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Bloggers with Disabilities
March, 2008
A blog is essentially a personal online journal that often contains links to the same subject the author wishes to discuss. The only thing that seems to be growing more rapidly than blogging itself is the world of disability blogging. Just a few years ago there were only a handful of disability blogs available to those who searched for them. Today there are thousands of blogs written about disability that are waiting to be discovered.
Disability blogging has become increasingly popular for numerous reasons. For one thing, not only are people able to gain access to common subjects, but they also have the opportunity to gain knowledge about the similarities and differences in experiences. Disability bloggers can contribute to the world of blogging in a way that others cannot. While I do not believe that this is the only goal of bloggers with disabilities, they do (whether intentionally or not) help people understand that disability is a part of the diversity of humanity. These journals do not focus on disability, yet they educate us by making us see the world from the author's point of view.
According to many blogs I have read, one of the biggest problems in the advancement of disability rights is that many people fail to acknowledge that society actually discriminates against people with disabilities. Since many people choose to ignore and deny that disability issues affect us all, this discrimination is further escalated. Aside from being an entertaining and informative source, disability blogging also presents an opportunity for change. As more and more people are becoming active bloggers, there is a greater sense of hope that people will snap out of the impossible fantasy world in which humans are a model of perfection.
Twinkle Little Star is a blog written by a woman named Lisa, and is a wonderful place to start your journey into the world of disability blogging. Lisa blogs from the suburbs of a city in the Northwest USA. Twinkle Little Star is essentially a descriptive collection of stories in which Lisa tells us how she spends her days. Lisa is a deaf-blind mother of twin boys who mostly writes about her own experiences with parenting, home schooling, her own family, and disability issues in general. Above all, through her blog, Lisa is able to vent and express her peeves, fears, and feelings in a witty, entertaining, and sarcastic voice.
Another blog worth investigating is one called Growing Up With a Disability, which is published by a man named David. David is college student who has cerebral palsy and is back at school after taking a year off to interview people with disabilities. Many of Davids blogs focus on his interview project, in which he records the stories of people living with disabilities. He is very much interested in real stories that are funny, sad, angry - personal is a must. The majority of David's recent entries focus on the hate crimes committed against people with disabilities. These include the murder of Brent Martin, and the story of Brian Sterner, a quadriplegic man who was dumped out of his wheelchair by the police.
While David's blog is a reliable go-to source for recent political news and current events, he does have many personal entries that hit close to home. One such entry that is definitely worth looking at is For Parents: My Cerebral Palsy. Through this blog David aims to enlighten the parents of young children with CP by telling the story of his own childhood.
Another blog that I would recommend exploring is one published by an artist named Ju Gosling, also known as Ju90. Ju is an artist, originally from Essex (UK), who is fighting for disability rights with her art. Among many other things, Ju offers a wonderful insight into the Disability Arts Movement as well. Her own artwork is definitely worth taking a look at and can be accessed through her main page. Although Ju's page on her own art is a bit old, her newest page, ABNORMAL: Towards a Scientific Model of Disability, is worth mentioning.
One of the most amazing webpages I have seen thus far is called Rowing Upstream. This page tells the story of Anne McDonald, an Australian woman who has athetoid cerebral palsy and who was placed into an institution at the age of three. Although the institution she was placed into had the word "hospital" in it, it was not a hospital by any means. In fact, the children received less medical attention there then they would have at home. The children in the institution were punished for crying and wanting any form of affection. The children desired nothing more than a form of communication—the only thing that held the key to escaping their confinement.
Anne herself was unable to communicate with any adult until she was sixteen and learned how to use an alphabet board. She was not free from the institution until she was eighteen years of age. Although this institution was actually violating human rights, Anne could not leave until she proved her "normalcy" in court. Anne now communicates with facilitation. Her story is just one example of why the power and importance of communication should never be underestimated.
Anne's story goes beyond mere communication. It is a clear example of how society cheats people with disabilities from developing and using their abilities by putting them into situations no one can thrive in. To make matters worse, no one is willing to take responsibility, as society claims that failure to thrive is due to their disability. Anne was starved as a child and her body and health are still paying the costs of that.
These blogs are only some examples of the type of material that can be found when looking at blogs written by people with disabilities. There are many more funny, personal, and entertaining blogs that are yet to be explored. Examples of such topics include heroes, secret identities, teenagers, and school rules - which can all be found in the 31st Disability Blog Carnival by visiting Emma's blog, Wheelchairprincess Blog.
In a blog carnival, someone takes the initiative to find interesting and enjoyable blog posts on a certain topic (such as disability), and then takes the time to put the blogs together in a final post. Blog carnivals are a very effective method for organizing, sharing information, and learning about specific topics.
The disability blog carnival is ongoing and takes place on the second and fourth Mondays of each month. A blogger whose page is entitled "Andrea's Buzzing About..." will be hosting the next disability blog carnival on March 27, 2008. If you wish to participate in the disability blog carnival you may by visiting blogcarnival.com.
Diana Attina is originally from Westchester, New York. She is currently studying abroad at the Syracuse University in Madrid. Her major is English and her minor is Spanish.
At Topka we are commited to creating books that show the life of people with disabilities is not limited to it. To see books featuring main characters with disabilities, go to Our books and scroll down to Type of disability
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