The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 1.3 billion people, or 16% of the world’s population is disabled. It’s amazing to think that although we number almost as many people as the population of China (1.4 billion) that we’re barely visible when it comes to national (UK) and international politics and planning.
You only need look at the recent assisted dying debate in Parliament to realise that even when disabled people are in the ‘eye of the storm’ we struggle to be seen or heard. The debate is likely to have a major impact on the way disabled people are viewed and treated. It’s likely to change attitudes towards us collectively and individually. And yet, there were so few inside the House of Commons with any lived experience of disability that they could draw on and add into the argument.
Irrespective of which side you’re on, this wasn’t the respectful pinnacle of democratic debate at the bosom of the ‘Mother of all Parliaments’ it was made out to be. It was barely inclusive and miles away from that old trope: ‘Nothing about us without us.’
The International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) is observed annually on 3 December. While the theme for this year is ‘Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future’, the reality is that disabled voices are being excluded and ignored.
This theme is supposed to recognise the important role that disabled people play in creating a more inclusive and sustainable world for all. Indeed, it also emphasises the importance of the participation of disabled people in decision-making processes that affect their lives. It’s clear, however, that one day isn’t going to catch the world’s attention.
January 2025 will mark five years since the coronavirus pandemic started. Statistics published by the ONS (Office for National Statistics) in April 2024 revealed that disabled people’s death rate involving Covid-19 is as much as 11 times higher than non-disabled people.
The pandemic was a leveller in some ways, in that non-disabled people had their usual liberties curtailed through the national lockdown. How is it that so few care for those disabled people who are still living in that same way? Even after the damning evidence of a national inquiry it’s clear that lessons have been forgotten or discarded.
It’s hard not to look with jealousy at the progress of other diverse communities and how their civil rights have flourished. It’s right that gay marriage is normalised, it’s right that women can speak out against predatory men and it’s right that ‘black lives matter’ – but so do those of disabled people – though we’re often frustratingly and sickeningly othered as ‘Those with disabilities.’
It’s very clear that we need to stop waiting for civil rights to be freely given and agitate for more. Disabled people need to start asking questions. We need to start applying for jobs. We need to start breaking into positions of influence and authority. We need to start applying for courses in education. We need to get better at claiming the benefits we’re eligible for. We need to stick together and support each other.
The IDPD is a start, but it’s far from enough.
Visit: International Day of Persons with Disabilities | United Nations
