Category: Inclusion

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Inclusion International

International Day of Persons with Disabilities

international disability day

Despite disability representing one billion of the world’s population, International Day of Persons With Disabilities (IDPD)—celebrated on December 3—is not typically included among special events in December like Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (7th), Christmas (25th), Hanukkah (25th), Kwanzaa (26th), and Boxing Day (26th). But IDPD also belongs in this December list as an occasion to remember and honor the contributions of people with disabilities.

According to Wade Lange, Founder and United Nations Ambassador for IDPD, it’s more than just an annual day. It’s a movement used to break down barriers to inclusion and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.

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The World Health Organization celebrates the day by promoting the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities at every level of society and development.

Given the dramatic decline in my husband Robert’s health in the year of his 75th birthday, my focus on disability has shifted to those who have reluctantly entered a different level of society—residents in institutional care for rehabilitation or skilled nursing. In the facility in which Robert resides, we are surrounded by people navigating the halls using wheelchairs and walkers. Many are unable to communicate verbally, but some reach out with a smile, wave, or greeting. For the most part, Robert’s outreach is limited to words like hi and thank you. A few are able to converse. One woman mistook me for a new resident and welcomed me to the facility; another cautioned me to slow down in my scooter; and someone else told me I look like I’m 32 years old i.e. more than half my actual age of 71.

The 2024 theme of IDPD—amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future—is inappropriate for this disability segment of society. Some are like Robert and previously served countless hours in their communities as leaders on disability issues. Others are new to disability having acquired speech, memory or mobility impairments as they have aged. They don’t even see themselves as disabled. Take for example the 90-year-old woman I met when working as an advocacy specialist for an independent living center. In order to qualify for services she needed to identify as someone with a disability. However, despite using a walker to ambulate she told me she was not disabled.

So while disability advocates continue to work for funding home and community based services to meet rehabilitation and personal care needs, let’s not forget the disabled residents currently living in institutional facilities. Let’s broaden the IDPD theme to include people with disabilities whose world has narrowed to the four walls of an institution. Let’s knock down the walls of separation by visiting; helping with laundry, clothing purchases, and favorite food (within dietary restrictions); respecting their right to vote; bringing entertainment and animal encounters; honoring choices for religious activity, bed time, and the like.

So how will you broaden IDPD to include people in institutional care?

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Inclusion

Disability Inclusion and Emergency Planning

Courtney Wentz unsplash
Photo by Courtney Wentz on Unsplash
Photo credit Eden Emerald Buyers Agent
https://eebuyersagent.com.au/

This Patriot’s Day we honor the memory of the 2,977 people killed by terrorists on September 11, 2001. Let’s pause for a moment and renew our solemn vow to never forget. We can also continue our resolve for never again by appreciating the Transportation Security Administration created to prevent similar attacks in the future.

Generally, post disaster studies advance the never again resolve by focusing on future preparation, response, recovery and mitigation. The 18 separate billion-dollar weather disasters in 2022—causing at least 474 deaths—has given emergency management agencies much to review and tweak in their plans. Yet despite being

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adversely and disproportionately impacted and at higher risk of dying during disasters, older adults and people with disabilities are often excluded from the planning process. This needs to change!

Integrating people with disabilities in emergency drills and exercises is a good place to start. June Isaacson Kailes, a disability policy consultant, provides practical guidance on how to make this happen (see citation at the end of this post):

1. Recruit qualified disability subject matter experts based on experience living with a disability or implementing equal access and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act;

2. Use people with actual disabilities not nondisabled actors;

3. Get participant feedback about what worked, didn’t work and what needs to work;

4. Budget for accommodations like handouts in alternative formats or sign language interpreters. Consider helping with the costs of transportation, personal assistants, and support people;

5. Choose an accessible location i.e. near a public transportation stop with accessible restrooms, meeting facilities, and staging area;

6. Schedule the exercise when public transportation is available; and

7. Garner feedback from disabled participants on the exercise and draft After Action Report.

Failure to follow these guidelines can result in flawed plans based on disability stereotypes and misconceptions. Also deaf or mobility impaired recruits may bail on an exercise if unable to understand an unqualified interpreter unfamiliar with the terms being used or unable to use an inaccessible bathroom.

