 Ableism refers to the prejudice and discrimination toward differently-abled people. It is the tendency to define people by their disability and to classify them as being inferior to non-disabled people. Some may approach their understanding of a disability with an aim to “cure” or “make them normal.” These prejudices may be exacerbated by lack of education or misunderstanding other people’s unusual or unexpected behavior, a fear of the unknown, or a tendency to make assumptions based on social norms. At SVABA…
We do NOT discriminate or define people by a disability or by their diagnosis, or try to make people feel that who they are is “wrong.” A person is a person, unique in all the ways that make them who they are. We do NOT attempt to undermine or make those with disabilities feel “less than,” inferior, or as someone who needs to be fixed. Our aim is to build people up not put them down. Our aim is to empower and teach self-advocacy. |