Amy Sequenzia on Disability Awareness campaigns that silence the very people they claim to advocate for.
I Am Aware of You
I am aware of you
Of your dismissiveness
Of your hostility
Of your badly disguised contempt
You say you do all that
Because it is a much needed
First step
A first step
Towards acceptance, you say
But we need to change our ways first
A first step
Towards better services, you say
As long as not-us are served first
You claim to speak for some of us
The ones you call trapped
Voiceless
Severely damaged
But you don’t try to listen to what we say
Especially if we don’t use our voices
You silence us
You claim to understand what we need
As long as it fits with your idea of
Convenience
Normalization
“Desired outcomes”
The step you want us to take
Lead us not up
Nor forward
It leads us
Nowhere
We become targets
Of mockery
Of pity
Of hate
I am aware of you
And of your strategies
You want to use our lives
To raise money
To promote your ideas that
Bear little resemblance to
The life we want to live
You say you are listening
Then
You call us unreasonable when
We demand respect
I am aware of you
And I see your game
“Let’s listen to both sides”, you chastise us
Already dividing what shouldn’t be negotiable:
Our dignity
Our voices
Our experiences
One side – us – seeking respect and understanding
Your side seeking authority
Decision making status
Control
I am aware of you
You spread “beware of us”
You side with,
Defend and promote
Anyone
Who rejects us
I am aware of you
Empathy
Respect
Community
Allyship
You know the words
You don’t live the concept
We listen until we tire
The words overwhelm and pierce our soul:
DEFICITS
BE AWARE OF THE DEFICITS
BEWARE OF THE DEFICITS
BEWARE
BEWARENESS
Silent we are no longer
We are aware of you
You want us to change
You say that compliance will make us happy
You call us inflexible
Difficult
A “behavior” case
But I am aware of you and
Of your inflexibility
Your unwillingness to see us
As people
With our own goals
Our own feelings, and
Self-determination
You yell: LIFE SKILLS ARE IMPORTANT!
But you only want one thing – Compliance
I am aware of you
I am aware of you
I beware of your awareness
I reject your approach
I am aware of you
Are you aware of your
Undesirable
Unwanted
Intrusive
Unhelpful
BEWARENESS?
I am aware
Of you
Of your methods
Of your game – a rigged game of power
That denies us humanity
I am aware – of you
Copyright 2016 by Amy Sequenzia
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