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[flightlesstinkerbell]

I am looking for the modern, correct sign language signs for different disabilities and conditions or disorders. Blind, autism, and any others people can think of... Thanks

[flightlesstinkerbell]

Photos and final product for Mq. & Mrs.’s amazing lgbtq coloring book for kids.

Model : Alicia Michele

[flightlesstinkerbell]

It is our duty as feminists to protect and respect women in Hijabs

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being mentally ill is just being fed up with your own shit 24/7 like oh my god are we really going to do this again can I have like one hour of peace just one fucking hour oh my god p l e a s e

[flightlesstinkerbell]

The 2016 Election and the Most Important Lesson

The 2016 Election and the Most Important Lesson

The Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. has a difficult task. In fact, they have three. The first, which may be the most straight-forward to accomplish is to provide a memorial to all those lost to the hatred and violence of the Holocaust. The second, which is more complicated, is to convey the sheer enormity of what happened. We have all heard the numbers; six million Jews and at least six million other people (ethnic Poles and Slavs, gay people, disabled people, political dissidents) were killed in a machine of death. As part of the exhibits, they include a number of rooms designed to show the scale of the slaughter, and the organized, institutionalized manner in which it was accomplished.

The third task the Museum takes on is by far the most difficult, but it contains the most important lesson. That is the lesson of the 80%. By rough estimate, ten percent of people living under the Third Reich were die-hard Nazis who believed whole-heartedly in their platform, message, and methods. Another ten percent were the targeted, those who were deemed “other” and “the enemy.”

And then there was the other 80 percent of the population. They did not active kill anyone or hold positions of power. They were the “average” citizen, who just wanted to live their lives. And they were willing to look the other way to do so. They did not rise up or speak out. They turned their heads away from the violence and hatred as they walked down the street. They were willing to let the atrocities happen if they were left alone, or were able to reap some of the economic or social benefits of Nazi doctrine.

If that 80 percent was willing to say something, do something, it may have made a difference. I am not saying it would have prevented the Holocaust; no one can know what would have happened. But they could have made a difference, even on a small level. They did not have to take up arms are try to kill the Nazis. But they could have been willing to shop at a store owned by a Jew, or been willing to step in when they saw someone being targeted on the street.

They could have made a difference, but instead they looked away.

America, it's your turn now.

I am not saying that Trump is Hitler, or that this is the rise of the Fourth Reich. I am saying that there is widespread prejudice, hatred, and even violence in this country right now. There are people who are being targeted, bullied, even assaulted by people who are claiming the more extreme parts of Trump's doctrine. Businesses, places of worship, and personal property are being vandalized; people are shouting hateful things at women wearing hijab; swastikas are appearing on school whiteboards.

It is our job not to look away. If you see something like this, and can step into the situation safely, it is our responsibility to do so. If you fear for your own safety, then call the police. Contact a local Islamic Center or Synagogue or Church and try to learn more about people not like you. Volunteer with social justice organizations, tutoring programs, interfaith councils. Find a way to make the world around you a better place. Speak up for those who have no voice, even if they look, speak, or worship differently than you.

I am not just speaking to Trump supporters, but those who voted for Hillary, and especially the half of eligible voters who did not vote at all. Just looking at the rising hatred and saying “Well, that is why I voted for the other person” is not enough. You, we, must act.

I believe that most people in this country are good people, regardless of political party. I refuse to believe that the majority of Americans are racist, misogynistic, transphobic, Islamophobic, homophobic, xenophobic morons. Sure, there are a few, very loud, outspoken people who fit in those categories. But I believe the majority of Americans truly believe in equality and respect for all.

Equality is not just a right, it is a responsibility. We are responsible for making sure that ALL Americans, regardless of race, gender, religion, ability, or sexual orientation get to enjoy that equality.

You want to make America great again? It was always great, or at least had the potential to be so. America is an experiment in change, and we have always striven to extend the promise of the founding fathers to all who make America home.

So step up, speak out. It's on you now.

Katherine F.

[flightlesstinkerbell]

ok Paralympians in general are badass but Paralympic archers are fucking METAL i mean look at this shit!!!

Danielle Brown! A team GB archer with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome in her feet, meaning her feet are in near constant pain and she walks with crutches. She leans on a stool to shoot AND STILL MANAGES PERFECT FORM

Matt Stutzman!! American athlete who currently holds the world record for longest accurate shot in archery!! He was born without arms, he does this shit with his feet

Zahra Nemati!!! From Iran! She competed in fucking taekwondo, SHE’S A BLACK BELT, but a car accident in 2003 left her with spinal injuries and paralysis in both legs. DID SHE LET THAT STOP HER? FUCKING NO, SHE TOOK UP ARCHERY INSTEAD, NBD!! And what else? SHE QUALIFIED FOR BOTH THE 2016 PARALYMPICS AND THE GENERAL OLYMPICS, and she was the flag bearer for the Iranian team in the Parade of Nations.

when. will. ur. fav. ever!

