I’ve always considered the act of generalisation dangerous, and saw it play out the other day in a car park.
A young-ish, fit, well-put-together woman had parked in a disabled car park bay and was returning to her car after getting a few things from a shop. Her Disabled Parking Permit was correctly displayed on her dashboard. Watching nearby, a couple scrutinised her as she returned to her car, and I overheard them saying loudly that the disabled woman was fraudulent because clearly she wasn’t disabled.
The couple drew a broad conclusion from this specific example of the young woman and applied it to a general concept. Their lack of empathy and judgment was underpinned by their belief that disability is obvious based on specific physical cues, which couldn’t be further from the truth.
Disability, as we know, can be both visible and not immediately apparent. Generalisations can manifest in society as misleading stereotypes that equate concepts with assumptions. Unfortunately, I keep witnessing this exact form of discrimination play out in our communities with regularity, and we need to get better at this.
Being unfairly judged as a disabled person because a disability is not obvious is tiring and frustrating, and illegal, actually. It can result in disabled individuals constantly having to explain or prove their condition, and can create a feeling of guilt, shame, and a sense of being an imposter.
Because of this discrimination, a group of wonderful people created the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower to encourage inclusion, acceptance and understanding. By simply wearing a green sunflower lanyard, wristband or pin, you are sharing that you have a hidden disability voluntarily.
However, we shouldn’t have to wear these. With greater compassion from the community and greater awareness, we can make a difference. More disabled car parks would help, too.
