The Bottom Rail by verbal shredwright

The Inclusion Elusion

Adaptive programs, competitions and athletes being included at more Resorts and Snow Sports Events sounds awesome at first, right? But then you realize it's only the first step to REAL inclusion. Bullying has become an issue that cannot be ignored, and exclusion is the #1 form of bullying. It's always more fun when everyone is included, and more companies and people are starting to see that picture. It's a great thing to have athletes with disabilities included and sometimes showcased, but we still have a lot of work to do including fans, businesses & media with disabilities too.

Inclusion is important. This isn't just about people with disabilities… this is about people with feelings. How would you feel if you were the only one not invited to your classmates birthday party? How would you feel about your neighbors knowing your child was the only one not invited? Have you ever been the new person at school or work and feel left out? Get the picture? Exclusion is a form of bullying, and you don't have to be disabled to be bullied and know that it doesn’t make you feel good. Unfortunately, people with all kinds of disabilities are often excluded and discriminated against everyday requiring laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act to protect people from bigots and bullies.

Exclusion is a tool for some in mountain towns to bully people who they deem different or undeserving to force them to move away. If you can't get or keep a decent job that affords you to live or take care of a child with a disability you'll be forced to move away. If you can't afford your bills, but work full-time or more… you'll be forced to move away. So, what about the person who lived there for a decade and suddenly is struck by a lifelong medical diagnosis? What about the local child born with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, etc? These families and individuals are all part of the community when these things happened to them, but they weren't wealthy, popular or deemed deserving so they are easy to exclude from earning a fair living, so that "you and your problems go away". Bullies hide behind phrases like "go somewhere else and get help" or labeling people who are different as "bad for business" or as "toxic" and these excuses mask the face of exclusion and discrimination.

Every resort, corporation and local business would never say they won't or don't employ people with disabilities… they just don't have any at this time. And if they do the likelihood of it being a leadership or meaningful paid position are few and far between. What about the big resorts and corporations including opportunities for local entrepreneurs and businesses owned by individuals and families with disabilities? This is how exclusion begins. If you can't find meaningful employment how can you be in business? Some claim "there are not any who applied" or "there are not many people with disabilities here in the mountains." Perhaps that’s because the mountains are expensive and having a disability can make it even more expensive? Would you be happy if were never included or had an opportunity to be in business or have a meaningful career due to assumptions, labels and judgments of others? Is that treating others the same way you would want to be treated? What if it was you or your child? Exclusion is bullying and it comes in economic and employment forms too.

Then you have the group of folks who will claim "they didn't know about the struggles of their local neighbors with disabilities". In a small mountain town that's like not seeing the speed limit sign you pass everyday and still telling the police officer you didn't know the speed limit. You didn’t think about your neighbor in a wheelchair even though you see their handicap plates everyday… You had no idea your neighbors had a child with autism even after you complained about them being bad parents because of their kids behavior. Let's be real! People with disabilities often may appear and act different… and different is the key word… different not wrong. But being different makes some people uncomfortable and that can lead to being excluded. Excluding people from earning a living, or a family from having a home because of a disability is bullying and worse.

It is important to remember there is a difference between temporary challenges and lifelong diagnosis and disabilities. But there are those who will diminish people with disabilities with the "everybody's got problems" excuse. These are people who are unable to see how fortunate they are… or who only have experience with temporary issues or challenges and will be able to return to their lives after a period of time. Lifelong means for their entire life… they must adapt and make a new life for themselves. They don't get back to "normal" like those with short-term illness, job, money or housing problems.

Having lived in the mountains going on twenty years I have over heard more than one business owner complain about the cost and code associated with handicap accessibility just for a bathroom…since they "can't remember the last time a person with a disability came in here" (maybe the lack of ramps and restrooms is why?)  but if you asked them… none of these people would even feel bad about saying it… let alone consider themselves to be a bully or a bigot for even a second. This illustrates how far we still have to go… and that the acts of inclusion will always out weigh the words of those who will make excuses or only talk about it.

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