Disability, culture, and identity

 Disability, culture, and identity

Introduction

In the world we live, different groups of people have the different cultures that they are identified with. These cultures involve norms that stipulate peoples’ behavior that is governed by that culture. A society is made of different kinds of people, some disabled and others no-disabled. Both people are identified differently based on their individual status in society. This assay will majorly illustrate culture, identity, and Disability. Disability generally involves either physical or mental impairment that has long term effects on an individual affecting their ability to do normal daily activities (Cortiella, 2014). Disability and identity will also be discussed, and this will show how gender, for example, affects Disability and identity and also disability culture.

Discussion

Different cultures view people with Disabilities differently, and this also influences their identity in a given society. Disability is generally described into two broad models which are medical model and social model. The medical model, explains the problem that is making the person disabled and social model on the other side explains that people are disabled by social barriers which can either be physical or even be caused by people’s attitude towards the disabled. These different models of Disability bring about different identities of the disabled. A socially dominant culture shapes the way in which Disability and impairment are viewed in a given society, and this has led to the oppression of the disabled. The disabled, on the other hand, have also forged their own cultures as acts of resistance. Culture has been both source of oppression and liberation for the disabled. The social model has been used to show the crucial role played by the society in Disability in explaining aspects of equality, justice, and power to disabled individuals (Owens, 2015). Disabled individuals have been identified based on their class position in society.

There are various cultural barriers that are linked to Disability and either be religious or societal structures. There are also other barriers that have affected social inclusion of people with disabilities in a society and  they involve stigmatization, stereotyping and prejudice (Vornhort et.,al 2013). People with Disabilities are often subjected to negative stereotyping where they are viewed as people who depend on their families to cater to their personal needs forgetting that even themselves likewise depend on either institution to help feed themselves or even clothe. According to Liyanage, (2017), use of social aides like the wheelchair among others is viewed negatively unlike hearing aids and glasses are not perceived negatively yet the people that use them to an extent are also disabled in a way, and these stereotypes make the disabled feel excluded in the societal gatherings.

According to ( Nadal et., al 2015), Disability and identity in society are influenced by gender where the females with disabilities are highly discriminated. They are mostly excluded from education, healthcare and employment not majorly because they are disabled but their gender increases the level of discrimination. These disabled women and girls experienced gender-based violence especially sexual violence more often than the non-disabled and the violence done to them increases with increase in their level of impairment. As a result of this, the disabled females do not participate in the social activities. People with Disabilities are viewed as a product of their parents’ past actions where some believe that for one to be disabled, their parents must have done something that could have triggered the individuals been born disabled. This view makes the disabled individuals be identified negatively in society, and in some cases, the individuals are viewed as a source of bad luck.

Society had a prevailing attitude where it viewed the disabled people as those who are unhealthy and deviant and not in a position to participate in society building but only rely on welfare and charitable organization for their upkeep. Some people view Disability as a curse, and the disabled people are hopeless either because of their scary malformations. Other people identify the disabled as inferior people in the society and can be used for social and economic benefits (Hofmann, 2017). The disabled people are taken advantage of by using them to get money since they know that many people are full of mercy and so they will end up giving them money not knowing that the money collected is only used by the non-disabled for their own personal gains. The disabled are also identified as individuals who lack full human characteristics and this makes most people use them as sacrifices in order to bring wealth or good luck in the family. Different cultures identify people with disabilities as individuals who are a burden to society since they cannot offer any service to the community.

The negative attitude towards the disabled is a result of people’s lack of understanding and awareness about Disability, misconceptions, or social constructions concerning the causes of Disability in a society. Due to these harmful beliefs, the disabled people have experienced stigmatization, discrimination and also physical and sexual violence to the disabled (Dovidio et.,al 2011).  Recently, due to adverse in education and people’s understanding of the disabled people, negative attitudes towards the disabled have remarkably decreased, and now different cultures identify disabled people as just normal people only that they are faced by certain challenges. Empowering people with disabilities has brought a change in how the culture identifies the disabled. This has been achieved through equipping them with leadership skills where they were able to guide their fellow disabled to help curb the stigma they experience  and also act as role models. Development of community-based sensitization and education campaigns about the Disability has given a broad sense to people and helped them understand and appreciate the disabled and helped curb stigma and stereotyping about the disabled (Shakespeare,2013) This has greatly changed the cultures identity for the disabled individuals. These campaigns have also engaged in celebrating persons with Disability and their contributions to the society.  These celebrations are majorly conducted during the international day for persons with Disability or even during the international Albinism Awareness.  Strengthening documentations and reporting any case of stigmatization and discrimination has helped curb cases of discrimination against the disabled and this changed identity of the disabled. Law and policy reform efforts have been implemented to prevent people from discriminating the disabled where inclusive education has been established in national laws so that all children with Disability can gain access education with no issues. They have also proved that Disability is not inability. When the favorable conditions are put for them they can also access various places using either their wheelchairs or even hearing aids. Presence of human rights stipulated in the constitution gives equality to the disabled and equal representation in both political and social areas. These rights entirely protects the disabled and this gives them equal access to the services offered by the society and this makes them confident and increases their morale in participation in any cultural activity.

The disabled now receive quality education that helps them be in per with other normal individuals (Rogan, 2011). This makes the disabled also gain access to all the opportunities received by the non-disabled. Quality healthcare to all, has also helped the disabled access the care they deserve when ill. These factors have greatly improved identity that culture has to the disabled. To identify these changes, one on one research method was used where both disabled and non-disabled were engaged in an interview to demonstrate their different views on the disabled. It was noted that a lot has changed in a society that discriminated against the disabled and now the society appreciates the disabled and views them positively.

Conclusion

Culture, identity and Disability has been a major problem facing the disabled for many years. This was influenced by the misconceptions that people had on the causes of Disability. They believed Disability was as a result of curse, parents past misbehavior among other causes. These causes now are outdated and society has appreciated the people with Disability and viewed them just like any other individual. Education about Disability has been of great help in eliminating the negative attitude that people have always had in the past concerning the disabled. Human rights have also played a key role in changing society’s identity about the disabled where the rights brought an equality between the disabled and non-disabled. Equal presentation in both political and social areas increased the disabled ability to participate in the societal activities and this changed people’s perception about the disabled as people who cannot have any contribution into the society. Disability is not inability and this has been proved where you find that the disabled show a great competition in the fields of work where they try to outdo the non-disabled. National days for the Disability have been put to help celebrate achievements for the disabled and this motivates them and increases their pride. Discriminating any person with a disability is not the best thing but people should understand that Disability is just a situation like any other.

References

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Hofmann, B., 2017. ‘You are inferior!’Revisiting the expressivist argument. Bioethics, 31(7), pp.505-514.

Liyanage, C., 2017. Sociocultural construction of Disability in Sri Lanka: Charity to rights-based approach. In Inclusion, Disability and Culture (pp. 251-265). Springer, Cham.

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Shakespeare, T., 2013. Disability rights and wrongs revisited. Routledge.

Vornholt, K., Uitdewilligen, S. and Nijhuis, F.J., 2013. Factors affecting the acceptance of people with disabilities at work: A literature review. Journal of occupational rehabilitation, 23(4), pp.463-475.