Normal is a strange word. It’s meant to represent the qualities of a majority, but I’m sick of how many people it leaves out. I want to cast a wider net.
Margie Clayman is a little person. As in, she’s shorter than most people. Why do we have to refer to her as a little person? Why can’t she just be person? We’re so used to “normal” that it’s somehow become ok to hire dwarfs as entertainment at parties – just because they’re short. Margie is often looked over in lines at restaurants – because people think she’s a child. They never looked at her.
That doesn’t just say something about society’s view of little people. It also says something about society’s view of children.
Kids who struggle in school are told that they are lazy. The truth is that human beings have learning differences. Education emphasizes reading with our eyes above all else, but many people learn best through hearing words instead of seeing them. Why is seeing words so much more important than hearing them?
Oh that’s right. Because blindness isn’t normal. Blind people are ignored all the time. Name all the places you go that offer braille signage. Very few. Hell, even as I write this, I realize I’ve never considered how blind people could ever hear my blog.
And while I loved that Wimpy South Africa recently reached out to blind people by using sesame seeds to create braille messages on hamburger buns, why was the idea of marketing to blind people such a novel concept?
Thankfully technology thrives on the ability to reach people where “normal” so far has not.
- Audible.com exists for people who love to read with their ears.
- KhanAcademy.org uses videos to break down information into chunks and allows students to learn and progress at their own pace.
- Interactive books, an emerging medium, are perfect for those who need tactile learning experiences.
- Dictation apps help people who struggle with the physical and mental acts of writing (their brain processes information differently than for those of us who are natural writers).
Technology is an equalizer. For most, innovation can’t come fast enough.
In the meantime, normal is a term reserved for an elite group of people (that apparently does not include those with a low IQ). But not everyone wants a membership to the club…
