Ableism

Well we had a topic on racism ... so I thought it'd be fair to have one on ableism ...
for those of you who don't know what ableism is ... here's a short definition :
ableism

Discrimination against people with a disability in favor of able-bodied people.
The belief that people with a disability are inferior to others
(taken from http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ableism if you wanted to find out more)

So what's your opinion on it? Do you think it's just or unjust ... let me know ...

Personally I think that discriminating people based on a disablilty is pathetic. You can't choose to be disabled or not ... like you can't choose what the colour of your skin is ...
It's just another way that man tries to feel superior to other people ( mainnly because he himself has no confidence.)
I think that before anyone discriminates people with a disablility they should try to put themselves into the disabled person's shoes .. try to know what it's like to have to cope with a problem day in day out of your life ...
please let me know your opinions ....

I think it's rude to group someone because of a disability. I have tons of disabled friends, and they are PERFECTLY NORMAL!
Plus, the abuse of the word 'retard' really bugs me. You know it means slow? That's right, because retarded people learn slower. It just is thrown around these days... *sad sigh*

something or other:

I have tons of disabled friends, and they are PERFECTLY NORMAL!

Well they're obviously not "perfectly normal", since they're disabled.

What is meant by disabled? Like their in a wheel chair or only one leg? Or like they have to carry around an oxygen tank? Either way, I can understand some cases of abelism (like not getting a job due to disabilities), but in other cases I dont understand why it would matter (like not getting a date because of disabilities).

I really think it depends. If you're talking about a job as an english teacher for someone who can't read at all, it's probably not the greatest idea. But if it's like someone is discriminating against someone in a wheelchair for the same job, that's rediculous.

It depends with the the job thing. But disabled people are just as good as able-bodied people.

No they're not. That's why they're called "disabled". Because they're not ABLE to do what "normal" people do.

I'm in no way saying that someone disabled is less of a person than someone not disabled. I'm just saying that there's a reason to why they're called disabled.

Yara:

I'm in no way saying that someone disabled is less of a person than someone not disabled.

That's what I was trying to say. They may not be able to do the same things but they are not inferior.

any form of discrimination or prejudice should not be tolerated. our already dead society cannot survive with such things. we need to accept each others flaws. isn't the smartest person in the world, stephen hawkings, in a wheelchair?

I think it's fairly disgusting to see disabled people be discriminated against.

I understand that when it comes to getting a job, employers do have a right to look past a disabled person, and pick someone who is able-bodied.

However, discrimination in the streets is plain out unjust. Calling someone names, or treating them differently in a negative way, when they're disabled, is - I think - completely unacceptable.

monkeyinair:

any form of discrimination or prejudice should not be tolerated. our already dead society cannot survive with such things. we need to accept each others flaws. isn't the smartest person in the world, stephen hawkings, in a wheelchair?

yes ....
plus two of the most celebrated scientists in the world were thought to have had asperger's syndrome ... ( a form of autism which is mental diability) Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton ... yet do we ever learn things like that when we learn about them ?

i don't think it's right at all. i really don't like it, when people treat someone who is disabled, not necessarily with disrespect, but treats them like they're stupid, or they need to have special treatment. like petting on them, or giving them privilages. in some cases, i can see where it may be needed, or expected, but usually it just pisses me off, not because i have anything against someone who is disabled, but i know, if i was disabled, i'd rather just be treated, on the whole, like everyone else.

My sister is disabled. My brother has a mental disability.
And honestly, I wouldn't change either of them for the world because their disabilities are what make them... well, them.
They are normal people with normal needs and a few extras. So what if they can run or steal or lie to people constantly? All that does is makes them less able to cause trouble like a lot of kids.

Scout for President.:

I go to a public school, and we have a seperate section for the disabled students.

The other two private, religious schools won't take them.
That's discrimination.

Do you mean mentally or physically disabled? Because I could understand having a separate section for ment. disabled people, as it's not entirely practical to have students who learn at different levels in the same room with one teaching space, but I don't see much need if they're physically disabled. I mean, most phy. disabled people can get around fine anyway. Yeah you have to make some allowances but it's not much of an effort.

clarissa:

Because I could understand having a separate section for ment. disabled people, as it's not entirely practical to have students who learn at different levels in the same room with one teaching space.

I know a grammer school (that's higher level than a normal high school for all non-UK debaters ) who accepted a boy with a mental disability. He proved he could be as smart as some people who haven't got a mental disability. He was in the top band for Spanish and got the same result as my friend (whose mother is a Spanish teacher and helped her to revise for the test) putting him at joint top of the class. How can you say that's not practical?

Starr:

I know a grammer school (that's higher level than a normal high school for all non-UK debaters ) who accepted a boy with a mental disability. He proved he could be as smart as some people who haven't got a mental disability. He was in the top band for Spanish and got the same result as my friend (whose mother is a Spanish teacher and helped her to revise for the test) putting him at joint top of the class. How can you say that's not practical?

I don't think it's always the best idea to have people with different learning abilities learning together. And by that I mean mentally disabled people outperforming mentally abled people, and vice versa. That's why I said "not entirely practical", because sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I should say, I don't think all mentally disbaled people are stupid.

clarissa:

I don't think it's always the best idea to have people with different learning abilities learning together.

I know this is gonna sound so confusing, but they don't have different learning abilites. To get into a grammer school, you need to get an A in an exam you do at 11. Therefore everyone in the school is on equal footing.

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I should say, I don't think all mentally disbaled people are stupid.

I know that, I wasn't saying you said that. I don't think anyone could think that, or if they do, it's because they just don't understand the disability.

Starr:

I know this is gonna sound so confusing, but they don't have different learning abilites. To get into a grammer school, you need to get an A in an exam you do at 11. Therefore everyone in the school is on equal footing.

Oh yeah, I didn't realise you were talking about grammar schools. I was thinking more of comprehensive system.