Shocking revelations have recently surfaced in my facebook comment sections clarifying that a significant portion of Americans believe that disabled people should not have civil liberties. Call me crazy (Can I say that? “Crazy”?), but I think they DO deserve the constitutional rights that all the rest of us have! So I’ve compiled a list of the top five arguments for why disabled people deserve rights.
#5 — Health insurance companies and doctors need high-paying customers.
Disabled folks are always paying a premium for everything, not just appointments. Without their cash flow, the economy crumbles. Do you REALLY want The Great Depression 2.0?
#4 — Workplaces and universities need token minorities.
Representation and diversity can’t happen if there’s no one to meet that quota… I mean, represent the population.
#3 — Fictional stories need characters to suffer for the sake of the main character’s plot development.
Let’s not put John Green out of business, shall we?
#2 — Disabled people are sentient.
If we take their rights away, they’re going to know.
#1 — Disabled people are the single most important source of inspiration for non-disabled folks.
I almost didn’t write this article, but then I saw a little boy without a hand holding a pencil. And I thought, “Damn, I better open Google docs!”