Kathie, a blogger who is blind and participates in local emergency response drills every four years, observes that responders are good caring people, but may lack training on disability dos and don’ts. She encourages people with disabilities to volunteer to be victims and uses her participation to educate responders on disability etiquette. Her top three tips to responders are (1) don’t separate me from my service dog, but if you have to, hold his leash at all times; (2) don’t grab and manhandle me—tell me what you’re doing instead; and (3) don’t push me in front of you—let me take your elbow.

There’s a bill pending in both houses of Congress that addresses these issues—the Real Emergency Access for Aging and Disability Inclusion (REAADI) for Disasters Act Senate (S. 1049) and House (H.R. 2371). Please contact your representatives to solicit support for this law which protects the health, safety and independence of people with disabilities during a disaster.

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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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Awareness Inclusion

Dancing Differently

Dancer Faith

Question:
What does amputation, burn injuries, deafness, autoimmune disorder, dyslexia, ADHD, multiple sclerosis, dwarfism, and blindness have to do with one another?
a) disability
b) dancing
c) different ability
d) all of the above

Answer:
d) as demonstrated by 11 celebrities with disabilities paired with professionals in Dancing with the Stars from Season 4 to Season 27.

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In season 4, Heather Mills competed to show you can do anything with an artificial leg. Amy Purdy dancing with two below the knee prosthetics was runner-up in season 18. Third place in season 20 went to Noah Galloway who danced with both a prosthetic arm and leg. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba said Noah broadened her scope of what dance looks like.

In Season 6, Marlee Matlin shattered the notion that hearing the music is integral to dancing. Instead she relied on her partner to express the music to her in his body. In Season 22, Nyle DiMarco described “seeing” the music that his ears couldn’t hear. Along with memorizing the timing of his partner’s moves and scratch and squeeze signals, they danced their way to winning the coveted Mirror Ball trophy.

The season 13 winner, J.R. Martinez, has severe burns on more than 34 percent of his body. He competed to give burn survivors hope, pride in their scars, and belief in themselves while facing their fears and limitations.

Jack Osbourne, a Season 17 celebrity with multiple sclerosis, danced to raise awareness and more research. He encouraged those with MS to set and accomplish achievable goals every day. Osbourne finished third.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) featured as a disability for celebrity and professional dancers alike. Both Jack Osbourne and Nev Schulman—Season 29 runner up—have ADHD. Professionals Daniella Karagach, Karina Smirnoff, and Derek Hough also use dance as a place to channel their excess energy and improve focus.

In Seasons 23 and 25, Terra Jole and Victoria Arlen both reached the semifinals. Terra, who has dwarfism, announced that being different is a great thing. And Victoria, an autoimmune disorder survivor, aspires to replace the term “disability” with “different ability.”

In season 27, Danelle Umstead relied on her partner for guidance. Because she is blind, touching his shoulders or legs allowed her to feel the movement and paint herself a picture.

Just as Dancing with the Stars showcases the beauty of dance, the celebrities with disabilities demonstrated the diversity of dancers. No matter the disability, dance has a place for everyone. Wheelchair users. Cane and crutch users. People with Down Syndrome. You name it.

And as Joe Powell-Main, UK para-dance champion who performs in his wheelchair said, “Sometimes it doesn’t look like conventional ballet—people in point shoes, legs up by their ears—but there needs to be a willingness to look beyond that and see that it’s different.”

On this 40th anniversary of International Dance Day (April 29), let’s dance to improve our mood, creativity, mental and physical health, self-confidence, ability to follow instructions, and perseverance. Let’s all dance in our own different style.

For discussion of diverse disability issues, link to my weekly blog and book trilogy on my website at https://angelamuirvanetten.com.

