Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We have qualified writers to help you.
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.
Despite the fact that many disabled people work well and are completely integrated into society, in general, they experience disproportionately higher unemployment and poverty. While not as mainstream as ethnic or sexual discrimination, the marginalization of the disabled is a widespread and serious issue, spanning around the globe, both in developed and developing countries. This essay will prove that the physically and mentally challenged are a discriminated minority group that faces prejudice and discrimination.
The first thing to remember while discussing the discrimination of people with disabilities is that the medical and sociological terms for disability differ. From the medical standpoint, a disability of an individual stems solely from the state of their bodies and minds. From the sociological standpoint, however, impairments occur when a disabled person does not meet the expectations built by society on what a body should look like (Weitz, 2020). Simply put, from the view of sociologists, disabilities come from society’s failure to accommodate the disabled.
Like any other minority, disadvantaged people meet restrictions in their lifestyle choices. They are socially isolated, have fewer housing options, and face cultural prejudice, which, in its sum, are effects of society, but not of a disabled person’s body (黃小竹, 2010). Thus, the major downsides of living with a disability stem from the stigmatization that society puts on the impaired.
Furthermore, the disabled suffer from limited career opportunities. For example, in the middle of the twentieth century, disabled people had problems with receiving education in public schools, as well as teaching in them, as wheelchairs were viewed as fire hazards (Shapiro, 2023). Much like other minorities, both ethnic and sexual, the disabled have a harder time finding and keeping a job.
Moreover, like certain ethnic groups, the disabled people have faced restrictions on reproduction. In the beginning of the twentieth century, American laws forbade epileptics, people with Down syndrome and other impairments to marry and have children, and went as far as mandating mass sterilization of them (Weitz, 2020). Like ethnic Jews in Nazi Germany, the disabled have suffered policies that were genocidal and eugenic in their nature.
Not only do people with disabilities have similar problems as other minorities, they also share the same feeling of community among them. 79% of people with limited abilities sense that they are part of a large group of people that are similar to them (Weitz, 2020). This is another sign that people with special needs are a minority group who share similar experiences of discrimination.
Furthermore, to other marginalized groups, the disabled have created their own political movements to combat discrimination and expand their own rights. As an example, the Disabled in Action protest group was founded by activists in the 1970s in the US, which had a striking similarity with American Black rights and women’s rights movements (Shapiro, 2023). Thus, the disabled not only share a sense of community they also are politically driven to combat the discrimination imposed on them by society.
To summarize, the disabled have all of the signs that any discriminated group has. From a sociological standpoint, they were marginalized by society due the society’s failure to properly integrate them. They were marginalized throughout history, being given fewer job opportunities, facing social isolation, and being subject to borderline genocidal governmental policies. Moreover, they share a sense of community with each other and are willing to take political action to improve the living condition of this community. Thus, people with special needs are, in essence, a marginalized minority, which is fighting to expand its rights.
References
Shapiro, J. (2023). Activist Judy Heumann led a reimagining of what it means to be disabled. NPR. Web.
黃小竹. (2010). Examined Life – Judith Butler & Sunaura Taylor 720p.avi [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Weitz, R. (2020). The Sociology of Health, Illness, and Health Care: A Critical Approach (8th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We have qualified writers to help you.
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.