i choose to make noise

Over the last couple of years of doing this disability advocacy work, I've found myself wondering how I got here. 

How did I go from being someone who actively avoided talking about my disability with friends and family, to putting my story and perspectives on the internet for everyone to see? 

How did I go from completely isolating myself from the disability community to building relationships with a number of other disabled individuals?

It's been a journey. One that started fairly innocently — and perhaps naïvely. 

I talk a lot about the inception of Seated Perspectives. It actually started with a post on LinkedIn. 

I had just gone through another round of ableist nonsense in a workplace, one where I didn't feel supported or heard, really, and it made me think about all the adapting and accommodating I had done over my career to make things easier for my employers. (Yes, I realize it should have been the other way around.)

And, for the first time, I decided to write about it. 

This one moment represented such a big shift for me. I had always kept my access concerns and annoyances mostly to myself, because I didn't want to draw attention to me or my needs. 

I wanted to blend in and be as much like everyone else as I could. It's a muscle I built as a newly disabled high school student, and I kept developing it for years after. 

So, this act, of being so vocally angry and informative about my own experience as a disabled woman, was kind of radical.

The response was fascinating. Some thanked me for educating them, others reacted with outrage to some of the scenarios I shared, and others praised my courage and vulnerability. 

The conversations I had after this post made me realize just how limited people's understanding of disabled experiences are. And what struck me the most was that this was true of a lot of the people in my own circle, as well.  

I was playing a big role in protecting non-disabled people and letting them live in comfortable ignorance. I had never (ever) challenged people in positions of power to do better. And, suddenly, I was feeling comfortable with the idea of challenging perceptions and making some noise. 

I started posing ideas to myself. Maybe I can create a social media account that sheds light on some common disability challenges. Maybe I can craft a brand around it. Maybe I should start following more people in the disability community and start engaging with them.  

And that's how Seated Perspectives started. At first, the goal was to educate and challenge the people in my own network. In fact, I had convinced myself that that was more than enough impact.

But I feel like now it's so much more. Yes, I'm still challenging perspectives and sharing useful information for non-disabled allies, but the people I'm actually showing up for are the disabled individuals that are still struggling with embracing their disability. 

I'm making noise and taking up space for the disabled individuals — primarily women and non-binary folks — who don't yet feel like they have it in them to do the same. 

I'm demanding attention for them. And also giving them the words and concepts that they might not be able to articulate yet. 

Well, let's be honest. I'm doing it for a past version of myself who didn't have the words herself.

Thank you, always, for reading.

Ali