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Inclusion

Inclusion via Audiobooks

Recording Session
Production engineer, Barry Marsh wearing headphones and glasses, sits in front of his computer screen which displays recording sound waves. He is looking at the author and narrator, Angela Van Etten, who is seated next to him facing her laptop screen which displays the Epilogue. Angela reads out loud from the screen using the microphone in front of her. Barry listens carefully for voice clarity, expression, pace, and recording quality.

My first introduction to talking books was as a child listening to books with my great grandmother. Her vision loss qualified her for the Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind talking book service. So when I authored Dwarfs Don’t Live in Doll Houses in 1988, I naturally gave permission to the Library of Congress to read the book for their talking book library service.

Fast forward 34 years to a marketplace that lets all readers listen to books using mobile phones, tablets, and computers. Access to audiobooks is no longer limited to people with vision impairments and audiobooks are commercially available to everyone (except those with a hearing impairment).

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People with various disabilities—vision, brain, neurological, cognitive—have access to books without using their eyes to read, hands to turn pages, or mind to process written words. They are included among readers who listen to audiobooks for entertainment, relaxation, escape, and learning new things. And they listen while commuting, doing housework, exercising, and walking, among other things.

Because audiobooks are the fastest growing segment in publishing, I had two reasons for releasing Always an Advocate: Champions of Change for People with Dwarfism and Disabilities in the audiobook format—inclusion of people with disabilities and market demand.

Partnership with my friend Barry Grant Marsh, a veteran broadcaster and advertising marketing executive, made this possible. Under Barry’s tutelage, I followed the path of many nonfiction authors and narrated the book myself.

After laboring together for many months, Barry and I are thrilled to announce the publication of Always an Advocate as an audiobook. We persevered through technical challenges, medical interruptions, and learning curve issues. But with God’s help we succeeded in bringing you the opportunity to listen to this book which is endorsed by many in the disability community:

“And when a righteous voice needs to be amplified, Angela rose to the challenge time and time again. Her seemingly endless supply of energy comes from her faith in God and her love of the underdog.” ~ Bill Klein, Co-Star of TLC’s Little Couple

“Be inspired and encouraged by Angela’s determination to take on all challenges, and eventually overcome and master them with an ample dose of faith and humor.” ~ Genevieve Cousminer, Esq., former Director of the Coalition for Independent Living Options

“You will learn a lot about the challenges that dwarfs face in their everyday lives — and about the life and activism of this remarkable woman.” ~ Dan Kennedy, Author of Little People: Learning to See the World Through My Daughter’s Eyes

“I am proud to be in the same company as Angela Van Etten [who] contributed in countless ways to the advancement of the dwarfism community, the disability community, and the broader community.” ~ Gary Arnold, LPA Past President

“This book offers the reader a grand tour of local, state, and federal opportunities for advocacy. The only requirement is passion, dedication, a thick skin, patience, and a sense of humor.” ~ Jim Kay, LPA Historian

The Always An Advocate audiobook is available on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. Click on the link for more information, https://angelamuirvanetten.com/always-an-advocate/, listen to a retail sample, and get your copy today.

And One More Thing: If you’d like to receive a promo code for a free copy in exchange for a fair and honest book review, please email me at angela@angelamuirvanetten.com.

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Inclusion

Turning 18: Facebook Jolt and User Caution

smartphone

Facebook’s growth spurt ended on the eve of its’ 18th birthday. For the first time ever, the number of daily active users dropped. A tremendous jolt for a business that made growth charts obsolete.

Facebook burst out of the gate with a 1,000% growth rate within 24 hours of its’ February 4, 2004 launch. And growing by leaps and bounds took on new meaning as users grew from millions to billions—one million in one year (2004), one billion in 2012, and almost three billion in 2022.

But hold the champagne. The drop in fourth quarter income triggered the biggest ever daily stock market loss for a U.S. firm, namely Meta, Facebook’s parent company.

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Disturbing for Facebook, but why should people with disabilities care? The same reason as the other three billion users! We count.

