.
. WELCOME
. WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW. OVER THE PAST YEAR AS A COUNTRY
WE'VE THOUGHT A LOT ABOUT
RACISM AND HOW IT AFFECTS US
WELL, THERE'S ONE OTHER ISM
THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS
MORNING ABELSON MAYBE IT'S NOT
A TERM YOU'VE EVER HEARD
BEFORE.
I CERTAINLY HADN'T BUT WE HOPE
IT'S ONE YOU'LL START TO THINK
ABOUT.
FOR MORE ON THIS, I SPOKE WITH
SOCIAL EQUITY CONSULTANT
CHRISTIANA OBBIE SUMNER ABLEISM
IS THE TENDENCY TO CENTER THOSE
WHO DO NOT HAVE ANY DISABILITY
OR IMPAIRMENT.
IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT DISABILITY OR
IMPAIRMENT DOES NOT ALWAYS HAVE
TO BE PHYSICAL WHICH USUALLY WE
HAVE A TENDENCY TO DO AND EVEN
THAT IN ITSELF IS ABLEST
BECAUSE AS MUCH AS THERE IS AN
IMPORTANCE TO TALK ABOUT
PHYSICAL AND SENSORY
DISABILITIES, THERE IS ALSO
INVISIBLE DISABILITIES CHRONIC
DISABILITY, INTELLECTUAL AND
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AND
OTHER DISABILITIES THAT YOU'RE
NOT GOING TO SAY SEE OR WEAR
OUT LOUD AS MY MOM USED TO SAY.
SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER
THAT THAT IS A REALLY GREAT WAY
OF EXPLAINING IT THAT IT ISN'T
ALWAYS PHYSICAL, THAT IT CAN BE
FOR ME IN ONE SENSE IT WAS VERY
MENTAL.
I SUFFER FROM PANIC DISORDER
AND I COULDN'T DRIVE WHEN
SOMEONE WOULD SAY OH JUST GET
ON THE FREEWAY AND DRIVE THAT
WAS COMPLETELY I COULD NOT
HANDLE THAT.
SO THE WAY YOU EXPLAIN IT
REALLY IS HELPING US TO
UNDERSTAND.
BUT CAN YOU GIVE US SOME
EXAMPLES OF SOMETHING THAT WE
WOULD DO THAT IS ABLEST AND WE
WOULD DO IT WITHOUT EVEN
REALIZING IT?
YEAH, WELL FOR EXAMPLE, THE
BIGGEST COMPLAINT THAT I GET IN
THIS VIRTUAL WORK ENVIRONMENT
IS THAT THERE'S NO CAPTIONING
AND EVEN IF THERE IS CAPTIONING
THERE'S AUTOMATIC CAPTIONING
WHICH OF COURSE IS GOING HAVE
LIMITATIONS.
SO IF YOU ARE RELYING ON
CAPTIONING TO FOLLOW A
CONVERSATION AND THE CAPTIONS
ARE EITHER NONEXISTENT OR IS
NOT PROVIDING THE SORT OF TRUE
TRANSCRIPTION OR TRANSLATION
THAT LIKE CAPTIONING WOULD THEN
THAT CAN ALSO BE A LIMITATION.
THE BIGGEST THING I WOULD SAY
FOLKS DO THAT ARE ABLE AS THEY
DON'T KNOW IT IS USE ABLEST
LANGUAGE SIMILAR TO THE WAY
THAT WE TALK ABOUT OTHER ISMS,
THE WAY THAT WE REGARD OR
COMMUNICATE WITH THOSE
COMMUNITIES THERE IS SEVERAL
TYPES OF ABLEIST LANGUAGE AND
IBLIS MODES OF COMMUNICATION.
WHAT I MEAN BY IBLIS LANGUAGE
IS AGAIN IN CENTERING THOSE
WITHOUT A DISABILITY OR
IMPAIRMENT REAL OR PERCEIVED
DIAGNOSED OR SELF DIAGNOSED.
WE ALSO WILL USE SOME OF THE
TERMS OR CONCEPTS THAT ARE
EITHER ANTIQUATED OR HAVE BEEN
CREATED AS TECHNICALLY SLURS OR
EUPHEMISMS FOR DISABILITY.
WHAT I MEAN BY SLURS IS THAT WE
MAY SAY IT'S CRAZY THAT PERSON
IS SO INSANE.