[flightlesstinkerbell]

Umm... the Simpsons are yellow. Like actually yellow. This is not a racial statement or slur. They are the color of sunflowers.

Today in White People Wanna Be Oppressed So Bad and also White As The Default Is Really Tired…

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So proud of my mother for doing her own research after I sent her that meme. A sign she hung in her car window.

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My trigger was jelly beans.

Do you have any triggers?

Jello, Popsicles, Soup Broth. 

[flightlesstinkerbell]

“Rise Up” Inspiration Video

There has been a great deal of publicity and conversation - not all of it good - about the movie “Me Before You.” In it, a quadriplegic man falls in love with his caregiver, and she with him, and he decides in the end to kill himself rather than be a burden for her. It has been decried by people from just about every belief and background, all over the world. Anti-euthanasia movements, Christian groups, pro-life groups, and of course, the Disability Community. It is yet another example of Hollywood using people with disabilities as nothing more than a plot device, devaluing our lives. Our function is to be inspirational to the able-bodied characters, usually to die in order for them to discover the value of their own lives. Disabled characters are almost never portrayed by disabled actors, leading to some less-than-comfortable comparisons to blackface (when white actors wore make-up to appear Black or Latino).

While reading articles and blog posts about the movie and the entirely-justified reaction of the Disability Community, I stumbled across a music video directed by M. Night Shamalan for singer Andra Day's Grammy-award winning song “Rise Up.”

Let me first say, I greatly enjoy the song. The lyrics speak of the strength that comes from two people together, how Love conquers all. As a person who, more than once, has needed the help of my partner to continue on, the lyrics speak to me.

The video, however, is greatly disturbing to me. It shows the story of a man and woman getting ready for and going on a date. The man is shown as a quadriplegic who appears to have no movement below his neck at all. The point is that they love each other so much that even his quadriplegia does not get in the way of their relationship.

Unfortunately, what it actually shows is a man completely without agency. His chair is a basic hospital-type reclining manual chair with an extra head cushion. It is completely unrealistic for a quadriplegic full-time wheelchair user. There is no padding, no support, no provisions for pressure relief or postural changes.

There is no way for the man to move the chair at all. He is completely dependent on her.

She gets him into the chair (using main strength – there is no Hoyer lift), bathes him, dresses him, and puts him in the back of an older-model wheelchair van. At the restaurant she feeds him. In the parking lot, a handsome able-bodied man smiles at her, and she simply turns away to get her disabled husband/partner out of the car.

The video is actually titled the “Inspiration Version.” I would be surprised if most people watch it and identify with the man. Most people will watch it and be inspired that the woman is doing all this because she loves him. And he loves her – that is clear. They want you to be inspired by the love of the woman – that is why they add the handsome man she ignores.

Why are those of us with disabilities always portrayed as helpless? Why is it inspirational for people to actually date, marry, love us? I find this video even more disturbing than “Me Before You,” because it is more subtle in its prejudice. The man in the wheelchair is still there to be a plot device, so you will see how inspirational the woman is.

I am not a plot device, I am not here to inspire you. I am here to live my life, not make you feel better about yours.

Watch the video here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwgr_IMeEgA

[flightlesstinkerbell]

Does Planned Parenthood offer Hormone Replacement Therapy for transgender people?

Someone asked us: 

Can Planned Parenthood provide hormones to transgender people? And if so, what are the costs?

Why yes, yes we do. There are an increasing number of Planned Parenthood health centers that offer hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for trans clients. (Cost will vary depending on your insurance and Planned Parenthood health center policies.) Currently, the Planned Parenthood health centers that offer hormone treatment for trans folks are: 

California:

Fresno

Mountain View

Sacramento

Santa Cruz

Walnut Creek

Colorado:

Denver

Maine:

Biddeford

Portland

Sanford

Topsham

Montana:

Billings

Great Falls

Helena

New Hampshire:

Derry

Keene

Manchester

West Lebanon

New York:

Ithaca

North Carolina:

Asheville

Chapel Hill

Raleigh

Vermont:

Barre

Bennington

Burlington

Hyde Park

Middlebury

St. Albans 

Washington

Bellingham 

- Calvin and Maureen at QueerTips

[flightlesstinkerbell]

Viciously destroy the idea that bullying is a normal part of growing up.

[flightlesstinkerbell]

“Despite their disability” reasoning separates disabled people from their disabilities.

Many disabled people, such as Steven Hawking (who has ALS), have said that their disabilities are the reason they have done such great work.

Many artist’s and musician’s work is unique because they did not use colors they could not see or notes they could not hear.

Blind musicians like Stevie Wonder had to use one hand to read Braille and the other to play piano, which also shaped their music.

Saying disabled people did something “despite their disability” treats them as abled people with a flaw. It ignores that many of disabled people’s talents are because of their disabilities.

Original post here

[flightlesstinkerbell]

People love to talk about whether or not disabled people can work

but if you can work just fine and your disability is destroying your ability to have a life outside of work (because work takes all your energy and more)

Dead silence. Nobody cares.

[flightlesstinkerbell]