By Hannah Foley, PRC-Saltillo Blogger
How do you view people who have disabilities? How about those who have complex communication needs and use AAC on a daily basis? How do you feel when you see others praising people with disabilities for doing “normal” daily activities?
The term “inspiration porn” has been tossed around by individuals with disabilities for as long as I can remember. People who have disabilities get annoyed when they hear others praising them for doing daily activities that every living human being does. While I agree that we should not be praised or that other people should not be “inspired” just because someone with a disability wakes up every morning (or eats, or does some other task that is “normal” and essential to living), people with disabilities face unique challenges and experiences that allow us to see and approach things from a different perspective than someone who received a degree in a disability-related field may be able to. When we, as the AAC field, incorporate those who use AAC into our professional field, we can make our teachings and practices more impactful, relatable, and authentic.
Think about some of the most effective marketing strategies. What kinds of messages are going to change your attitude and/or behaviors? Who are these messages coming from? If you are anything like me, I want to know why I am being asked to do something, and is the source/spokesperson creditable in the particular subject area (yes, I am an academic nerd - I know. It’s time for me to get out of school - this is what eighteen years of being in school has done to my brain.). As an upcoming professional who desires to specialize in AAC training and implementation, I completely understand the role marketing has in AAC adoption and the adoption of implementation strategies/practices by members of support teams. If someone who happens to use AAC is a professional in the field, why not bring their unique experiences and perspectives to light when appropriate, to enhance the lives of others who use AAC and their support teams?
I am someone who is not defined by the disability that I have nor my use of AAC - it is simply a part of who I am as Hannah Foley. I am an individual and professional first, and then I am someone who uses AAC. There are certainly times when I leverage my personal experiences with using AAC to mentor, guide, and teach others who are going through the same experiences as I did growing up, such as being resistant to using AAC, but there are other times when I don’t even mention that I use AAC and nobody would ever know unless they met me or already knew me. I take a step back and ask myself what the benefit would be to consumers/clients to know that I use AAC when I am developing training and implementation resources. Perhaps it gives them real hope or a vision of what AAC can make possible, or perhaps it allows them to connect to the material in a unique manner. If there is some reason why it would make the resource/training material more impactful to consumers, I mention that I use AAC. If there is no concrete reason or purpose for them to know that the person who developed the resource/training being used, I do not say anything about the fact that I use AAC - why does it matter? It doesn’t.
I fully understand why people with disabilities get frustrated with people praising them for things that don’t necessarily call for praise. However, the vast majority of people who do this have zero experience with anyone who has any kind of disability. I can’t waste my time and energy being mad or frustrated with these people who I don’t even know and I will never interact with again and they don’t know me as a person - I would be mad every day if this was how I went through my life. In my personal and professional experience with the AAC field, in general, we accept those who use AAC for who they are as an individual and/or first and foremost, and then we take into consideration their personal experiences with using AAC in order to enhance the learning and growth of those who we serve.
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Communicators In Action - disability, aac, negativity, communincation, commenting