My Friends

Last week I posted about an article that I had read about the extreme mistreatment of persons with disabilities in Kenya, and thinking back to this article and topic makes me absolutely sick! Because I did not really elaborate on what was documented in the CNN news release I will give you a quick update here: The article was highlighting the disregard for human rights which was witnessed with people with disabilities in Kenya. They highlighted both the unjust treatment of people with disabilities in household and institutions. The later of these two was the most disturbing as they showed video evidence of the extreme mistreatment of people with primarily mental disabilities in an institution. Heavy sedated these people who called themselves 'prisoners' struggled to perform the most basic of task were receiving no assistance to improve their quality of life of wellbeing and disgustingly enough CNN broadcasters came across a person of the facility sleeping in his 'room' on the floor right next to a person who had died the day before. While for persons with physical or mental disabilities who were under the care of their family did benefit from what I would imagine to be more support and interaction their treatment was still not suited for a human being, in fact in Canada we often treat our pet animals better than the treatment documented. Two people with disabilities living with their family were shown tied to beds and trees, given very little stimulation and removed from the rest of society.

These people with disabilities shown in the news release are surely not much unlike the athletes who I coach and the athletes I call my friends. I would do anything in my power to help these people, because these people have beautiful hearts and beautiful bodies often in my books even surpassing that of any able-bodies person, but they often face challenges much greater than many others in communities which put great value on appearance and monetary success.

When I'm blue I often think of these athletes as a source of inspiration. There's always someone out there who as it harder than yourself and I find the idea of putting yourself in their shoes is a good exercise. This is not in any way to pity these people but to recognize the success of their spirit in overcoming and/or adapting to any physical or mental exceptionalities.

What are you afraid of?
- loosing your job?
- the idea of death?
- not being smart enough?

While these are serious and understandable fears the the athletes I coach may have these fears and more
- who will keep them safe once their parents die, because they may not be capable of doing this themselves
- the upcoming surgery they have to have
- having a stroke on the street on their way to work
- being taunted, ridiculed or singled out

Most of these athletes were born carrying a considerable burden on their shoulders, whether they recognize it as such or not (not to say this burden should be theirs... I believe it is societies build environment and 'norms' which burden people) and are often not on an even playing field as their able bodied friends when you consider the ability to carry out the tasks of every day living, and they need the support and assistance of others.

However assistance does not need to be a hand out, rather a hand up and onwards
When adjustments are made to equipment and teaching style we can give empowerment to youth with disabilities and see them succeed. Although there are beneficial medical treatment/surgeries such things can only change a person so much and once this level of improvement is reached it is no longer the individual who can change - it is time for the society around them to do so. Too, it is important to understand that the conventional order of treating the person first as the source of disease and problem is in not always the best approach, lots of success can come if the environment and society around them changes too.

This past weekend I took my coaching to the next level! I traveled with the Special Olympics snowshoeing team to Huntsville for the 1st open to all race/last race of the year (not nearly as many snowshoeing meets are available as there are track and field races in the summer) and I got to spend two 4 hour drives + a night over + a day of racing with the group of athletes in attendance. Merely looking at the level of commitment these athletes show to their cold, uncomfortable and definitely not easy winter sport deserve a lot of respect.  On a humorous note it ended up being my abilities that were put up to the test and ... unfortunately seemed to lack luster at this track meet. One athlete in particular has shown himself to be extremely dedicated and hard working over the course of the season, and from it has come great success as we have seen his distances increasing as his times decreased. Unfortunately this athlete has an additional challenge, on top of merely running in unstable cold conditions in snowshoes, he also has to maintain a perfect balance between pushing hard and challenging his boundaries and staying on two feet, as he is very prone to passing out. To help I jumped in, with the hope that my presence would keep him calm and avoid fainting. Luck for me this was the weekend that this athlete decided to again challenge himself entering into the 1600 (furthest previous race done was the 800m) as the only participant. From the moment myself and this athlete lined up on the starting line I knew he was going to be pulling me through the race, and my predictions were true. On a few occasions I considered slowing down and even giving up (I was embarrassingly tired :S.. but hid it well :S) and it was without a doubt the athletes strength, determination and passion that pulled me through the race.

