Is 2022 the year to bring back the word Handicap?
In the UK the word Handicap is seen as having very
negative conatations for people with disabilities. This is down to the etymology
of the word which makes it quite derogatory. Handicap broken down means as in
put your 'hand in my cap' to give me money. Referencing being poor and asking
for donations i.e. begging. We thought we'd pass that staged, years ago and
though the word disabled is in my opinion still not perfect as it stands for
less able, it is better than the first.
Yet I ask the question, does the word needs to make a comeback? Years of austerity, Brexit, and cuts to benefits and cost of living have left the disabled literally putting their caps out for handouts for basic needs.
My internet feeds over Facebook, Twitter and other media is littered with people asking for donations for wheelchairs, or other disability related equipment and activities. It gets scarier when you see posts of people in wheelchairs living on the streets.
Even Local authorities, never mind organisations and charities are asking for more and more people to volunteer to do the work once reserved for employed staff.
It seems like over the last 10 years or more, the treatment of the vulnerable and disabled has dropped in importance. Either disabled people are scroungers, an idea, I feel imprinted via the government's stance on disability benefits and press representation. Or there not doing enough to help themselves.
The legislation and protections are there, as you'd expect in a democratic society ( though even these are questionable), but the push from the powers that be seem to ignore even the legislative and legal requirements by starving government departments the resources to meet these needs. One esteemed commentator for instance spoke of the Care Act as a Rolls Royce without fuel. It's built to do the job but without the ability to run it, it can't be used.
This I don't understand, if we live in a democratic society that works by people following the rules set by government via laws. Thus under the Care Act "if a person has needs they must be met". And then you bring in policies such as austerity which in essence is not based on democratic choice i.e. the will of the government but down to the choices of the party in place, how is this democracy.
Increasingly and quite worryingly I am seeing more and more of this type of thing happening. Another example is say prescription charges. The law under and guidance to me is very clear, with appropriate caveats for people who need the medicines. Yet the interpretation by the pharmacy or GP seem to be a flat no we can't provide those.
It seems to me that the messages are being garbled, lost in translation. Or perhaps it's the confusion that’s meant to occur. On the surface the protections are there, but look closer and it seems like a magic trick it’s all confusion and subterfuge, smoke and mirrors. Perhaps it’s time to take another look at what democracy is, or at least take a stance and bring back what it's actually meant to be.
Yet I ask the question, does the word needs to make a comeback? Years of austerity, Brexit, and cuts to benefits and cost of living have left the disabled literally putting their caps out for handouts for basic needs.
My internet feeds over Facebook, Twitter and other media is littered with people asking for donations for wheelchairs, or other disability related equipment and activities. It gets scarier when you see posts of people in wheelchairs living on the streets.
Even Local authorities, never mind organisations and charities are asking for more and more people to volunteer to do the work once reserved for employed staff.
It seems like over the last 10 years or more, the treatment of the vulnerable and disabled has dropped in importance. Either disabled people are scroungers, an idea, I feel imprinted via the government's stance on disability benefits and press representation. Or there not doing enough to help themselves.
The legislation and protections are there, as you'd expect in a democratic society ( though even these are questionable), but the push from the powers that be seem to ignore even the legislative and legal requirements by starving government departments the resources to meet these needs. One esteemed commentator for instance spoke of the Care Act as a Rolls Royce without fuel. It's built to do the job but without the ability to run it, it can't be used.
This I don't understand, if we live in a democratic society that works by people following the rules set by government via laws. Thus under the Care Act "if a person has needs they must be met". And then you bring in policies such as austerity which in essence is not based on democratic choice i.e. the will of the government but down to the choices of the party in place, how is this democracy.
Increasingly and quite worryingly I am seeing more and more of this type of thing happening. Another example is say prescription charges. The law under and guidance to me is very clear, with appropriate caveats for people who need the medicines. Yet the interpretation by the pharmacy or GP seem to be a flat no we can't provide those.
It seems to me that the messages are being garbled, lost in translation. Or perhaps it's the confusion that’s meant to occur. On the surface the protections are there, but look closer and it seems like a magic trick it’s all confusion and subterfuge, smoke and mirrors. Perhaps it’s time to take another look at what democracy is, or at least take a stance and bring back what it's actually meant to be.
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