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"Uniting the Disabled Community as a Family"

aybala50's picture

 

Hey guys, this is just a site I came across and I'm wondering what you guys think about it? At first I was struck by the image and then I started reading about the description of this program:

"The mission of the "In Your Footsteps" organization is to unite the disabled community as a family and to have those who aren't as comfortable with their disability more comfortable by providing them with a mentor they can relate to and educate them on disability culture and history." (http://www.inyourfootsteps.org/

A world has been created in which people are uncomfortable being themselves. This is not only a thought I have on a person who is not "normal", because I do not believe that anyone is normal. Even those who seem normal, I think, are trying to fit a norm rather than being who they are and what they want to do and be etc. Often times I also feel like people don't even realize that they are trying to be normal..it's just..what? The normal thing to do? 

Is there really such a thing as "normal"? Even in a smaller group which is, for example, consisting of all females...maybe each person is female in their own way? Just some thoughts...

Comments

Katie Randall's picture

Shifting Borders

This is really interesting! One theme it ties into that's been coming up a lot in class is identity politics-- the strengths and weaknesses of organizing based on particular categories (for example, female or LGBT or disabled). It's particularly unusual in that way because this program is part of APIDC- Asians and Pacific Islanders with Disabilities of California. In other words, it brings together a very specific intersection of ethnicity/ race, disability, and location. However, "In Your Footsteps" is reaching outside of this category, and is explicitly open to mentees of any ethnicity.
Both Wilchins and Clare express a wish for narrow interest groups to reach outside their own borders. In a way, "In Your Footsteps" is doing exactly that in order to build a broader community/ family. But it makes me wonder where and how non- API mentees will fit into the larger organization.