Extension of Blue Badge Scheme to Hidden Disabilities
Hey All!
In the last week many may have heard about blue badges will now be accessible to those with 'Hidden Disabilities.' You probably won't be surprised to hear that I think this is awesome! Not only is this an amazing step towards shattering the myth that disabilities have to be visible to be valid, but it will also provide more support to those whose disabilities aren't often taken seriously because they aren't linked to mobility or intense 'physical' impairment. This essentially means that blue badges will now be accessible to those whose difficulties may be due to psychological distress or an autism spectrum disorder, a very necessary step in the right direction.
However, what isn't as pleasant is some of the responses that I have witnessed to this news. It has been incredibly disappointing to see people raging about space availability and how those who will now be now be included in gaining support don't REALLY need the support. I even saw someone comparing the validity of 'physical disabilities' and 'lifestyle disabilities!' 'Lifestyle disabilities,' like some disabilities are a choice?! Not only does this feed into many unhelpful and damaging stereotypes about ASDs and mental illnesses but it also ignores the significances of pretty much all disabilities, saying that if your disability isn't clearly evident and related to mobility nobody cares. All these comments seem to come from a place of extreme ignorance about invisible disabilities and whose fault it is that resources are limited. The most disappointing part is that many of these comments have come from members of the disabled community who want to compare the validity of conditions, sadly only furthering the distance between sections of our community. I thought that as someone with a 'physical' condition that affects my mobility but also has experienced difficulties separate from this and who can logically see why some people with hidden disabilities may require a blue badge, I would offer my take. I would also like to offer reasons why some of the arguments used against this much needed development are heavily flawed.
Why might someone with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) or psychological difficulties need a blue badge? The key argument used in the approval of this decision for autistic individuals to have blue badge access is the potential for an autistic child to have a much reduced sense of danger. In this case a parking space at the front of the supermarket would be far safer than a space in the middle of the carpark, reducing the likelihood that said child will run in front of a car. Furthermore, carparks and town-like areas tend to very loud and overstimulating places, increasing the risk of meltdowns. Due to the dangers, involved a car filled space is possibility one of the most unsafe places possible to have a meltdown, once again suggesting immediate and nearby parking may be best for an individual. However, safety is not the only valid argument for this decision in my opinion. Most people have experienced worrying about whether they will be able to find a parking space, especially if they have to be somewhere for a particular time. Now imagine the intensity of this worrying when paired with an anxiety disorder or a disorder often closely related to anxiety (such as ASD/ASC). This level anxiety will must probably result in more than minor frustrating, potentially stopping the individual from leaving the house all together. This experience could be worsened even further for an autistic individual who needs routine and for things to go according to plan. While a panic attack or meltdown may not immediately seem painful to you, they are incredibly distressing, frustrating, and yes, painful, robbing the individual of all sense of control. Additionally, they can result in physical harm due to physical movements (thrashing, head banging, etc.) It's not really your place to say what is and isn't painful for another.
The extension of the blue badge scheme has also been explicitly extended to those ' for whom travel causes "very considerable psychological distress"' (BBC). Once again this may include a number of people. Maybe someone who has PTSD from a car accident, or someone who has severe generalised anxiety surrounding different elements of travel (e.g. time keeping, driving, etc.) or maybe an autistic individual for whom travelling/driving can induce intense sensory overload. It could even be that someone with a certain condition has impaired executive functioning and benefit from the space. For all these the reduction of travel time due to ease of parking would be incredibly beneficial, greatly reducing emotional distress and pain. Just because you haven't had an experience that doesn't make it invalid and it's not your job to police other people's feelings.
There have been several incredibly flawed arguments used against this decision, used by both abled-bodied and disabled folk. First, what on earth even is a 'lifestyle disability'?! A lifestyle may be Yoga or cutting out artificial sugars (decisions that could also be related to health), it's not having a disability! No one chooses to have a disability or condition!
