2022 has arrived! While the last two years of the pandemic have been a blur— full of unexpected challenges and hardships— we are hoping the new year will bring better things. These months have been difficult for our Anthesis participants, and the disability community at-large. As is so often the case, after all, the most vulnerable are the ones that suffer the most during times of upheaval.
But we hope for brighter days ahead. Your continued support has helped us carry on our mission of empowering disabled adults in our community. We couldn’t do what we do without you— and we look forward to your help and partnership in the coming year.
A new year can be a time to reflect, and a time to make changes. While we are proud of our work at Anthesis, we always want to keep moving forward. We want to keep striving towards more equitable inclusion for all adults with disabilities. A part of that effort, of course, is to be the best ally we can in the movement for disability rights.
For some years now, disabled activists have worked extra hard to bring together the diverse disability community. The most effective way to advance the cause of disability rights? Unite the community under a common banner. And that starts with using the word “disabled.”
Most activists and advocates champion use of the word “disabled.” Embracing the word empowers the community and normalizes the disability experience. This helps strip away the negative stigmas that people have about disability. It may seem small, and irrelevant… but, words have power. Even one small word. When euphemisms are used, like “differently-abled” or “special needs,” it implies that a different word must be used to make the subject more palatable. Euphemisms, after all, are only used when it’s about something that is felt to be too undesirable to talk about openly.
So, in recent years, disability advocates and activists have sought to have these euphemisms cast aside. “Our needs are not special— they are human!” is a common rallying cry in this movement.
Further, by using a common word, it can help to unite disabled people (and their loved ones) together to fight for the services and rights that benefit everyone.
At Anthesis, we want to show solidarity with these efforts. So, we examined our mission statement and the language we used. Our tagline read: “Empowering adults with [dis]abilities to blossom.”
In this new year, we have decided to remove the brackets from the word “[dis]abilities” in our tagline. We want to stop using euphemisms, however veiled they may be. Is it a small gesture? Yes. But, at Anthesis, we feel it is important that we do our best to honor the work that disability advocates and activists do each and every day.
So, in 2022, it is our resolution to cast away all euphemisms for disability. For, at Anthesis, we are proud to partner with disabled adults— as we all work together to make our community stronger, more equitable and more inclusive.
So, let us begin! May your 2022 be safe, peaceful and healthy. Happy New Year from all of us at Anthesi