The intersection of AGING and DISABILITY
Two nights ago, after sitting through another class session in my Disabilities and Aging course, I realized something that is so crucial to the movement of advocacy work that I do.
Since 2016, I have been a huge advocate, and proponent, whatever adjective you would like to use to describe a person who believes and wants to be an agent of change in the aging space.
Just like my mantra… Aging does not discriminate…I’ve come to realize that disabilities do not either.
To better understand where I am coming from, let’s observe the definition of what DISABILITY means. It will be based on the traditional “medical definition” that disability is:
Any restriction or lack of ability to perform an activity in a manner or within the range considered “normal” for a human being.
An impairment or defect of one or more organs or members.
Reflects the consequences of impairment in terms of functional performance and activity by the person
Source: MediLexicon/ International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps, World Health Organization
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 defines DISABILITY as:
A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
The World Health Organization defines DISABILITY as:
A complex phenomenon, reflecting an interaction between features of a person's body and features of the society in which he or she lives.
An umbrella term covering: Impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions
So let’s talk about it.
Let’s talk about how aging and disability go hand in hand and the reasons why I believe that in order to be agents of change for the aging population, we ALSO NEED TO address issues/concerns surrounding the disabled-body community.
We, the “temporarily able-bodied” community... yes I said it... WE, THE TEMPORARILY ABLE-BODIED community need to start looking at how we perceive/treat/see ourselves and others in this space as we age and eventually have some form of disability. The perception and status quo of being “normal” is toxic and ableist. The environment, resources, and accessibility were mainly created for “able-bodied” individuals.
Disability doesn’t discriminate. Aging doesn’t discriminate.
To better understand what I will be talking about, I want to take some time to breakdown what ABLEISM is and share some examples.
According to my professors, Ableism is discrimination or prejudice against individuals with disabilities. It is the belief that people with disabilities are inferior to those without disabilities. This -ism is based on the medical model which implies that people with disabilities require fixing, and are, therefore, “less than.”
People with disabilities encounter ableism on a daily basis on a variety of fronts. Examples include:
Accessibility being considered an “option”
Legislation that does not have disability in mind
Noncompliance with disability rights laws
Events being held at non-accessible venues
Strangers feeling entitled to ask questions about one’s disability
Segregation of people with disabilities in educational and living arrangements
Low employment rates of people with disabilities
Being presumed as non-sexual beings
Being thought of as helpless or as a burden
Being hailed as inspirational simply because of their disability
This is not an exhaustive list. It barely scratches the surface
This ableist space we live in that only caters to the assumed “able” bodies of individuals is short-term thinking.
And the list can go on and on...
Naming ABLEISM and understanding its effects will help bridge the gap of knowledge and understanding in how we treat each other in this shared space. If you feel that this does not pertain to you, then you are wrong.
Disability doesn’t discriminate. Aging doesn’t discriminate.
We all know that aging is inevitable as we move forward in life, the years and lived-experience pile up. Our bodies and our minds are changing and evolving. Sometimes for the better, and sometimes for the worst. The organs start to slow from all those years of partying and drinking. The metabolism slows down from age. The thoughts slow down and sometimes forgetfulness may show up soon after. The ability to control the bowels becomes obsolete. The ability to hold a cup because of the tremors and uncontrollable shaking manifests itself. The ability to verbalize your needs and wants goes unheard. Eventually leading to relinquishing all rights to any decision-making because the doctor has diagnosed you will a “cognitive impairment” and society has deemed you incompetent to think for yourself and make any sound decisions.
Let’s take that feeling and apply it through the disabled-bodied lens. All the above disabilities are still applicable. The inability to hold a cup or use a utensil, the inability to hold your bowels, the inability to verbalize your needs, the inability to make your own decisions, the inability for self-agency and decision-making. Even those who recently became disabled from an amputation, or just use assistive devices like wheelchairs, walkers, canes, and crutches. Whether it’s a permanent reliance on assistive devices, or just temporary during the healing process, the “temporarily-abled bodies” that age in place are no different than those who are in the community with disabilities. Accessibility to ramps, sidewalks, and elevators shouldn’t be an afterthought.
Disabilities rights are also our rights when we age. If aging doesn’t discriminate and we all join that at some point in time, then we need to care about the current community with disabilities. We need to engage in more conversations around changing the narrative of the ableist society, ableist infrastructure, ableist legislation, ableist healthcare, ableist job market, ableist education system, and the ableist dominant narrative.
This change should happen now, not later.
Advocacy for disability rights needs to happen now.
Advocacy for older adults needs to happen now. We are all going to get there. We all are going to need assistance. We all are going to require assistance. Our temporarily disabled bodies will become permanently disabled-body.
What are your thoughts?
