Yesterday morning I was irritated to hear an Australian journalist turned novelist describe Stephen Hawking as being “trapped in a wheelchair in a crumbling body.” Oh dear! This is part of the whole glass-half-empty malady which seems to infect the media whenever they refer to disability. It gives rise to the “fate worse than death” syndrome which is often passed on to those who need to become wheelchair users for whatever reason, or anyone else who acquires a impairment, making their transition process even more difficult than it could be.
Once, a long time ago I unwisely described someone’s wheelchair as an “electric chair” in a (fortunately draft) report, eliciting a terse response from the chair’s owner, and a humble correction from me. So anyone can make a mistake, once.
Let’s take the above example. Stephen Hawking is one of the pre-eminent scientists of his generation. His name, reputation and impairment are common knowledge. Perhaps one or two generations ago he would not have lived very long after the onset of his impairment and the world would not have had any benefit from his towering intellect because he would have become a closeted in-valid for the short time he would have had left.
So I ask, is the glass half empty or half full? OK, life is not easy for him, and yes, his health is not great, but trapped no. Without his high tech wheelchair and state-of-the-art communications technology he would not be able to go anywhere or work at all, and as for the body, in his case it’s the mind that counts anyway and he very sensibly concentrates on that.
Ironically, although he is famous enough to have a guest spot on The Simpsons, and is probably quite rich, he still has to cope with all the accessibility barriers that other wheelchair users have to. It is that and related disability issue that the media really needs to focus on.
I apologise to Stephen Hawking, for using him as an example. He must get heartily sick of it.
But going beyond the obvious, my friend who can remain working because she has a power chair and accessible public transport would not feel trapped by her chair, I don’t suppose the guy who hurtles down the steepest part of The Terrace in his, causing me to hurriedly skip out of the way on several occasions does either.
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re the person who hurtles down the terace in his wheelchair – consider the guide dog who nearly knocks over people who are a little slow on their feet.
I had to scarper to avoid hiting the footpath.
Always the same quide dog.. Said woof knocked a mobile phone out of older lady’s hand recently. I stopped to check if she was allright. She was grateful sombody bothered.
Mary Hobbs