Secondly, one suggestion I've seen is a colour coding system for different types of conditions, which is unethical and impractical on so many levels. What would the different groups be? Physical and Not-Physical? Severe and Mild? Valid and Invalid? All disabilities and conditions are valid and all these terms are subjective. All this would result is further segregation and in-fighting, doing nothing to help the disabled community! We already have people harassing those who have fluctuating conditions, such as MS. We don't need more drama and fighting. Also, what colour would elderly people without diagnosed disabilities use? There is a whole section of society who already need and use blue badges whether they have a specific diagnosis or not! Finally, this system would just create chaos and confrontation. Say someone with a 'physical' disability has a orange badge and someone with a disability has a purple badge, what we'd potentially end up with is some individuals with orange badges demanding that those with purple badges give up their spaces. Once again we'd return to arguments about who has it worse, when that isn't how this works.
The other flawed argument I've heard is that this will reduce the number of spaces available to those with mobility problems. Ultimately, if this decision creates leads to a strain on spaces, it should be those distributing blue badges to request for more local, blue badge spaces. We should be increasing resources, not keeping them from those who need them. Ultimately, it isn't the person with a hidden disabilities fault that there are not more blue badge spaces. Additionally, I fear that some people believe that it is some of these people who are already using spaces with a badge. In case that is anyone's thought process, I very much doubt that those without badges with invisible disabilities are the ones to blame when all the space are gone, simply because I can't imagine they want the attention. It is my understanding the cars taking up spaces without a badge are owned by able-bodied peoples who simply haven't thought. At the end, as a disabled individual I can tell that the process for accessing such help is incredibly long and essentially impossible to take advantage of.
Ultimately, blue badges are about increasing access. For those for whom travelling without a blue badge could result in increased danger or emotional distress that is exactly what this decision will do, which is why I believe we as a community should be celebrating. At least that the message I hear when Transport Minister Jesse Norman says "Blue badges are a lifeline for disabled people, giving them the freedom and confidence to get to work and visit friends independently" (BBC). For many these difficulties may stop them leaving the house and for them a blue badge might open the door. Surely, that's what progress is.
For more information read: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44993036 (just be careful of the comments on such articles)
I hope you are all well and safe.
See you later Alligators!
Freya x
PHOTO SOURCES:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44993036
https://www.jjslist.com/blog/mental-illness-the-invisible-disability
In the last week many may have heard about blue badges will now be accessible to those with 'Hidden Disabilities.' You probably won't be surprised to hear that I think this is awesome! Not only is this an amazing step towards shattering the myth that disabilities have to be visible to be valid, but it will also provide more support to those whose disabilities aren't often taken seriously because they aren't linked to mobility or intense 'physical' impairment. This essentially means that blue badges will now be accessible to those whose difficulties may be due to psychological distress or an autism spectrum disorder, a very necessary step in the right direction.
However, what isn't as pleasant is some of the responses that I have witnessed to this news. It has been incredibly disappointing to see people raging about space availability and how those who will now be now be included in gaining support don't REALLY need the support. I even saw someone comparing the validity of 'physical disabilities' and 'lifestyle disabilities!' 'Lifestyle disabilities,' like some disabilities are a choice?! Not only does this feed into many unhelpful and damaging stereotypes about ASDs and mental illnesses but it also ignores the significances of pretty much all disabilities, saying that if your disability isn't clearly evident and related to mobility nobody cares. All these comments seem to come from a place of extreme ignorance about invisible disabilities and whose fault it is that resources are limited. The most disappointing part is that many of these comments have come from members of the disabled community who want to compare the validity of conditions, sadly only furthering the distance between sections of our community. I thought that as someone with a 'physical' condition that affects my mobility but also has experienced difficulties separate from this and who can logically see why some people with hidden disabilities may require a blue badge, I would offer my take. I would also like to offer reasons why some of the arguments used against this much needed development are heavily flawed.
