Ableism is a set of beliefs, practices, and social prejudices that devalue and discriminate against people with physical, intellectual, or psychiatric disabilities based on the belief that typical abilities are superior. It characterizes people as they are defined by their disabilities and classifies disabled people as inferior to non-disabled people. Ableism is rooted in the assumption that disabled people require ‘fixing’ and defines people by their disability, and it includes harmful stereotypes, misconceptions, and generalizations of people with disabilities. Ableism can take many forms, including:
- Micro-aggressions: Everyday verbal or behavioral expressions that communicate a negative slight or insult in relation to someone’s disability.
- Language: The language used to discuss people with disabilities can be ableist, such as using the phrase "suffering from" disability.
- Exclusion: Disabled people are often excluded from key decisions and are not included at the table.
Ableism is intertwined in our culture, due to many limiting beliefs about what disability does or does not mean, how able-bodied people learn to treat people with disabilities, and how the world we live in is inherently “ableist” . Ableism can be characterized as hostile, benevolent, or ambivalent. Hostile ableism is characterized by overt discrimination, while benevolent ableism is characterized by well-meaning but patronizing attitudes towards people with disabilities. Ambivalent ableism is somewhere in between hostile and benevolent ableism. Ableism may have evolutionary and existential origins, such as fear of contagion or fear of death, and it may also be rooted in belief systems, language, or unconscious biases.
To push back against ableism, it is important to ensure that people with disabilities are at the table where decisions are being made. It is also important to unlearn ableism and omit harmful words that are embedded in our language, which takes practice and commitment. Resources such as the National Center on Disability and Journalisms Disability Language Style Guide and activist Lydia X. Z. Browns glossary of ableist terms can be helpful.
