Month: December 2022

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2022 Year in Review: Now and Then

looking back

January. A positive interview on The Morning Glory Project podcast, helped market book three in my dwarfism trilogy, “Always an Advocate.” This was in stark contrast to a 1990 interview with a radio shock-jock who ridiculed little people.

February. The message in my 40th Valentine’s card from Robert—I’m a lucky husband and better man for having your love in my life—generated smiles instead of tears when he had no card to give his bride in 1982.

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March. The release of “Always an Advocate” Audiobook generated favorable reviews by listeners with vision impairments. In contrast, John Stossel’s “Give Me a Break” ABC TV segment on dwarf tossing 20 years earlier earned my negative review.

April. Our LPA trip to Lion Country Safari in Palm Beach, Florida was reminiscent of our 1984 trip to an African Lion Safari in Canada minus the need for directions from a farmer who laughed at the idea of lions roaming the landscape.

May. A garage worker totaled my car when his foot got caught on the accelerator! Twenty-two years earlier, a truck driver totaled Robert’s van when the thin metal edge of the flatbed sliced open the passenger’s side like a can.

June. My blog post, “Give Blood, Give Life,” highlighted the difficult blood draw process for many little people and need for donated blood during elective surgeries. Many years earlier, Robert was disqualified from a Hepatitis C research study because staff were unable to draw his blood.

July. Although I chaffed at the $100 surcharge it cost to ride in an accessible taxi with my scooter from the Spokane, Washington airport to the LPA conference hotel, this was better than being denied taxi service at the Denver LPA conference five years earlier.

August. An involved debridement appointment with my dental hygienist was a solemn reminder of the day nine years earlier when I needed a thorough debridement and teeth cleaning before the periodontist would write a letter clearing me for aortic valve replacement surgery.

September. After 18 weeks without wheels, we bought a 2020 Toyota Sienna Wheelchair Accessible Van equipped with pedal extensions, a power adjustable height driver seat, and steering wheel extension. It was a far cry from the Austin Mini car my parents gave me on my 18th birthday.

October. The “Ten Steps to Effective Advocacy” workshop I presented at the Florida LPA regional in Gainesville, Florida reminded me of the many advocacy workshops I presented as far back as 1986 to people with dwarfism and disabilities, parents of special education students, and disability professionals.

November. My interview on the Joni and Friends Ministry Podcast to discuss advocacy to change discrimination against people with dwarfism and other disabilities was a perfect follow-up to the two 2020 podcasts the ministry recorded after publication of “Pass Me Your Shoes.”

December. On December 29, 1999 a newspaper called the dwarf tossing atrocity one of the ten worst inventions of the millennium. My June 27th blog post, “Florida Bans Dwarf Tossing in Bars,” explains why the June 28, 1989 law was needed. For more book, blog, and media information, go to my website at https://angelamuirvanetten.com

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Awareness Disability Rights

Disabled Caught In Homeless Crisis

homeless man

People with disabilities make up almost one quarter of the half million plus homeless in America. And more than half of homeless veterans are disabled. So on December 21, National Homeless Persons’ Remembrance Day, let’s zoom in on the homeless crisis for people with disabilities.

Homelessness is primarily concentrated in cities. As exciting as it is for tourists to visit the likes of Boston, New York City, and Washington DC, it’s troubling to see so many homeless people sleeping on the streets.  The national rate for homelessness is 17 per 10,000; in these cities, the rate is well over 100 per 10,000. One fifth of America’s homeless population live in New York City.

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According to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a person is homeless if they:

  1. Lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence;
  2. Stay overnight at a place not ordinarily used for sleeping, such as a car, park, or bus depot;
  3. Occupy temporary residences like homeless shelters or motels paid for by the government or a charity;
  4. Live in a place not meant for human habitation; or
  5. Have nowhere to go after eviction for nonpayment of rent or mortgage, or when fleeing domestic violence and/or human trafficking.

The leading causes of homelessness—unemployment, lack of trustworthy relationships, lack of affordable housing, disability and illness, and abuse—are too complex and diverse to discuss in this post.  But here’s a light touch on disability and illness.

An illness can take away a job, health insurance, a home, and a car. A disability can prevent someone from even entering the workforce. A 2019 national study on homelessness, showed that of those living on the streets 46 percent had physical disabilities. Mental illness accounts for 25 percent of the homeless. And mental illnesses—such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, and substance abuse—reportedly affect half of all homeless veterans. Also, veterans who have PTSD often use substances as a way to cope with PTSD symptoms.

The magnitude of the crisis mandates that we take action. Sitting around and doing nothing is unacceptable. Our duty to help those in need dates back to ancient times. In the words of Asaph, we must:  

“Give justice to the poor and the orphan;
    uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.”
Psalm 82:3, New Living Translation

To help you get started, here are some ideas for helping homeless people with disabilities. Acknowledge their existence. Stop walking by without making eye contact. Say hello. Smile.

