Life has a right to exist

There has been a bit of a breezy storm on twittersphere and other social networking sites this past week.

About this man.

Colin Brewer

A Cornwall Councillor who apparently remarked that all disabled children should be put down. He has since resigned. It only took him two years to do so.

Turns out Cornwall seems to have another councillor, leader of Children Services no less who has also made a few flippant remarks.

A Mr Neil Burden

Click on their names to read the full story as I really cannot be bothered to provide a synopsis of the trash they talk.

A lot of parents of children with special needs are rightly upset by these comments. I just found them to be outdated and small-minded.

I am not upset by them. After all I don't live in Cornwall and those men are probably idiots, trying to find ways to cut budgets, realising that yes, providing care, therapy, equipment, etc. etc. does take a large chunk of the town hall budget. Because of this they point the finger towards the weak and needy. What are they actually saying that those, for whatever reason that are less fortunate than our able bodied selves should all quietly disappear?

Are they actually saying what others are too afraid to say? That our children are expensive, that our children will probably not be able to give back to society in monetary terms, that our children do not have a right to exist?

Life has a right to exist and with it so does my child and all his extra costs. We live in a society that chooses to care for those that need our care, we are meant to look after the less fortunate. And what does Zack give back, you see that, Mr Brewer and Mr Burden is something you unfortunately do not have the pleasure of receiving. You will never understand that a person, a human being, be that they can't speak, walk, feed themselves or move any part of their body can say a thousand words in one look. That they can make you understand what it means to feel real unconditional love, and most importantly that by sharing in their life you learn more about the world, human nature and what it means to live than any other path you may walk.

Attitudes like theirs need to change. People need to see past the disabilities. We need to stop making assumptions about children and adults with disabilities, we need to learn more and stop assuming that our pre-conceived ideas are the truth. There are people out there trying to make a difference and trying to teach others. One such person is Zack's little Conductive Education pal Issac and his parents. They have set up a website that aims to promote what it means to be disabled. You can check them out here Izzys Busy they offer talks to schools and universities, which I think is a fantastic idea. After all it is only by educating others, normalising disability that we may perhaps move towards a deeper acceptance rather than just paying lips service to it.

I guess I am not upset, just angry.