What is DISABILITY PRIDE Month?

Let’s talk … DISABILITY PRIDE MONTH

Despite being an invisibly disabled individual myself, I personally have not really been aware of Disability Pride Month before. I have spent the last few days researching and creating some infographics in the hopes that this information will be easily shared and accessible so we can raise some more awareness!

When is Disability Pride Month? And how did it start?

July is home to Disability Pride Month and although disability pride day has been around since 1990 there is still limited publicity and attention around it.

It all began with the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.

What is Disability Pride Month about?

embracing life
promoting inclusivity
reclaiming a sense of identity
redefining the power dynamic that is shaping our society
reducing stigma
highlight the importance of a diverse community

I came across an amazing article by Caroline Casey where they describe and sum up what disability pride means so well when stating: “we are proud because of who we are, and that pride doesn’t depend on meeting anyone’s benchmarks for how ‘successful’ or ‘normal’ we might appear to be.”

WHY do we have/need Disability Pride Month?

The simple answer as to why we have and need Disability Pride Month is… because ableism is heavily ingrained in modern society.

A brief explanation of ableism: ableism is discrimination with the assumption that typical abilities are superior/better than disabilities and that people with disabilities are burdensome. (if you want to learn more check out my other post on ableism). *be aware unconscious ableism is extremely common.

Disability Pride Flag by Ann Magill

*Important* we have an updated flag — where possible please use the NEW flag because the old saturated ‘lightning bolt’ flag may cause a strobe/flicker effect when scrolled on electronic devices, and can be a trigger for seizure, migraines, disorientation and other types of eye strain.

Each colour symbolizes a different part of the disability community:

RED: physical disabilities
BLUE: mental illness
BLACK: represents the disabled people who have lost their lives due not only to their illness, but also to negligence, suicide and eugenics.
YELLOW: cognitive and intellectual disabilities
WHITE: invisible and undiagnosed disabilities
GREEN: sensory perception disabilities