Be polite if asked for money. If not comfortable giving money, direct people to a nearby food pantry, meal site, or homeless service center. Support that organization with donations of food, toiletries, clothes and blankets, tents, or whatever else is on their needs list. Volunteer.

And on a larger scale, advocate for the homeless with local businesses and elected representatives to increase resources to address the causes of homelessness and meet the need of those needing a job, training, transportation, health care, and affordable housing.

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Celebrations Hospitality

Poinsettias and Christmas

Poinsettia

December 12th is National Poinsettia Day in the United States. The date marks the death of Joel Roberts Poinsett, an American botanist, physician and the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico from 1825 to 1829. He shared his love for the Poinsettia when he  sent cuttings from Southern Mexico to his home in Charleston, South Carolina.

In Mexico, where the plant is called La Flor de la Nochebuena (Flower of the Holy Night), Poinsettias have featured in the nativity procession—the Fiesta of Santa Pesebre—since the 17th century. Mexican legend has it that a little girl, too poor to buy a gift to present to the Christ child at the nativity scene on Christmas Eve, gave baby Jesus weeds she picked from the side of the road. Given in love, the weeds were transformed into the beautiful red stars of the Poinsettia.

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And so the Mexican association of Poinsettias with Christmas continued in America. On one level, the red leaves fit right in with all things Christmas—red nosed reindeer, Santa, bows, ornaments,  and candles. On another level, red symbolizes love and the blood of Christ. Whether you are enchanted by Poinsettias for their legendary charm, Christian symbolism, or their decorative beauty, they are now one of the most popular plants in the world. Annual sales are 90 million units and the global retail impact is nearly one billion dollars. In the United States most of the $250 million in retail sales occur in the six weeks leading up to Christmas.

Over the years, I’ve been the beneficiary of Poinsettias in the prelude to Christmas for various reasons. Last December when recovering from eye surgery for a hole in the macular and a partially detached retina, my aunt blessed me with gorgeous Poinsettias in a twin basket. 

Surgery gift poinsettia

This year when hosting a chapter meeting for Little People of America, I received a beautiful Poinsettia as a hospitality gift from one of the members.

Hospitality gift poinsettia

I’m also enjoying the Christmas decorations at church that incorporate both red and white Poinsettias.

Church poinsettia

So in this season of Christmas giving, it’s time for me to bless family and friends with Poinsettia gifts. No need to worry if they have one already. The more Poinsettias they get the more magnificence they have to delight in.

So what part do Poinsettias play in your Christmas?

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Inclusion International

Global Inclusion of People with Hidden Disabilities

Invisible Disability logo
Graphic courtesy of https://theweco.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Invisible-Disability-logo.jpg

How can 15 per cent of the world’s population be counted as a minority when it numbers one billion? Yet people with disabilities do fit minority classification due to routine denial of equal access to society and services. We are often excluded from the built-environment, education, employment, health care, transportation, et al.

For three decades, the United Nations has highlighted global disability inequities with the annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) on December 3rd. The goal is to promote understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.

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This resolve was strengthened in 2006 when the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) recognized accessibility and inclusion of persons with disabilities as fundamental rights.

The 2022 IDPD theme of “transformative solutions for inclusive development recognizes the role innovation plays in fueling an accessible and equitable world.” Some organizations have narrowed the scope of this year’s theme to the vast majority of disabilities that are hidden, such as: chronic fatigue, diabetes, hearing loss, learning difficulties, mental health disorders, speech impairments, low vision. Their “Not All Disabilities are Visible” slogan brought to mind the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower global program which has recently emerged as an innovative way to include people in public places that need additional support, help or a little more time.

The Sunflower program began in 2016 at the United Kingdom’s Gatwick Airport as a way to support travelers with hidden disabilities. Travelers wearing a green lanyard with a yellow sunflower send a subtle signal to staff self-identifying as someone who may need assistance. Staff are trained to (1) provide clarifying instructions, (2) keep family members together, (3) read departure boards, (4) give more time to prepare at check-in and security, (5) find a place to sit and rest, or (6) deliver whatever else is needed.

By 2018, the Sunflower program spread to all major UK airports and rail providers. It also expanded to anywhere people meet, such as: banks, charities, entertainment and sports venues, hospitals, insurance companies, retail establishments, universities, schools and colleges, and the like.

Global recognition began in 2019 with the opening of the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower online store and sharing on Facebook. In early 2020, the program expanded to other international venues and is now available at airports in 24 countries, including: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, the UK and the United States.

My reservation about the program is how the Sunflower lanyard tags the person as vulnerable and needy. On one hand, I question why a person with hidden disabilities should have to wear a special lanyard to get help. On the other hand, I understand that those of us with visible disabilities get offers of help without even asking. But is it inclusion if the person wearing a lanyard is set apart and made to feel different? What do you think?

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