Tea & Sympathy

It is without a doubt a sign a privilege when someone can write a blog post and, five years later, claim ‘that’s not what I meant.’ And yet, that is exactly what Toby Young did last night after being appointed to the board of the governments Office of Students. For over five years the post… Read the full article »

A common adage in the disability world is ‘lightening doesn’t strike the same place twice.’ Those of us whole have spent the majority of our lives living with a disability cleave to this as a talisman, we have seen the worst, what else can happen. ‘Lightening doesn’t strike the same place twice,’ was what my… Read the full article »

They told me not to be political, Because the days of struggle and inequality were long past, Relegated to the dusty, brittle pages of history books, The roles of heroes already assigned, the bit parts already taken, The script had gone to print and there was nothing left to say. Maybe if I was lucky,… Read the full article »

For the past nine months I’ve had the same black and white image on my desk. It’s a woman with Down-syndrome embracing a large sculpture. Eyes closed, face buried, she nuzzles the layers of thick fabric wrapped in such a way that the piece looks like an ancient totem, deep, rich, and full of power.… Read the full article »

It seemed simple enough. After asking my producers several times if they were satisfied with my work enough to allow me to send an invoice, I now demanded payment. The producers were livid I would expect my contract to be upheld.  The multi page chastisement made two things very clear. First, I was, as far… Read the full article »

“I can relate… I broke my leg once.” Having a broken leg / a new health issue / or even the onset of arthritis can be a huge wakeup call to just how fragile the human body is. But until you have experienced the systematic discrimination most of us with disabilities have to face every… Read the full article »