Why might someone with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) or psychological difficulties need a blue badge? The key argument used in the approval of this decision for autistic individuals to have blue badge access is the potential for an autistic child to have a much reduced sense of danger. In this case a parking space at the front of the supermarket would be far safer than a space in the middle of the carpark, reducing the likelihood that said child will run in front of a car. Furthermore, carparks and town-like areas tend to very loud and overstimulating places, increasing the risk of meltdowns. Due to the dangers, involved a car filled space is possibility one of the most unsafe places possible to have a meltdown, once again suggesting immediate and nearby parking may be best for an individual. However, safety is not the only valid argument for this decision in my opinion. Most people have experienced worrying about whether they will be able to find a parking space, especially if they have to be somewhere for a particular time. Now imagine the intensity of this worrying when paired with an anxiety disorder or a disorder often closely related to anxiety (such as ASD/ASC). This level anxiety will must probably result in more than minor frustrating, potentially stopping the individual from leaving the house all together. This experience could be worsened even further for an autistic individual who needs routine and for things to go according to plan. While a panic attack or meltdown may not immediately seem painful to you, they are incredibly distressing, frustrating, and yes, painful, robbing the individual of all sense of control. Additionally, they can result in physical harm due to physical movements (thrashing, head banging, etc.) It's not really your place to say what is and isn't painful for another.
The extension of the blue badge scheme has also been explicitly extended to those ' for whom travel causes "very considerable psychological distress"' (BBC). Once again this may include a number of people. Maybe someone who has PTSD from a car accident, or someone who has severe generalised anxiety surrounding different elements of travel (e.g. time keeping, driving, etc.) or maybe an autistic individual for whom travelling/driving can induce intense sensory overload. It could even be that someone with a certain condition has impaired executive functioning and benefit from the space. For all these the reduction of travel time due to ease of parking would be incredibly beneficial, greatly reducing emotional distress and pain. Just because you haven't had an experience that doesn't make it invalid and it's not your job to police other people's feelings.
There have been several incredibly flawed arguments used against this decision, used by both abled-bodied and disabled folk. First, what on earth even is a 'lifestyle disability'?! A lifestyle may be Yoga or cutting out artificial sugars (decisions that could also be related to health), it's not having a disability! No one chooses to have a disability or condition!
Secondly, one suggestion I've seen is a colour coding system for different types of conditions, which is unethical and impractical on so many levels. What would the different groups be? Physical and Not-Physical? Severe and Mild? Valid and Invalid? All disabilities and conditions are valid and all these terms are subjective. All this would result is further segregation and in-fighting, doing nothing to help the disabled community! We already have people harassing those who have fluctuating conditions, such as MS. We don't need more drama and fighting. Also, what colour would elderly people without diagnosed disabilities use? There is a whole section of society who already need and use blue badges whether they have a specific diagnosis or not! Finally, this system would just create chaos and confrontation. Say someone with a 'physical' disability has a orange badge and someone with a disability has a purple badge, what we'd potentially end up with is some individuals with orange badges demanding that those with purple badges give up their spaces. Once again we'd return to arguments about who has it worse, when that isn't how this works.
The other flawed argument I've heard is that this will reduce the number of spaces available to those with mobility problems. Ultimately, if this decision creates leads to a strain on spaces, it should be those distributing blue badges to request for more local, blue badge spaces. We should be increasing resources, not keeping them from those who need them. Ultimately, it isn't the person with a hidden disabilities fault that there are not more blue badge spaces. Additionally, I fear that some people believe that it is some of these people who are already using spaces with a badge. In case that is anyone's thought process, I very much doubt that those without badges with invisible disabilities are the ones to blame when all the space are gone, simply because I can't imagine they want the attention. It is my understanding the cars taking up spaces without a badge are owned by able-bodied peoples who simply haven't thought. At the end, as a disabled individual I can tell that the process for accessing such help is incredibly long and essentially impossible to take advantage of.
Ultimately, blue badges are about increasing access. For those for whom travelling without a blue badge could result in increased danger or emotional distress that is exactly what this decision will do, which is why I believe we as a community should be celebrating. At least that the message I hear when Transport Minister Jesse Norman says "Blue badges are a lifeline for disabled people, giving them the freedom and confidence to get to work and visit friends independently" (BBC). For many these difficulties may stop them leaving the house and for them a blue badge might open the door. Surely, that's what progress is.
For more information read: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44993036 (just be careful of the comments on such articles)
I hope you are all well and safe.
See you later Alligators!
Freya x
PHOTO SOURCES:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44993036
https://www.jjslist.com/blog/mental-illness-the-invisible-disability
Comments
Post a Comment