All posts tagged: disability

A moment that changed me: I cried about my cleft lip for the first time in my 60s | Disability

A moment that changed me: I cried about my cleft lip for the first time in my 60s | Disability

Published by Sam Flores

At a fundraising event, I looked across the crowded room and saw a woman with a cleft – a gap in the lip (and sometimes the palate) where a baby’s face doesn’t fuse properly during pregnancy. She was standing on her own, and I beckoned her over to join the small group I was with. She politely declined and before I quite realised what I was doing, I was crossing the room to speak to her. I too had been born with a cleft. I’d talked to doctors, my parents, my wife and other friends about it to varying degrees over the years, but as I walked towards her, I knew this was going to be the first time – in more than 60 years – that I was going to have a conversation about living with a cleft with someone who also has one. I was terrified I might offend her, but I said something like: “Isn’t it scary walking into a crowded room? Because it feels as if everyone is looking at us.” …

Blue badge holders: how are you treated by other members of the public when out? | Disability

Blue badge holders: how are you treated by other members of the public when out? | Disability

Published by Sam Flores

Scepticism about people’s right to a blue badge, as well as discussion of Motability, has created an atmosphere where disabled people are facing public questioning about their eligibility for the measures. Some disabled and chronically ill people report that they have been accused of “faking” their impairment while using their blue badges. Others say they have been accused of “scrounging” after using a car believed to be via Motability. We would like to hear from people who have blue badges. How are you treated by other members of the public when out? Have you ever faced scepticism or harassment about your eligibility? What happened? Share your experience You can share your responses in the form below or by messaging us. We will not use your submission without contacting you first.  Your responses, which can be anonymous, are secure as the form is encrypted and only the Guardian has access to your contributions. We will only use the data you provide us for the purpose of the feature and we will delete any personal data when …

Bafta issues ‘unreserved’ apology to Black and disability communities for racial slur incident

Bafta issues ‘unreserved’ apology to Black and disability communities for racial slur incident

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Bafta has issued an “unreserved” apology to the Black and disability communities following the broadcast of a racial slur during its 2026 film awards ceremony. An independent review into the incident found “a number of structural weaknesses” in the organisation’s planning for the high-profile event. In a statement released on Friday, Bafta’s board of trustees extended their apologies not only to the Black community for the racist language used, but also to the disability community, for whom the incident led to “unfair judgement, stigma, and distress.” The controversy arose during the 79th British Academy Film Awards in February, when disability campaigner John Davidson, who lives with Tourette’s, could be heard shouting as actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented the award for special visual effects. The trustees confirmed that an independent review, conducted by RISE Associates, was commissioned to investigate …

When Should You Disclose a Disability to a Romantic Partner?

When Should You Disclose a Disability to a Romantic Partner?

Published by Jenni Sidey

Most prospective partners begin a new relationship seeking to put their best foot forward. This involves showcasing strengths and hiding weaknesses—both visible and invisible. When one or both prospective partners have a hidden disability, revelation is often made through delayed disclosure because people may fear rejection, stereotypes, and stigma. Regarding the impact of this difficult disclosure, as with other relationship revelations, timing matters. Research explains. Disability Disclosure Elie Mimoun et al. (2025) investigated how timing of disclosing disabilities impacts romantic relationships in an aptly named piece, “Disclosing Invisible Disabilities to Romantic Partners.”[i] They recognize societal misperceptions of individuals with disabilities as helpless, incompetent, and intellectually challenged, sometimes viewed as “asexual” because they do not meet the societal able-bodied model of beauty and desirability. These misperceptions lead to relational challenges for many people living with disability seeking to form romantic bonds. Studying Stereotype and Stigma Using a participant sample of 494 college students without disabilities, Mimoun et al. studied how disclosure of “invisible” disabilities impacted a romantic partner’s willingness to continue the relationship. They found that …

How Joseph Grigely Blazed a Trail for Disability Arts

How Joseph Grigely Blazed a Trail for Disability Arts

Published by Jenni Sidey

I never thought I’d get misty-eyed reading an essay called “Why I Am an Asshole,” but artists are always surprising me, and that’s why I love my job. This tragicomic tearjerker, from 2021, appears in Joseph Grigely’s new essay collection Otherhow: Essays and Documents on Art and Disability 1985–2024. The book made me laugh and cry, and it made me angry, too—angry alongside, rather than at, the author. I felt seen. I learned lots. You’re probably wondering: Why is Joseph Grigely an asshole? His short, self-deprecating answer is that he is fed up, as a deaf man, with navigating ableism, with overcoming the same obstacles again and again. Sometimes, that frustration shows. And sometimes, when people—strangers, pizza delivery workers, police officers—try talking to him and he doesn’t reply because he cannot hear, they grow angry or annoyed, or even try to arrest him. Related Articles The asshole essay originated as a preemptive apology to students while guest lecturing on Zoom. He was asking for their patience as he eyeballed several screens to keep track of …

