DEAR GRADUATING CLASS OF 2015: THE FUTURE IS UP TO YOU

Dear Graduates:

As you head out into the world, I’d like to offer a few thoughts and bits of advice:

·        Do not be fooled. It might be 2015, but there is still a lot of inequality out there. Just because a law gives everyone the same rights doesn’t magically make it so. Equality comes not from statute books but from the attitudes and everyday acts of human beings.

·        Donating money to a cause or clicking “like” on a Facebook page is nice, but won’t change things very much. If you want to change things for the better, speak up when you see unfairness. Tell a business owner that you will no longer patronize their store or restaurant because disabled people can’t get in the door or up to the counter. By the same token, praise those who make an effort to include everyone.

·        If your body, mind and sensory organs function within “normal” parameters, be grateful. But don’t assume that makes you superior to anyone else. Blindness, Down Syndrome or a nasty limp may present challenges but do not make someone a lesser being.

·        If you wouldn’t make a statement about someone of a different race or religion, then don’t make that same statement about someone with a disability. For example, telling someone that it’s a shame she’s in a wheelchair is the same as telling her it’s a shame that she’s African-American or Jewish. Get the picture?

·        People with disabilities do not exist for the purpose of inspiring you or making you feel better about your problems. Imagine if your every breath, thought and act took place not for you own self-actualization, but for the benefit of everyone around you. Scary, right?

·        Borrowing your grandmother’s handicapped parking permit or lying that your pet is really a service dog are not victimless crimes. They make the whole world that much more suspicious and distrustful of disabled people with legitimate permits and service dogs. Simply put: that crap makes my life that much harder, so please don’t be that type of douchebag.

·        As your careers take off, try to make your corner of the world a little better. How? If you own your own business, make it fully disability accessible. If you become an HR director, recruit employees with disabilities. If you design anything – houses, cars, appliances, tech devices – make them universally accessible to all. If someday you’re a high flyer – a company’s CEO or the governor of your state – create a corporate culture of inclusion, from the top down.

Now go forth and do great things.