THESE ARE ALL FORMS OF ABUSE
LANGUAGE IN THAT WE ARE
ESSENTIALLY SAYING THAT A
PERSON'S EXPERIENCE OF THIS HOW
THEY SHOW UP IN THE WORLD IS
SOMETHING TO ALSO BE ASSOCIATED
WITH THIS THING THAT WE
CONSIDER TO BE NEGATIVE, A WAY
OF EUPHEMISM IS THAT THERE IS A
HUGE MOVEMENT, A HUGE CALL AND
A
MOVEMENT
MOVEMENT IN THE COMMUNITY TO JUST SAY THE WORD DISABLED.
SO SO MANY FOLKS SAY EVERYTHING
BUT THE WORD DISABLED
DIFFERENTLY ABLED PEOPLE OF ALL
ABILITIES AND SOME OTHER ONES
THAT PERHAPS SHOULDN'T BE SAID
ON THE NEWS.
BUT EVERYTHING OTHER THAN
SAYING THE WORD DISABLED.
SO GIVEN THAT WE AS BEST WE CAN
LOOK AT THE WHOLE TRY TO KEEP
ALL THESE THINGS IN MIND, HOW
DO WE MAKE OURSELVES MORE AWARE
OF THESE THINGS?
YEAH, WELL THE FIRST THING TO
DO IS TO LEAN INTO THE
DISCOMFORT OF NOT BEING AWARE
WHAT I ALWAYS SAY AT THE BIG
THREE OF BARRIERS TO FOLKS SORT
GROWING THEIR UNDERSTANDING IS
A FEAR DISCOMFORT, A FEAR RISK
AND A FEAR CHANGE.
THERE IS A DISCOMFORT TO LEAN
INTO THAT THESE MAY BE THINGS
THAT YOU DIDN'T KNOW BEFORE
PERHAPS WORDS THAT YOU SAY IN
YOUR VOCABULARY EVERY DAY AND
PART OF THAT IS STARTING TO
GAIN AWARENESS NOT JUST THROUGH
READING YOU COULD TELL I LIKE
TO READ TOO BUT READING IS ONLY
A SMALL FRACTION OF THE.
TRUST ME I KNOW YOU MENTIONED
SAYING THE WORD DISABLED THAT
PEOPLE ARE AFRAID TO SAY IT
RIGHT AND DO YOU THINK THERE
THERE SHOULD BE MORE TALK ABOUT
THAT?
I MEAN JUST FOR EXAMPLE BECAUSE
YOU'RE SAYING PEOPLE SHOULD SAY
THIS WORD USED TO SAY IT SO I
JUST BRING THIS UP BECAUSE
REALLY INTERESTING I WORKED IN
A NEWSROOM NOT KING BE CLEAR ON
THAT SEVERAL YEARS AGO AND THEY
SAID YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO SAY
THAT.
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR THE
MEDIA TO CONTINUE TO BE ASKING
THESE QUESTIONS AND SPEAKING TO
PEOPLE LIKE YOU WHEN IT COMES
TO REPORTING ON STORIES THAT
HAVE TO DO WITH ALISON?
SO THE BEST THING TO DO IS IF
YOU ARE IN A SPACE WHERE YOU DO
NOT HAVE REPRESENTATION OF A
CERTAIN LIVED EXPERIENCE,
ESPECIALLY INTERSECTIONAL LIVED
EXPERIENCES, I WOULD I WILL
PRIORITIZE THAT AND I THINK
THAT REACHING OUT TO FOLKS WHO
DO THIS WORK WITH THESE LIVED
EXPERIENCES IS VERY IMPORTANT.
OH, I THINK THAT THERE'S ALSO
VARIATION DUE TO THE INVISIBLE
DISABILITY SPACE.
I'M SOMEONE WITH AN INVISIBLE
DISABILITY.
I'M AUTISTIC AS WELL AS OF HAVE
CHRONIC ILLNESS AND PSYCHIATRIC
DISABILITIES.
IT TOOK A LOT OF PREPARATION
FOR THE LAST TWO DAYS TO MAKE
SURE I'LL BE ABLE TO SIT UP FOR
THIS MEETING FOR 30 MINUTES AND
I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT YOU HAVE
TAKEN THE TIME TO SHARE WITH US
AND I'M EVEN MORE GRATEFUL THAT
YOU SHARED WHAT IT TOOK FOR YOU
TO GET TO THIS INTERVIEW TODAY
AND THANK YOU FOR THAT AND
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
THANKS AGAIN TO CRISTIANA FOR
THAT HONEST