, disabilities, Health, ideology, mental Health, participation, standard of living
This entry was posted on Saturday, March 21st, 2015 at 10:24 am and is filed under Inclusion Delivery System. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
Leave a Reply
Recent Comments