As a Non-disabled person, here’s what I’ve learnt about Disability Pride Month

As a young person who grew up in Hong Kong, I had never heard of Disability Pride Month. Even 2 years after I arrived in the UK to study, I still had not heard of the awareness month before I started my internship at the SIC. So, when I was tasked with writing an article about this event, I realised I had a lot to learn. In fact, the more I researched disability pride, the more I realised that a lack of knowledge on this topic was not just a ‘me problem’. 

Numerous articles have shown that the UK population at large does not know a lot about the concept of Disability Pride Month, even fewer have celebrated it. This leads to a big question, why are so many celebrating the LGBT Pride Month in June, while the July Disability Pride Month stays hidden from public discourse? In this article, I will share what I have learnt throughout my research on  Disability Pride Month’s history, why it has been generally hidden in the UK, and show why it is both important and beneficial for the non-disabled community and businesses to celebrate this event.

What is Disability Pride Month? 

Let’s address the elephant in the room. Why have most of the UK population, probably including me and you, not heard of Disability Pride Month? Besides the fact that society hasn’t paid substantial attention to the needs of the disabled, it is most probably because Disability Pride Month originated in the US. To understand how Disability Pride Month started, one has to trace it back to at least 1990. 

Signed by US President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a well-known law in the US that prohibits acts of discrimination against disabled people. Consequently, the first Disability Pride Day was held in Boston in the same year to celebrate the passage of the law. Yes, you read it correctly, the event started off as Disability Pride Day. However, with the awareness of disability rising each year, more and more cities joined in and celebrated Disability Pride Day. 

New York City participated, then Los Angeles, Madison and Wisconsin etc. followed suit. However, the story does not end here. On the 25th anniversary of Disability Pride Month, Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City officially announced the whole of July would become Disability Pride Month, to honour the ‘natural and beautiful part of human diversity’. While that is a good thing to hear, the situation in the UK is quite different. 

Until 2022, only 2 cities in the UK celebrated Disability Pride Month. Brighton is the first one to participate in a celebration, having held its first Disability Pride Brighton event in 2017. Chester also had its own Kaleidoscope Festival to promote neurodiversity, inclusion and disability. However, these are just outlying cases in general. While other cities and county councils recognise July as Disability Pride Month, they have not done anything specifically to promote the cause as they deem the existing accessibility policies enough to eliminate barriers for disabled people. 

Sadly, in real life, that is just not the case. According to the UK 2021 Census, only around half of the disabled people from 16 to 64 years old are employed, whereas the same rate is 81.6% for the non-disabled population. We can see that disabled people are still facing a strong barrier in terms of getting a job and in joining the workplace.

Although official events are limited, for the disabled community this is a month that is celebrated in a variety of ways. From organising parades to the use of social media, the disabled community celebrate Disability Pride Month in locations all across the world. On July 10 this year, New York will hold their annual Disability Pride Parade, with Chester following its own tradition on the 11th. 

Most recently, the community even designed their own Disability Flag. The flag consists of a multi-coloured lightening behind a black background, which represents the diversity of the community and the difficulties faced by disabled people.

For the disabled community, this month is a time for them to celebrate achievements. Laken Brooks, a disabled 26-year graduate student at the University of Florida stated that she celebrate Disability Pride to ‘honor the disability rights advocates who came before’ her, while also enjoying moments of ‘joy’ and ‘kinship’. Considering that  Pride Month is just around the corner, there is no better time for non-disabled people to join in the event and become the allies the community needs. 

Okay, I understand the situation is not optimistic. But how does that relate to my business and what can I do to help?

In 2021, it was recorded that over 14.6 million people in the UK have experienced long-term illness, impairment or disability. Within the student population, about 332,300 home students stated that they are disabled, which totals up to about 17.3% of all home students. Within the next few years, all of Gen Z will be in the workforce, and we are a generation that values diversity, inclusion, and accessibility as well as sustainability from our employers. 

Within the workforce, depending on who you ask for data, the disabled population represents between 19 and 33%. And that is a huge number. If businesses continue to ignore the needs of the disabled community, they are not just losing potential customers but also suffering the loss of future talent and professionals that might be collaborating with them in the future. Unfortunately, that means financial and business loss in the long term. 

By celebrating disabled pride, and becoming advocates for the disabled community throughout the year, businesses create a safe environment for employees past and present to disclose their needs. At first glance, it might seem that only a few disabled colleagues on the team benefit. However, the values that lay behind Disability Pride Month are values that cater to the needs of all. 

By introducing inclusion and diversity into the workplace, it will be easier for all employers to speak up when they are facing issues and if and when they need additional support. In this way, the company can facilitate communication between employers and employees, and tackle problems that have been faced by both sides in a constructive manner. This is good for fostering a healthy workplace culture, and again, excellent for business growth in the long run. 

At this point, then, you might ask, what can I do precisely to help promote the cause? As someone who is non-disabled but is now writing blogs to support disabled professionals, the primary suggestion that I can give is to learn. Not just learn about the history of Disability Pride Month, but the actual needs of disabled people. If you have employees that are part of the disabled community, ask them and communicate with them directly. Understand their perspective, see what they are experiencing, and if it is feasible, take a step further to see what you can do to help. 

Don’t have disabled employees yet? You can navigate through the internet and view blogs like this one, to have at least a general understanding of the topic. This way, in the future, you will know how to cater to and adjust to the needs of disabled talent. To learn, and then take action, is possibly the most direct way one can contribute to changing the current unfavourable situation faced by the disabled community. 

How to be an ally

US singer Lizzo, known for being proud as part of the plus-size and female community, recently came under fire for using a slang term that has a derogatory meaning within the disabled community. Not surprisingly, the disabled community spoke out at why this word should not be used. A lot of the time, the voices of the community go unheard. But in this case, Lizzo actually took active action to correct her mistake. 

Within 3 days, Lizzo apologised, changed the lyrics of the song, and proclaimed that she is one who ‘listens’ and ‘takes action’. Lizzo’s courage to learn from her mistakes has been widely celebrated by both fans and disability activists. 

Lizzo’s pragmatism should be a lesson for us all. It is always possible to achieve mutual understanding if one is willing to learn more. Generally, there are many different resources available to learn more. One way to do so is simply by attending panel events and talks, which provide the information to you in a simple and digestible manner. 

On July 4, the CEO of SIC, Rachael Mole, will be holding an expert panel event on the topic ‘What Disability Pride Month Means to Us’. A panel of disabled experts are invited to share their stories of disability in the workplace. They will explain why celebrating Disability Pride Month is important to them. A great first step, we can all make.

At the end of the day, if Lizzo can change, I can change, then surely well-experienced employers and entrepreneurs can all take a step forward to make the working environment more inclusive.