For those who don’t know, an ally means someone who takes particular action to support a person or a group or both. For instance, if an able-bodied person complains about a building inaccessible to those with disabilities, a person might be considered an ally. No two people with disabilities agree on all the traits that make someone a good ally, but most of us agree that listening to us is an essential part.
Unfortunately, some people with good intentions forget to listen to our needs before trying to help us. This often results in awkward and unsafe situations. Recently, my fiance, who is legally blind, asked a movie theater employee, “where can I get the popcorn?” The employee answered by grabbing her cane and pulling her toward the concession stand, him on one end of the cane and her on the other. The experience led her to feel disoriented, and frustrated.
Checking in with a person before offering help is important. Asking how you can best be of help is also imperative to assure that the help is actually helpful.
Remember, if a person doesn’t require assistance at the moment, they might appreciate your help at a later date. While walking with my friend one Halloween night, I tripped and fell. When I asked my friend why he didn’t offer to guide me through the darkness, he replied, “you said that you didn’t need assistance six months ago when I offered.”
Besides knowing that a person's need for assistance may vary from day to day. I suggest not offering assistance out of guilt. I have been assisted by people who are impatient with the task we are doing. What they saw as helping me was really them helping themselves save time. For someone already a bit ashamed about asking for so much assistance, having someone complaining about the errands we are running makes me feel guilty for asking in the first place.
However, I do believe it’s appropriate to be honest with the person asking for help before the task. Asking the person for things like gas money for a ride or telling them about your bad shoulder that prevents you from assisting them with moving is extremely helpful to me. Like I said before, most people want to feel like they are not being a burden on others. Honest communication is essential to creating a helping relationship in which one person doesn’t feel like a burden and the other doesn’t feel like a savior.
Voices & Stories Want to offer help? Ask first (and keep asking)
By Jacob Lesner-Buxton • Posted on October 19, 2022
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[id] => 11
[date] => 2022-10-19
[status] => Active
[new] =>
[title] => Disability in the News: Veterans exposed to toxins receive unencumbered access to coverage from the VA
[author] => Jamie Zimmerman
[article] => Disability is in the news with a major win for veterans. The U.S. Senate approved providing health care and benefits for millions of veterans injured by exposure to toxins in burn pits in Iraq and Agent Orange in Vietnam.
It has been determined that the PACT Act will now cease to force veterans to prove their disabilities and illnesses were caused by exposure to toxins in order to get medical coverage from the VA. The PACT Act is the biggest expansion of care in VA history. This change will alleviate a layer of hardship for veterans and improve access to the support they deserve.
The story of the PACT Act in the news is an example of the mission of full access that we work toward every day, amplified and utilized on a macro level.
To read more on the PACT Act go to:
https://www.npr.org/2022/08/02/1115325176/pact-act-veterans-burn-pits-toxins-passes-senate
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[1] => Array
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[id] => 18
[date] => 2021-02-03
[status] => Active
[new] =>
[title] => Involving family in emergency planning reduces anxiety
[author] => Anonymous
[article] => How has the Disaster Access and Resources Program changed your life?
It’s made me realize I could be better prepared. Even with past training it’s good to update and change things. It’s important to start if you don’t have a plan especially with everything going on right now. If an emergency happens I want to make sure I have everything I need. I’m very appreciative of the plan. Once we sit down with our family members and friends we want them to all sit down and disaster plan too.
How do you feel about how ACC has helped you prepare for disasters and emergencies? How did you feel before?
I feel more than I expected. I didn’t know you offered these types of things. I thought I would have to do research but it was easy to do it with one person and one agency. Especially for someone with anxiety issues researching multiple agencies can be overwhelming for somebody.
I was not ready but now I am.
-Dominique, Consumer of Lauren Utterback, Independent Living Advocate
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[2] => Array
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[id] => 22
[date] => 2021-02-11
[status] => Active
[new] =>
[title] => Consumer, Connor, shares about his life and working with ACC
[author] => Anonymous
[article] =>
)
)
1
More Voices & Stories to Read
Disability in the News: Veterans exposed to toxins receive unencumbered access to coverage from the VA
By Jamie Zimmerman
• Posted 10/19/2022
Involving family in emergency planning reduces anxiety
By Anonymous
• Posted 2/3/2021
Consumer, Connor, shares about his life and working with ACC
By Anonymous
• Posted 2/11/2021