Because Facebook allows anyone with an email address and real-life identity to have an account, users with disabilities are included without typical exclusionary barriers. As a result, we are among the multitudes affected by Facebook’s foibles and fumbles. So as Facebook presumably reflects on its’ path forward, users need to reflect on how we spend our time on Facebook.

Let’s start with appreciating what Facebook does for users:

  • Dissolves global boundaries and connects users ready to share what’s happening in our lives.
  • With Facebook’s 2016 shift toward meaningful communities, organizations like Little People of America and people with dwarfism contribute to the count of ten million groups. People with dwarfism and their associates join various groups in which they receive news, support, ideas, answers to questions, et al. For example, an advocacy group solicits action on cultural and social issues negatively impacting people of short stature, such as “midget” as a descriptor of products, dehumanizing entertainment like dwarf tossing, and barriers in the built environment.
  • Safety Check allows people in or near disaster sites to confirm they’re safe after a blizzard, fire, flood, hurricane, mass shooting, or other emergency.

At the same time, we are individually responsible to protect ourselves from the dangers inherent in social media use. We can’t count on Facebook to protect our privacy. So share wisely. Let’s not be among the plus 50% who post their email address or 20% who share their phone number online.

Evaluate the veracity of what you read. Facebook has been blamed for spreading false stories and fake news on things like elections and vaccination rates. And be aware that five percent of Facebook accounts are fake.

Don’t be manipulated by Facebook algorithms that can influence how we express ourselves. For example, in 2018, Facebook allegedly tweaked its algorithm to encourage angrier content. Remember “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Proverbs 16:24 (New American Standard Bible)

Regulate your Facebook time to avoid addiction (more than 4 hours each day), loss of meaningful real-life experiences, and exacerbating depression. Let’s take a Facebook holiday when our use negatively impacts how we feel or behave.

            So what’s your experience with Facebook?

For information on subscribing to my weekly blog and ordering books in my dwarfism trilogy, go to https://angelamuirvanetten.com/books

DWARFISM TRILOGY VALENTINE’S SPECIAL: email me at angela@angelamuirvanetten.com to request all three books autographed—Dwarfs Don’t Live in Doll Houses, Pass Me Your Shoes, and Always an Advocate—for $20, plus $4.00 postage.

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Inclusion International

International Disability Fundraising Principles

Money

According to the United Nations there are one billion people with disabilities in the world! You might have read that this week as December 3rd was the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. So how do I write a post with universal appeal? Well upon prayerful reflection and relaxing at the tail end of the Thanksgiving Day parade, I settled on fundraising.

So what does that fundraising have to do with disability? A lot.

Although most of my mail is from charities asking for money, I understand the need and don’t object. But when it comes to disability charities, there are some principles that are essential to protect the dignity and independence of people with disabilities.

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When Robert worked for a nonprofit charity, we stood on these principles at great personal cost. The doctor directing his work recruited a marketing executive to write a draft letter intended for a direct mailing to potential donors. The draft featured both of us, but was so far off base we did not even recognize ourselves. It was clear that the writer knew nothing about little people—much less Robert or me personally.

Indeed, his fundraising philosophy was to tug at the emotional purse strings of the intended donors. The letter was loaded with images of dependency, distress, exaggerations, and offensive words like victim, crippled, plight, and suffering. Robert was portrayed as a pitiful poster child type needing to be rescued from pain and the jaws of death. He was depicted as a patient, not a professional. There was no mention of him being a biomedical engineer with a master’s degree coming to the organization to do medical research.

When we refused to endorse the letter, the only change was the removal of the fictional story about me—the pity-party philosophy still dominated. We met with the letter writer to explain that such fundraising tactics cause little people to be pitied and patronized. In turn, such misrepresentations hinder any conception of little people as equal contributing members of society.

We also presented our philosophy that preserved Robert’s dignity and argued that donors respond to knowing that their contribution is a worthy investment in a people with ability, determination, resilience, hope, and a future. Clearly, the writer was hearing such ideas for the first time. We hoped he could see that our philosophy and his letter were incompatible.

