Category: Disability
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Seeing Disability Through My Eyes
Disability Pride Series Our Beautiful Challenges — Marie When people look at me today, they see someone who is proud to talk about disability. They see an advocate. A writer. Someone who speaks openly about living with cerebral palsy. But it wasn’t always that way. For years, I was afraid of being associated with the…
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The Ugly Laws: The History Many People Never Learned
Disability Pride Month Series Our Beautiful Challenges — Marie One of the reasons I wanted to create a Disability Pride Month series was because I realized that many people—even people within the disability community—don’t know some of the history that shaped our lives today. I know I didn’t. Not long ago, I learned about something…
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What is the Disability Pride Flag Mean to Me
Disability Pride Month Series — Marie W.O.W.C.P. When I look at the Disability Pride Flag, I do not just see colors. I see stories. I see people. I see history. And I see pride. For many years, I struggled with what disability meant in my own life. Not because I hated who I was. But…
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The Generation In Between
Disability Pride Month Series — Marie W.O.W.C.P. Sometimes I feel like I belong to a generation that existed between two worlds. I was born after the disability rights movement had already begun changing lives, but before many of those changes fully reached everyday life. I was born after people had already started fighting for accessibility,…
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The Women I Become
Identity & Growth Our Beautiful Challenges — Marie Sometimes I stop and think about the person I have become. Not the person other people see. Not the person people assume I am because of my disability. But the person I know myself to be. And honestly, I am grateful for her. I am a woman…
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The Strength I Find in Everyday Moments
Identity & Personal Growth Our Beautiful Challenges — Marie When people think about strength, they often picture big moments. They picture overcoming major obstacles, achieving huge goals, or surviving life’s biggest challenges. But living with cerebral palsy has taught me something different. Real strength is often found in the everyday moments. The moments nobody sees.…
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Keeping Myself Above Water
Health & Wellness,Identity & Personal Growth Our Beautiful Challenges — Marie For the most part, I’m happy with who I am as a person living with a disability. Still, every now and then, I do get in a mood where I feel like people don’t always see how much of a struggle it can be…
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The Big Change
Womanhood Through the Challenges Our Beautiful ChallengesBy Marie W.O.W.C.P. I’m very close to that time in every woman’s life. The big change is knocking on my door. And honestly, I think for many women this season of life can feel emotional, confusing, and even scary for different reasons. For me, it feels even more frightening…
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Protecting My Peace Is Growth
Identity & Personal Growth,Mental Health & Wellness I write a gratitude entry every day and sometimes I turn them into blog posts There comes a point in life when you realize that protecting your peace is just as important as protecting your heart. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to understand how important it is…
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Part 2: What It Takes to Show Up Every Day
Disability & Advocacy,Leadership & Representation Becoming the Living Example Series Our Beautiful ChallengesBy Marie W.O.W.C.P. There’s something people don’t always see. They see you show up.They see you get through the day.They see you smile, talk, and keep going. But they don’t always see what it takes to get there. Because showing up isn’t just…