Everything The Traitors gets right about disability and neurodivergence – and what it doesn’t…

Everything The Traitors gets right about disability and neurodivergence – and what it doesn’t…

Published by Daniella Wilson

Add The Traitors to your watchlist Disability representation in television is still on the come-up, and often done badly to this day: full of pity, ableism or inspiration porn. But ever since its first season, The Traitors has continually seemed to buck that trend. Each season has seen multiple disabled and neurodivergent cast members with a variety of experiences, and their stories are generally handled sensitively, with all of them included in the show as easily as anyone else. On mainstream, primetime television, The Traitors is being quietly revolutionary when it comes to showing disabled people on screen. Viewers get to see the breadth of ways that disability and neurodivergence can look, instead of just one version. Across all the seasons, casual representation is done extremely well – disability is allowed to be part of the person’s story, and is allowed to be key to their identity, but this is done without it being all they are allowed to be. We often do not find out about someone’s disability until a fair amount into the …

Hilary Mantel—On Disability, Psychics, and Princess Diana

Hilary Mantel—On Disability, Psychics, and Princess Diana

Published by Jenni Sidey

After Hilary Mantel passed away in 2022, her editor Nicholas Pearson gathered dozens of her nonfiction pieces into this posthumous collection. In these essays, Mantel shines, revealing much of the inner workings of her mind. As I read, I treasured every new fact or tidbit about her life. She loved newspapers, folding them as she read. She was a bit of a royal watcher, making side comments about this or that outfit the Princess Royal was wearing, or writing entire essays about Princess Diana in “The Princess Myth.” But more than these morsels of insight, I found myself drawn to her essays about living with endometriosis. In her 2003 essay “Written on Our Bodies,” she details her experience with the disease, which caused her immense pain, infertility, and early menopause. More than that, disability made her stand out as the “most dreaded” childless woman. People treated her as seemingly “defective,” asking intrusive questions about her fertility. “If you want to know what feminism has achieved, a good measure is our attitude toward the working mother. …

Physical disability predicts future cognitive decline more strongly than the reverse

Physical disability predicts future cognitive decline more strongly than the reverse

Published by José Betancourt

An analysis of longitudinal data from the Taiwan Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study found that the relationship between disability and cognitive decline in older adults is bidirectional. The paper was published in BMC Geriatrics. As people age, gradual changes occur in the body and brain that affect physical functioning and mental abilities. Mobility, sensory functioning, strength, and coordination become more and more limited and can, in time, result in serious disability. These limitations result from cumulative biological wear, chronic illnesses, and past injuries. Cognitive abilities also decline with age. Mental processes such as memory, attention, processing speed, and executive functioning gradually worsen. In normal aging, these cognitive changes are usually mild and do not significantly interfere with daily independence. In some individuals, however, cognitive decline becomes more pronounced and progresses to conditions that impair everyday functioning. Physical disability and cognitive decline are related but distinct processes that do not always occur together. A person may experience physical limitations without cognitive impairment, or cognitive decline without severe physical disability. Both conditions can increase dependence …

Run Away star says “right steps” being taken for disability representation

Run Away star says “right steps” being taken for disability representation

Published by Daniella Wilson

At one point taking the top spot on Netflix’s global TV charts, the Harlan Coben thriller Run Away has continued to grip viewers with its various twists and turns. The drama has all of Coben’s signature flair, following a father who is on a search for his daughter but who gets caught up in a darker mystery in the process. As well as fan reactions to the twists, there have also been plenty of online comments about one of the show’s characters, Anya, who is played by actress Ellie Henry. The former Hollyoaks star features in the series as one of James Nesbitt’s on-screen children but since Run Away’s release, some viewers took to social media to ask questions about Henry’s wheelchair usage. While Henry has taken such comments in her stride and continues to shine a light on ambulatory wheelchair usage, she says that in terms of disability representation in British TV that things are heading in the right direction – but that there’s always room for improvement. Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Henry said: …