5 Ways To Promote Community Inclusivity For People With Disability

 

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From one industry to another, many are making calls to make the world more diverse and inclusive. However, if one truly wishes to surpass tolerance and empower people’s differences, the best way is to start in the neighborhood in which they live.

Indeed, an inclusive society is beneficial to all. It promotes economic growth, as anyone can participate in the market as a consumer, worker, or business owner. Moreover, inclusivity strengthens relationships by allowing everyone to engage and interact, reducing social isolation and improving mental health.

However, a group often ignored or neglected is the disability community. Although 15% of the world’s population lives with a disability, there is still much to do to be inclusive. If you want to start making change, here are five ways you can do to promote community inclusivity for people with disabilities.

Design Accessible Spaces

Look around the neighborhood. How many buildings and establishments can be considered accessible? Nowadays, one can do much better than installing wheelchair ramps in community spaces.

As mobility changes with age, accessibility will quickly become a pressing issue. In fact, by 2030, an estimated 74 million individuals will be over 65 in the U.S. Further, in Australia alone,  4.4 million adults have disabilities. That’s 1 in 6 people! Hence, more spaces need to cater to people of all abilities.

The call to create accessible spaces for disabled people is quite attainable if communities will take the initiative. This can be done by ensuring that areas are easy to navigate for anyone with vision, mobility, and hearing disabilities. Aside from installing a disabled parking sign, establishments should see that parking spaces are close to entrances. Inside the building, signposts for toilets should also be clear to read so anyone can easily find their way around. Other great additions to keep the area accessible are automated doors and wheelchair-accessible washrooms.

Promote Inclusion In Schools

Young as they are, children need to learn about diversity and inclusion. By doing so, they become more confident in engaging with the world and empathizing with others who might be different from them.

Everyone can contribute to how disabled people could feel welcome, and starting it in schools, where learning mostly happens, is a great way. Thus, it is essential to have inclusive schools in your community.

Luckily, creating a more inclusive school setting is very much attainable. You must ensure that students with and without disabilities constantly interact. This can best be done during class activities when they can collaborate and learn each other’s strengths.

Teachers should also present instructions in various formats. Instead of just announcing them verbally, writing the instructions on the board and providing visual aid helps. Encouraging the students to speak up when they have questions and clarifications also ensures that everyone understands the activity.

Increase Representation

People with disabilities are severely underrepresented in the media. This lack of visibility puts the disabled community at more risk, as people tend to act differently — in fear, even — when faced with something or someone they are unfamiliar with.

In cases with disabled characters on-screen, though, most of them are played by actors who are non-disabled. This takes away opportunities for disabled actors to play a truly accurate depiction of the role. By increasing authentic representations of disabilities in media, disabled people are given back their rights to self-representation and give them characters whom they can admire and relate to. Likewise, disabled people are in dire need of representation in politics.

Without a representative who faces the same challenges, the disabled community will continue to be left out of important government issues.

Provide Opportunities

Like the rest, persons with disabilities also want to lead productive lives. By getting a job or starting their own business, they are given a chance to achieve independence and economic self-sufficiency.

In addition, employment also contributes to a person’s self-worth and mental health. With more disabled persons becoming self-reliant, there is a decreased demand for welfare systems.

As such, communities must provide them with opportunities to prove themselves. However, employers are reluctant to hire them due to the stigma and stereotypes against the disabled community. That could not be more true. Companies that hire people with disabilities have seen reduced turnover rates, expanded consumer markets, and improved company morale.

Active Engagement And Communication

There is no better way to promote inclusion than actively seeking a conversation with persons with disability. Getting to know one another, asking them how their day went, and encouraging children to play with their differently-abled peers make a difference in making them more welcome in the community.

Just act natural. Some may feel conscious around people with disabilities because they do not want to offend them. While that’s valid, one shouldn’t let this stop them from striking up a conversation. Who knows, your interaction might make their day!

Final Thoughts

People with disabilities are just like everyone else. They have skills, talents, and dreams that every human has. They also share the same desire for love and kindness from the people around them. Hence, one must look past their disabilities and treat them fairly. Promoting community inclusivity makes less room for hate and discrimination in the world.