Weekend reading and viewing: 6th - 7th July 2013

“I Never Knew I Wanted a Child with Down syndrome”
Meriah,  With a Little Moxie, 2nd July, 2013

What feels like a million years ago, I was on the Baby Center Down syndrome Board. I was immersing myself in the questions, the comments, the endless threads. The talk, the chatter, the crying, the heartache. The “brag”s. One signature struck me in particular, “I never knew I wanted a child with Down syndrome until I got one.” I still don’t know who originally came up with that – do you? – but I clearly remember the pang in me that I felt when I first read it.

DisabilityCare is just a step towards a better Australia

Stella Young, The Drum (ABC), 3rd July, 2013
Today, there are people with more support than they had yesterday. And tomorrow there will be more. This is a credit to the growing disability rights movement in Australia who have fought tooth and nail, tweet and sound bite, for a better support scheme. We should all take pause and be proud of ourselves as we look towards this brighter future. And then we should get back to work. The NDIS is momentous, but it's also only a step in the journey towards an equitable Australia. We have miles to go before we sleep.

Our Version of Normal
Christie Hoos, Down Syndrome Research Foundation (Vancouver), 3rd July 2013

Sometimes, I forget. People are staring at us with big grins and smile-y eyes. The kind of looks reserved for fluffy bunnies and newborn kittens. Awwwww… One lady nudges the guy next to her and nods in our direction. And it clicks. Of course. Now I remember. All my children are winsome – uniquely beautiful in their own way. But none of the others get this kind of attention.

A Jerk with a Halo and Some Shabby Wings

21+21+21=?, 2nd July 2013

What are real people made of? What are stereotypes made of? My favorite article ever written about a person with Down syndrome is titled 'People with Down syndrome can be jerks too.' To me this article and especially its title speak of great things ...

The Faint Stirring of Revolution

Dave Hingsburger, R0lling Around in My Head, 3rd July 2013

I think sometimes those in support providing roles need to establish themselves, to others around, that they work with people with disabilities, that they are the staff, so they do things to identify themselves as staff and disidentify themselves with any possible disability ...

Building Networks for a ‘Good Life,’ Even After the Caregiver Is Gone 

David Bornstein, New York Times (Opinionator), 26th June 2013

Vancouver is home to one of the world’s most innovative disability support organizations: the Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network (PLAN), which helps people secure futures for family members with disabilities — not by providing them with professional services but by showing them how to build resilient and flexible networks of care ...