Despite numerous attempts to reach common ground, all draft letters continued with the same gut wrenching appeal for funds. Robert could not agree to this use of his name and person. He could not endorse a letter that encouraged potential donors to view little people as helpless victims dependent on charity. It was a matter of principle.

A parting of the ways was inevitable when the nonprofit secretly mailed the letter without Robert’s knowledge or permission.

These principles apply whatever your country or disability.

This post is a condensed version of chapter 6, Fundraising and Principle, in “Pass Me Your Shoes.”

DWARFISM TRILOGY CHRISTMAS SPECIAL: email me at angela@angelamuirvanetten.com to request all three books autographed—Dwarfs Don’t Live in Doll Houses, Pass Me Your Shoes, and Always an Advocate—for $20, plus $4.00 postage.

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Guest Inclusion

Celebrate People Blessed With Down Syndrome

Faith & mother

World Down Syndrome Day is 3-21-21. Down syndrome (Ds), named for Dr. Langdon Down, is the diagnosis for those blessed with a triplicate of the 21st chromosome. We celebrate this amazing group of people every March 21st because God doesn’t make mistakes; the triplicate didn’t slip his attention. In fact some people with Down syndrome will tell those of us with a typical duplicate #21 that we are the ones missing something.

That missing bit of genetic material may be why the world is such a cruel and serious place. People with Ds are vanishing at an alarming rate.

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Just as life expectancy for people with Ds has expanded to 60-70 years old, babies are being terminated just because they have Ds. Iceland has virtually eliminated births of babies with Ds through abortion. Norway is close behind.

Personally, I was not expecting to have a child with Ds. I wasn’t expecting a baby at all at 42 years old. But 23 years ago, Faith burst into our family and nothing has been the same since. She survived a C-section five weeks premature, weighing just three pounds, and was born with a serious heart defect. We were quickly thrust into the medical world: Faith had closed heart surgery at four months and open heart surgery at eight months, all before hitting the ten pound mark.

When things looked up medically (our fighter would survive!), I learned about physical therapy, speech therapy, feeding therapy, occupational therapy, early intervention, and play therapy. As school age approached, I educated myself on inclusion and decided Faith should be included in a general classroom instead of being segregated in a special classroom. When no Christian schools in our area would accept Faith in kindergarten, which hurt deeply, she enrolled in the public school. What a mission she had there! She touched so many lives of students, teachers, and administrators, and continues to be somewhat of a local celebrity because of all the people she impacted. I’m proud to announce that Faith was the first student with Down syndrome to graduate with a standard diploma in our county!

All of this has been a huge trial to my faith. A lifelong Christian, I was hurt and felt God was punishing me when I thought I had been doing His will. It took some time to get over the hurt, anger, and loss of trust. When the church school our older children attended refused to admit Faith, we left after over 20 years there. But we didn’t leave our faith, and found a church preschool willing to try.

As a young woman, Faith has a boyfriend, she loves her dance classes and voice lessons and has performed in many recitals and plays. With the support of her big sister and brother-in-law, Faith got involved in our original church where she joined the praise team, altar guild, and Bible study (we ended up following her back there). The isolation of the past year has been difficult for this social young woman, but she will bounce back because she’s a fighter.

This post first appeared on Angela Muir Van Etten’s blog on March 22, 2021 at https://angelamuirvanetten.com/. Readers are encouraged to share the post, but are asked to include the website link.

Categories
Disability Rights Inclusion

From Minus one Million to Plus Seven Million

Education
Image by Ernesto Eslava from Pixabay

The last 55 years has drastically changed the educational landscape for American children with disabilities. In 1975, one million were excluded from the public school system and, by 2018, almost seven million received special education services.

For centuries, children with disabilities were considered unteachable and not worth educating. For example, children with dwarfism were often hidden at home or destined for display as freaks or entertainment in the circus. Schools were not required to make accommodations and many children were sent to special schools that offered a separate and unequal education.

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So what accounts for the drastic change? The answer points squarely to the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act on December 2, 1975 (later renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA). The law passed because the federal government decided it was in the national interest to help States and localities provide programs to meet the educational needs of children with disabilities. IDEA mandated that children with disabilities receive a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment.

