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MD poster condemned by rights activists
By Cathy Reay
Campaigners have struck out at a new appeal
poster saying it reinforces society’s view that wheelchair users “don’t have a
life”.
The posters feature a boy called Bradley, who has muscular dystrophy (MD) and is in a wheelchair, with the slogan “he’d love to walk away from this poster too”.
There are over 1,000 appeal posters from the MD Campaign on display across public areas in the UK over February and March. The advert is near identical to one shot by Lord Snowdon in 1977 to promote awareness of MD.
However, MD campaigners have argued that, under the current charity fundraising approach, the new adverts reinforce an age-old stereotype rather than appealing to the social model, which is what many believe disables those with MD in the first place.
Rachel Hurst, a campaigner with MD, said: “What’s so good about walking? Not being able to walk isn’t the problem, it’s people thinking a) he’ll die and b) he has no life because he’s in a wheelchair. This just underlines stereotypes.”
Andy Crooks, who also has MD, said: “My initial reaction was one of disbelief. It’s dumbfounding that such negative imagery would be used to go back to the old stereotype of wheelchair users being people to pity. MD Campaign told me “all we’re trying to do is give you a voice”, but this isn’t my voice, it’s not my point of view.”
MD Campaign chief executive Phillip O’Neill, who has a daughter with MD, said the charity consulted with dozens of people with MD before publicizing the advert. “The division between the medical and social model is false, any ‘sane’ person with MD realises the condition is both. Nobody would want his or her child not to walk. Fighting it on a medical front is important to us but so is fighting it on a social front. We’re all in this together. We rely on funding from the public and are extremely proud of the adverts.”
- To view the poster and for more information on the campaign visit http://www.muscular-dystrophy.org/bradley
I have MD and I'd like to walk away too
People with this condition are disabled both by society and the condition itself. Duchenne MD is life limiting - that's a biological fact not a social barrier. The majority (I'm tempted to say everyone but obviously there may be a few outliers) of people with the condition would jump at the chance to be cured.
Of course, the social model is incredibly valuable in shifting the focus onto social barriers, and there is a huge amount of work that still needs to be done to allow people with MD as with any other disability to be able to live independently, and to raise people's awareness of the valuable lives people can live. People with MD would be a lot less disabled if society was more accessible and inclusive.
I'm not trying to say that people can't live fulfilling lives with MD - I consider that I do myself, and I have the condition. But I would like to live my life as long as possible - so I would also like a cure, and in that sense the poster is an accurate reflection of how I and a lot of people with the condition feel.
I think we all agree that disabled people should have a voice. But guess what, that voice is not a single consistent voice, and why should it be? For some people, the loudest voice is the one saying "I want a cure". The important point is that we make clear that it is a matter of personal preference, and that there are also disabled people who are perfectly content with their lives. I don't think it's necessary to criticise and sometimes demonise people, particularly disabled people themselves, for suggesting that a cure is desirable.
Regardless of these disagreements, there are some things we can all agree on, such as the notion that it is possible to live fulfilling, enjoyable lives as a disabled person if the social conditions are right.
Duchenne MD and the social model of disability
When you say "the poster is an accurate reflection of how I and a lot of people with the condition feel". I think that you mean you wish that you could be cured. But do you want the public to see you as that person in the poster or the person who you say you are; someone who has a good fullfilling life but who battles against prejudice and discrimination on a daily basis.
When you say "Of course, the social model is incredibly valuable in shifting the focus onto social barriers, and there is a huge amount of work that still needs to be done to allow people with MD (and other disabled people)...to be able to live independently".
I agree, if he is talking about there is a lot of work to be done by disabled people, disabled people's organisations and the disabled People's movement in terms of the independent living agenda. this can only be achieved when disabled people organise themselves around the social model of disability as they have, people with many different impairments, conditions etc since the 1970s. The problem is at the moment there are many wolves in sheep's clothing organisations who have been set up purely as service providers who front their operations with figleaf disabled people while they promote the governments agenda. These have no interest in the wider political debate and no allegiance with the disabled People's movement, purely a desire to become a bigger and more profitable service providing empire.
I also agree that a lot of disabled people would jump at a cure if one ever came along but is organising and campaigning around medical treatment or cure going to bring it any closer.
We cannot change our impairments, whether these or a result of accident, illness, genetics or whatever. What we can do though, is organise and campaign around the things that we can change, so we have adequate funding for personal assistants, suitable housing, equipment, transport, information, in other words, the basic needs of independent living identified by Derbyshire Centre for integrated living.
Jon says this "People with MD would be a lot less disabled if society was more accessible and inclusive" and "it is possible to live fulfilling, enjoyable lives as a disabled person if the social conditions are right".
We all want to live life as long as possible, I haven't long left myself and so I would also like a cure for my premature death. The thing is though, our premature deaths, or those of the next generation may well come about because of policy changes, especially the way things are going at the moment in regards legalising assisted suicide, coupled with the way that the media (and some charities) portrays us as dependent, a burden on those around us and the state, and our lives is not worth living. I can see a future not so far off, if disabled people don't start organising in campaigning as a matter of urgency, where the loudest voice is not one saying "I want a cure" or I want social change. It could well be that our voices, if they will be heard at all, may well be pleading I want support to live not die.
Will local user-led orgs speak out and save us if it conflicts with the government agenda? I doubt it based on the silence of such organisations and lack of campaigning about the forthcoming barbaric policies that intend to punish disabled people and push them into further isolation and poverty for the greed of the bankers and other financiers.
"any ‘sane’ person"
And this is the kind of person who runs a disability charity?