Yo, Myself & Ich

Ah, love is in the air... Valentine's Day is here again and the streets are filled with people selling bouquets of roses, boxes of chocolates and teddy bears. Those super cheesy little things that many people hate but that I, personally, love. Until a couple of years ago, to me the date was nothing more than a vile reminder that I was going to be left on the shelf, because I had been single since before I started college. I kept wondering if anyone would ever notice me. And when you have a disability, finding love can become a huge challenge, because unfortunately prejudice and stereotypes about us still abound in the rest of society. Do you remember the article in which I complained about how it seems that when we become adults we disappear from the radar? Well, that's precisely why. People continue to see us as forever children, as innocent little angels or as asexual beings, which when looking for a partner can be a real pain in the rear. It is assumed that we only get toget...

Some time ago, I stopped a cab to go downtown to run some errands for my mother's birthday. To my surprise, the driver was a woman, something that I don't come across too often, so I got in the front seat without a worry. As soon as I climbed in and put my crutches on my lap as usual, however, the driver immediately started interrogating me non-stop about my disability. She asked, "What's wrong with your legs?" , to which I replied it was a birth defect. I thought that would be it, but then she continued. "Wait, so you're going to be like this forever?" , she then went on, with a look of sheer shock on her face. I nodded, nonchalantly, as I buried my head in my phone and pretended to be texting so she would leave me alone, but it did not work. "But... but... there's got to be some sort of cure, right? Can you not have some surgery?" . That was the last straw for me. "I've had twelve" , I replied. She continued to ramble ab...

  As World Spina Bifida Day has rolled around once more, I wanted to write another article related to disability justice and inclusion because it seemed the most appropriate thing to do. It probably would have taken me much longer to come up with a specific topic had it not been for a recent personal experience that I had, which ultimately drove me to write about microaggression. You might ask yourself what this means, as the concept has been trown arount a lot lately by people who may not even understand its significance. Psychologist Derald W. Sue , who's written two books on microaggressions, defines the term as  "the everyday slights, indignities, put downs and insults that people of color, women, LGBT populations or those who are marginalized experiences in their day-to-day interactions with people" . Think, for example, of a gay man being complimented for "passing as straight" or "not looking gay", a white woman clutching her bag as she enters an...

While everyone else was buzzing about the recent Olympic Games in Tokyo, I was way too busy finishing my thesis to even remotely consider watching them. I normally love to watch the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as any competition featuring Chilean or German athletes/teams, but this time I simply couldn't, partly due to my obligations and partly because of the mind-blowing 13 hour time difference between Chile and Japan. But deep down inside, I was actually much more excited for the event that would follow two weeks later: the Paralympics. Not to my surprise, yet much to my dismay, the Paralympics were not broadcasted anywhere on Chilean television, nor on any of the cable sports channels that we have, while the traditional Olympics obviously were. "Geez, so much for diversity!", I thought. "Looks like the only minorities that matter are the ones that sell". But then, something happened that quickly restored my faith in this ever-evolving humanity. To ...

Throughout the entire month of June, we saw rainbows everywhere we went: on logos, in merchandising, and even in stadiums (sorry not sorry, UEFA). You would've had to live somewhere on a deserted island not to know it was LGBTQ+ Pride Month. But I get the feeling that you didn't know July is Disability Pride Month... right? Today, I want to dig into why this happens, and what the disabled community might be doing wrong when it comes to raising awareness. Statistically speaking we are probably the most numerous minority group. As many as 1 in 10 people are considered to be disabled worldwide, although, since not every disability is apparent or visible to the naked eye, we often appear to be way less. But if that is the case, and there's so many of us, why are we not getting the media attention and representation that smaller minorities get? Before I go on, let me clarify one thing: I'm NOT saying anything against the LGBTQ+ community by any means. Many loved ones of mine...