So with December 2nd now designated as #SpecialEducationDay, the focus is on IDEA’s implementation. It’s one thing to get a law passed, it’s quite another for it to be followed. As a former special education advocate, I attended hundreds of Individual Education Plan (IEP) meetings to resolve IDEA’s hot button issues on student eligibility, placement, accommodations, services, and fidelity.  

In determining whether a student is eligible for special education services, parents and school personnel often disagree. Psychological and/or neurological evaluations are needed to resolve the dispute. Once eligibility is settled, an annual IEP is written to document the student’s free and appropriate public education. Measurable goals and objectives are included to ensure the student makes meaningful progress. The IEP also contains needed services, placement, and accommodations.

Placement is an individualized assessment based on the needs of each student. It is by far the most contentious IEP issue as it wrestles with the mandate that students be educated in the least restrictive environment. IEP teams decide what percentage of the day a student will be educated in a regular classroom, a separate special education classroom, a combination of the two, a separate school for children with disabilities, virtual school, or hospital homebound.

Inclusion in regular classes is IDEA’s default position and a student will only be segregated from their peers when the special education services are more appropriate in another setting. School district budgets and resource allocations are not supposed to be part of the equation. But sadly, students are often relegated to separate classes or schools because funds are not available to support the student’s needs in the regular classroom or neighborhood school.

Although a lot of progress has been made since 1975, there is a long way to go before students with disabilities are assured equal protection under the law. Advocacy is needed to secure adequate funding for special education. Vigilance is vital to ensure children with disabilities are identified early and receive equal education opportunities. For more of my writings go to https://angelamuirvanetten.com where you can subscribe to my weekly blog and find several retail links to Pass Me Your Shoes: A Couple with Dwarfism Navigate Life’s Detours with Love and Faith.

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Inclusion

Staying Safe in Church

Image by Francine Sreca from Pixabay

Churches are a haven for God’s people and a target for those who hate them. As a result, responsible churches have taken Jesus words to heart:

“Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as serpents and as harmless as doves.” ∞ Matthew 10:16 (Holman Christian Standard Bible).

Knowing that Satan will do whatever he can to destroy a church, shrewd leaders have taken many steps to keep parishioners safe—mandatory criminal background checks for children and youth workers, safety patrols barring entry of unauthorized people during Vacation Bible School, and volunteers trained to counter an active shooter, to name a few.

In the COVID-19 pandemic, safety involves six feet social distancing, frequent hand washing, and wearing cloth face masks. So why would a church reopen after a mandatory lockdown to slow the spread without a key element of government safety protocols—asking people to wear face masks? Is it political, a distrust of the government and media, an expression of personal freedom, or something else? Whatever the reason, this choice does not meet the “harmless as doves” standard.  It forces high-risk people—due to disability, being age 65 or older, or both—who depend on others to wear masks, to keep a safe distance at home.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, without a cloth face covering, a person in close proximity to another can spread the virus through their mouth or nose when they breathe, speak, or sing. Even with a social distancing policy, people still get close to each other when they bunch together in a line, pass each other in a hallway, or are together in a bathroom.  

Individual decisions not to wear a mask have the effect of excluding high-risk people from church and run counter to God’s law of liberty and love discussed in Romans 14. Paul talked about different beliefs on eating and honoring special days that resulted in church members judging and despising one another. He reminded believers that they do not live for themselves and asked them not to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.

Today people have different beliefs on wearing face masks. And we need to consider that those who believe they are free not to wear a face mask are hurting members who believe they cannot attend church as a result. ”For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” ∞ Galatians 5:13 (New Living Translation)

Together we can make church a safe place for everyone. Look for the October release of my book—PASS ME YOUR SHOES: A Couple with Dwarfism Navigates Life’s Detours with Love and Faith—which discusses what happens when God intervenes in a marriage complicated by dishonesty, dwarfism, discord, and discrimination. The story speaks to the hearts of everyone, regardless of their differences, difficulties, or legal status.