jamieboy wrote:
As far as i'm concerned i should have equal rights and opportunities with an equivalently intelligent NT. Describing myself as learning disabled hinders my chances of making the most of my intellect. Since it establishes me as "slow" in the eyes of the majority of society. It's a neurological difference and i am not "slower"to learn than an NT. It's a question of ambition and self-worth i think. Should i be happy to have any job and internalize the descriptors of NT's?
"I'm slow so i'm lucky to be stacking shelves at wal mart. Thank you to my employer for helping to me to experience the life-affirming power of wage labour!"
I am committed to either fairness and parity, or oblivion and i can't be happy any other way.
You pass judjement too quickly on the learning disabled, and do exactly what you fear others will do unfairly to you. By your impression, learing disability=unintelligent, or even by your description mentally ret*d. That's not true. There are many people with learning disabilities that have very high IQs (though I personally don't think IQ is completely analagous to a person's real intelligence, anyway). Their brains are just a little different in some areas, and they have to take a less traditional approach to do things the way others do them. That takes extraordinary intelligence if they're successful at it. People on the spectrum also have brains that are a little different in some areas, and we too have to learn to navigate a world that doesn't understand or accept those differences. It doesn't matter how intelligent others percieve us, whether or not it's justified. Our social issues will always give us a challenge that most people don't have. That doesn't mean we'll never get any oppurtunities in life. Sometimes you may have to create your own.
I pass judgement on what societies general attitude to the learning disabled is. Not what it should be. I also think that it's a fact that employment agencies that are supposed to help the disabled employ them in some quite low level jobs which the person is then supposed to be thankful for. I see my future as someone with no qualification's to be ekeing out a living doing the jobs that no one else wants to do through no fault of my own. It may very well be easy for someone who doesn't know my personal history to assume i'm stupid and i think applying the term learning disabled to myself will just confirm that for them. I can see how it might benefit some of the more successful people here but not how it would apply to or help, rather than hinder myself.
23 Feb 2011, 1:24 am
