How I want to speak up for disabled voices in politics
Matters of disability, disabled issues that matter to disabled people matter to me as I for one am disabled. I am autistic and dyspraxic solely neurological disabilities and differences. I grown up with a family with multitudes of disabilities from chronic health conditions and illnesses, physical disabilities and mental illness and health conditions which has shaped how I think about politics and indeed for society and helped me learn the importance of empathy and the pursuit of justice.
I’m not perfect when comes to speaking up for disabled people. I’ve had to learn and overcome my internalised ableism this is something I am still doing to this day. The only way I can do this is by education. Meaning listening, learning and engaging with other disabled persons and campaign groups. As been doing since I turned eighteen.
When I was twenty I launched my first podcast in 2020 it started from a perspective of personal education and hopes to educate others on issues around gender-fluidity, identity and expression, self diagnosing and issues accessing diagnosis. I’ve gone on to chat to people within different fields with always concluding with’ if you were to make one thing better in the world for disabled and neurodivergent people what would that be?’
You may wonder why I ask this because I know life is far from being perfect for disabled people I encounter. To tell how far from perfect it is one of the responses was for the suicide rates and suicidal ideation for autistic people to decline. This was the most extreme, the most alarming response. Often or not from the varying responses it is about increased public understanding, awareness and education on what it means to be neurodivergent and disabled which most certainly would brake the chain of ableism within society and open and engage a conversation of what disabled people need.
This year is indeed the biggest year in democracy with billions across the world are readying to vote in respectively in over seventy nations. The elections in the European Union, India, Portugal and South Africa to name a few have already happened delivering change in powershifts. With looking at the European Union elections on the continent the bloc has had a shift to the nationalistic conservative right ensuring a further shift of populism. United Kingdom, France and the American presidential elections are yet to happen.
The British election by now feels a forgone conclusion but one of ‘change’ so has been promised. But, what does that change mean? and mean for those minority communities?
The most important change is that for the minority communities as those are the most oppressed and worse of in society. Not only that they are the most underrepresented and yet need politics the most.
I’ve seen my podcast as a space to do journalism. I’m no journalist. I did start university studying politics but felt I had to drop out for mental health and reasons relatimg to autism burnout. I am an amateur when it comes to journalism.
Politics is described who gets what when and and how. This is often neglected when it comes to disabled voters. I see my interest as wanting to creates a space that nurtures building a platform of elevating voices and ideas of what is important of and to disabled people. This to me is having greater representation, accessibiltiy and inclusion of disabled people in democracy and politics. Putting power to the disabled person.
In this year I am launching a disability politics podcasts. There are many political podcasts from the Rest Is Politics with hosts Rory Stewart and Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart, Political Currency with Ed Balls and George Osborne, How To Win A General Election with Matt Chorley, Danny Finklestein, Polly Macenzie and Peter Mandelson, Pod Save The U.K with Nish Kumar and Coco Khan, Electoral, Politics At Jack and Sam’s. This is a selection of many examples that I could’ve selected, there are so many more. But none of the ones I listed do hone in on what matters to disabled people.
In politics there are a few people who are openly disabled and commentators in media who talk about disability let alone from a first person basis. I see this needs to change.
This has inspired my podcast series ‘DisElectAbility’ discussing what you aren’t hearing anywhere else.
Subscribe to ‘DisElectAbility’ where you get your podcasts find more about the podcast on the ND Neuro News tab and watch on the Rainbow Cast Player