Like the strength and determination shown by this depicted athlete, it is my belief that great abilities and strength lies inside of all of us and they just need the to be given the opportunity to come out. Look at our Paralympians for an example, their feats of strength, agility and determination are nothing to be pitied, in fact many able bodied people may feel dwarfed by the greatness of their accomplishments.

But when it comes to the treatment of people with disabilities in Kenya do I deserve to feel sick? Is it their fault? Are my expectations fair? Enabling people with mental and physical disabilities is not always a simple task. It can not be denied that they on most occasions need more assistance than people who are able bodied, at least during their development, as they learn to understand their body and mind and how it operates in relation to the environment around them. Of course too it cannot be denied that many more aggressive and expensive forms of assistance such as corrective surgeries and medications often used in Canada are unattainable for people in developing areas. But I believe there is so much that can be done and is assistance that can be given that is within reach of even the people living in the slums.

The goal when giving assistance, whether through invasive medical techniques or simple interactive means, is to eventually become obsolete, where the skills of the teacher are out done by the student.  However to reach this stage I believe two primary things are needed, and these things fall into two basic categories: Materials and Societal understanding and acceptance. Often people with physical and/or mental disabilities will benefit from assistive devices. These devices are not crutches, they are not for people with problems, they are just for people who's needs are not like that of 'normal' society and their complexity can range from more complex computer aided speech devices to simplistic easy to grasp tools such as extra wide pencils. Unfortunately implementing these tools does not appear to be common practice in Kenya and due to a lack of support and awareness most of these persons are institutionalized (especially those with mental disabilities) or separated from others. Although the National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) was set up in Kenya in 2004 following the Persons with Disabilities ACT in 2003 (a comprehensive law covering rights, rehabilitation and equal opportunities for people with disabilities) there are countless accounts of people who have received a lack of support from the government.

I would believe there would be benefits to keeping children with their families, primarily for emotional reasons, as I have seen both the amazing growth in children with supportive families and the emotional baggage carried by those who are not. However I am not sure if it is fair to say that parents should be taking care of their own children who have disabilities as there is a significant burden to come with this responsibility. Its becomes more than just an issue of a lack of government support and develops into issues of social injustice. Families are often outcast and unwelcome, forced to keep their children hidden away and even in some cases chased out of neighborhoods. It is clear that the burden faced by families with children with disabilities and the people themselves are greater than that faced by people in Canada. These issues speaks to the issue of societally created stigmas against people with physical and mental disabilities. Although things may be getting better as we see the voices of people with disabilities represented in public policies and government agendas. Societal stigmas must be removed for people with disabilities to have the opportunity to showcase their skills and abilities. Unfortunately it seems like vicious circle that is hard to break. How will society ever see them as able citizens if they are not given the support and materials they need to develop and use their skills and how will they ever receive this if society never changes their view and stigmas towards people with disabilities.

While I will not lower my standards of treatment and respect for persons with disabilities I will have to understand the circumstances in which treatment is being provided to these people in Kenya. In class discussions we have touched on the issue of coming into action in moments of (in our view) injustice such as child neglect and spousal abuse and when it is appropriate and when it is safe. While the risks of such action are apparent in most situations (primarily I would imagine this threat to be that of retaliation), there are no clear lines regarding when to act and when turn your gaze. The cultural belief concerning the appropriateness of said westerly unfavorable behavior in the context of the Kenyan society should be considered. However no matter how common place things like spousal abuse and abuse to persons with disabilities may be in any area  it is clear to me that the value for human life is not being upheld, and this is not justifiable.

Although I cannot say for certain which level of ability or disability the people I will work with in Kenya will have I am under the impression that a significant percentage will be facing challenges due to either congenital or attained physical and/or mental disabilities (my roommate, born in Zambia believes I may see many injuries and deformities attained due to violence which erupted around 2007 around political elections). Too I cannot for say for certain how I will confront mistreatment of these people if I witness it, but I know I will do what is in my power to provide them with the materials, support and assistance I have available to enable them to live a successful and meaningful life.

This is perhaps the area which I am most interested in learning more about when it comes to life in the slums and in Kenya in general. While I do understand that my role is not to place my beliefs and cultural norms on the people of Kenya, and that a major focus of this placement will be about learning from the people, the empowerment of persons with disabilities is one are which I hope to make a little impact, hopefully empower those who do not match societies view of an 'able bodied' person.