Every Sunday I post links to three things about disability that I read, heard, or viewed over the previous week, with some notes of my own added.
December 14-20, 2020
1. As Hospitals Fear Being Overwhelmed By COVID-19, Do The Disabled Get The Same Access?
Joseph Shapiro, National Public Radio - December 14, 2020
This is tough to read and listen to, but it’s essential. The number one specific fear among people with disabilities during this whole pandemic is being deliberately denied treatment for COVID-19 because of our disabilities, through emergency “triage” measures instituted by overwhelmed hospitals. And while some progress was made a few months ago on getting these kinds of measures ruled discriminatory and illegal, not everyone has gotten the memo. Now hospitals are again facing the kind of overcrowding that triggers these measures. What this article and radio story by veteran disability reporter Joe Shapiro does is give policies and practices that survive through carefully-tended anonymity a real face and a real life. It also demonstrates exactly how disability in the medical field actually occurs – the actual words people say and the ideas about disability those words reflect. It’s shocking but, sadly, not entirely surprising to anyone who has experienced any sort of ableism.
2. Four Months That Left 54,000 Dead From COVID in Long-Term Care
David Hochman, AARP - December 3, 2020
It’s a real breakthrough for a prominent, mainstream aging organization like the AARP to come out so decisively against the the very existence of nursing homes. It’s one thing to criticize a few specific facilities and their operating corporations for especially egregious abuse. It’s quite another to note that while bad decisions at all levels have made the pandemic worse in these places, it’s the nursing home model itself that is the core of the problem. Abolition of nursing homes probably isn’t feasible in the foreseeable future. But a strong move away from them is quite possible, by everyone involved including families, the medical and social service communities, and elderly and disabled people themselves. The disability community has been out ahead on this issue for decades. It’s a hopeful sign if the AARP is starting to catch up. Now if we could get stronger statements like this from the large, prominent developmental disability organizations against group homes and larger institutions – and the same from the mental health profession about their congregate care models – we’d really be making some progress.
3. How We Can All Celebrate the International Day of Persons With Disabilities
Madison Lawson, Allure - December 3, 2020
It’s good to see a “mainstream” magazine, (not disability specific), publish a disabled writer well matched with its core audience talking specifically about how to learn about disability issues and culture through social media. Sending newcomers to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube to learn more about disability may seem risky these days, but these platforms mostly do okay on disability matters, at least so far.
