“…I now lift my pen to sign this Americans with Disabilities Act and say: Let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down.”
George H. W. Bush, the signing of the ADA
What is Disability Pride Month?
Disability Pride Month, celebrated in July, honors people with disabilities and their contributions to our civil rights. This event began in the United States to celebrate the passing of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990.
This month-long event aims to change perceptions of disability, end stigma, and promote disability as a natural part of human diversity. Its also an opportunity for people with disabilities to unite, celebrate their uniqueness, and raise awareness of the daily challenges we face for equal treatment.
Disability Pride After ECT
After electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) damaged my brain and left me severely disabled, pride was the last thing I felt. Doctors didn’t believe anything was wrong with me, no one else did either, leaving me trapped with undiagnosed, untreated brain damage for years in a community where disability was heavily stigmatized.
During that time, my self-esteem quickly eroded from my failings. I no longer knew how to do basic tasks, communicate clearly or relate to people. I lost relationships and was too impared to make new ones. I felt worthless, drowing in the guilt and shame created by the dependence my disabilities created.
With the push of a button, I had became an outcast from my own life. Without any way to understand my experience or help myself recover, I became deeply suicidal for years. I believed brain damage meant the end of a meaningful life for me until I learned about neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to adapt after an injury. This ignighted the hope I needed to rebuild my life.
Fast forward several years, I finally got testing after expressing interest in going back to school. This led to rehab, where I learned skills that would help me work around my disabilities in college. Having a diagnosis have me access to ADA accomadations that put me on an equal playing field with my non-disabled peers.
The trip that changed my beliefs about disabled life
A friend who worked for the college’s ADA services invited me to a disability conference. Over the next two days I got a crash course on disabilty rights and the people who fought for them decades ago, and what battles need to be won today.
Finding Community
I met people I could relate to. For the first time in years I didn’t have to hide who I was to be seen and accepted. My new friends and I swapped war stories, accessbility tips, and listene to presentations about what disabled life was like before the ADA.
Being abandoned by my doctors after ECT disabled me was devistating. Without recognition or support for brain damage, I suffered alone in ways no one should after ECT (but sadly, this is common).
These losses coupled with the stigma of disabilty made me beleive my life was over. However, through the disability rights movement, I found a new community of people with shared needs and struggles. Disability rights activists helped me see myself in a new light and find new ways to live, proudly disabled.
Your Disabilty Rights
If you have been disabled by ECT, I am sorry for all you have lost. Your life still matters and you don’t have to go through this alone. You can learn new ways to see yourself, and find support in the disability rights and ECT survivor communities.
Learn more about the disability rights
No Pity – This book is crash course on the disability rights movment for allies and disabled people
Crip Camp – Netflix documentary about the people behind the ADA
The Music Within – Movie about Richard Pimentel, a disabled vet’s role in the ADA
Inspiration P*rn: Oscar Bait! – A disablity rights activist explains how disablity tropes in media impact disabled people
The Social Model of Disablity – A brief video and blog post explaining what the social model of disablity
Conceptualizing disability: Three models of disability
Our fight for disability rights – and why we’re not done yet | Judith Heumann
The ADA Legacy Project: Moments in Disability History
Scope: Equality for Disabled People
Disabled people make up 15% of the world’s population, representing all ages, races, genders, and backgrounds